This common household item makes for a versatile training aid

A yardstick can be used in a variety of ways to improve your game.GOLF.com

Welcome to Play Smart, a regular GOLF.com game-improvement column that will help you become a smarter, better golfer.

If you’re an avid golfer, the game can get expensive in a hurry. Between green fees, clubs, balls, fittings, clothing and whatever else, your bank account takes a pretty big hit. That’s not to mention the investment you have to make for improvement. Lessons aren’t cheap, and neither are the training aids that can guide your improvement.

Luckily for you, there are some creative (and cheap!) ways for you to improve without breaking the bank. Enter the yardstick.

Over the past couple of years, there’s not a single training aid I’ve used more than a yardstick I bought at a local hardware store. Here are three ways you can use a yardstick as an effective training aid.

How to use a yardstick as a training aid

Alignment aid

The first way I use a yardstick as a training tool is as an alignment aid. Much like you would with an alignment stick, all you need to do is lay the yardstick along your feet line aimed at your target. So long as it doesn’t move on the ground, you can be sure you are aimed correctly as you practice.

Ball position check

I’ve written about this before, but a yardstick can also be a useful aid to check your ball position. When I’m practicing, I like to lay the yardstick down at my feet with the midpoint (18-inch mark) at the center of my stance for a reference point. Then, I can manipulate my ball position based on exact measurements, noting how it affects my swing path and clubface at impact.

Putting practice

Finally, a yardstick can be a great putting aid – especially if you need a little practice at home in the winter. So long as you have a level surface to putt on, you can lay down the yardstick and practice putting on top of it. If you can get your ball to roll end over end the entire length of the yardstick, you’ll know you are starting your ball on line with some consistency.