Range use. Practicing how to practice

Have you ever given any thought on how you practice at the range?  I'm not talking about all the stuff Tony would go over with you.  I'm talking about how you use the grass.  Now before I lose you to the thought of the "The green's keeper has lost his mind!" just follow me for a minute and I'll make my point quickly!

I want you to look at the picture below.  In it you'll see a typical hitting station on a practice facility with one minor difference.  There's something about a section of the turf in this hitting station that you typically do not see when people are hitting balls.  Can anyone see it? 

 Here, let me give you a hint.  This is something that you typically do not see.

I'm sure most of you do not pay much attention to it, but the area inside the circle is what the grass should look like when you are done hitting practice shots.  You should strive to use an entire piece of the turf, sort of like a sod cutter.  It is completely OK to consume all of the turf like this on bermuda grass.  The number one reason this sort of shot grouping is better is that is consumes the smallest about of practice space in the hitting station.  During high season, if you are going to the range in the afternoon and everyone is using the practice tee in a willy nilly fashion by spreading out their divots, there will be no place to practice.  It is often times impossible to to find a piece of turf large enough to hit off of, let along stand on that hasn't been chewed to pieces.  Secondly, the turf's recovery is primarily from the biomass in the bottom of the divot, not from the sides.  This means the grass recovers by growing straight up, not by growing from the sides across.  Recovery is quick.  Thirdly, in the game of golf we are taught to always try and leave the course in as good or better condition as when we used it for the next person that comes along.  That's why we rake bunkers and repair ball marks.  Consolidating divots on the practice tee means you are respecting your fellow member by giving them the ability to use a wonderfully prepared practice facility just as you did.

So next time you are practicing on the range, remember to practice good practicing.  The person who uses the station after you will appreciate it!