Have you ever thought about the way that the professionals practice and play and considered that it could help your game to learn from them. Learning to hit a golf ball well takes a lot of time and effort, and it is something that many amateur golfers take for granted.
Heading to the range to take a few swings before your next round of golf is not quite the same as putting in a true practice session at the golf driving range. If you are curious about how many golf balls pros hit a day, we have all the information you need from professional golfers.
How Many Golf Balls Do Pros Hit Per Day
On average, golfers that play the game professionally will hit about 500 golf balls per day. When you think of these 500 golf balls, you must consider that this could include shots on the golf course, range balls, short game practice, and even putting.
Golfers will not stand on the range for hours on end and just continually take the same swing, trying to become a better player. Instead, the practice balls and golf swings are used to try and improve upon a certain skill or make progress in the golf swing.
Many of these shots are hit with the golf coach or swing coach standing close by and sometimes even using a golf swing analyzer recording somewhat the golfer is doing. The one major difference between a professional golfer working on their game and an amateur is the effectiveness of the practice.
Amateur golfers hit range balls all the time. However, the thing that makes professionals great is not how many balls they hit but the types of shots they are hitting and the way they think about and work on these shots.
How Often Should Golfers Practice?
Like most other highly competitive sports, there is no perfect amount of time spent on practice. If you go to the driving range to hit balls and just end up trying to hit a driver as far as you can, the number of shots that you hit will not matter.
If, instead, you head to a golf course and take a few practice swings but focus on what you are doing and really try to make a change, the results will be considerably better.
The idea is that around 3 to 4 times a week to practice is about an idea, but in order to make this an effective session, you must plan your practice and ensure that you are thinking about hitting the golf ball the proper way.
Golfers that only play and never practice will struggle with their ability to keep shooting low scores. The combination of both practice and play is what makes a player great.
How Long Do Professional Golfers Practice A Day?
When professional golfers like Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, or Dustin Johnson are playing in an event, we get to watch what they are doing and see how their daily routine may go. However, during the off-season or even in the early part of the week before the tournament starts, we may not see these players and what they are up to.
This leaves many golfers wondering how long these players practice when they have off. The thing to remember is that even though golfers may spend 3-4 hours working on practicing and hitting golf balls at the range, there is much more to it than that.
Let’s take a look at some of the other things a golf professional may work on during the off days to ensure they are ready for every tournament.
Strength and Conditioning
Strength and conditioning are a huge part of professional golfer’s days. Almost all golfers are on a strict nutrition and exercise routine to ensure that they stay in great shape at all times. Strength and conditioning are essential because golfers that have better control and stability will end up being able to hit the ball further and straighter. Expect this to take a few hours of a professional day.
Stretching
In the golf swing, there is quite a bit of extension that takes place. You must ensure that your arms are able to extend out far and wide and that you are able to get full rotation in your game. The professional golfer will spend time each day working on stretching.
Mental Game Preparation
Mental game is something that is almost continually worked on. Whether it be routines and practice or simply reading and meditation, all professionals will have their own ways of working on their mental golf game.
Long Game
Hitting drivers and long irons on the driving range may take an hour or two, especially if there is a new technique being worked on. Don’t expect golfers to stand on the range and hit 100 drivers in a row. The clubs will go back and forth, and new targets will be used to keep things interesting.
Equipment Testing
Equipment testing is something that does not need to be done every day, yet quite often, professional golfers will hit balls using a launch monitor and make sure that their equipment is tweaked to fit exactly their needs.
Equipment testing is essential so that there is nothing that a professional could be missing out on from a performance benefit standpoint. This also includes testing which golf ball is best for the professionals game. Even if you are a 10 or 20 handicap, or a beginner, taking the time to find out what golf ball is best for a high handicap will pay big dividends to your game.
Short Game
The short game is probably the area of the game that gets the most amount of practice. When you work on the short game, you will need to ensure that you are practicing chipping, pitching, sand shots, and putting.
It is not uncommon to see a pro hitting multiple 56 degree wedges to determine his or her best lob wedge, Professional golfers will spend at least a few hours of the day working on their short game, including a large chunk practicing their putting and perfecting their ability to read a putting green accurately.
Coaching
Most professional golfers have a coach that they work with. The coach can help guide and ensure that they have the information and specifics they need to succeed. The coach and the professional often have a very strong relationship.
As you can see, the amount of time spent working on the golf game is enough to make this well more than a full-time job. The thing that makes golf so difficult is that you can’t just get better and stay better. To be a great player, you will have to spend countless hours working on improving and becoming the best that you can be.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you now see that hitting 500 golf balls a day may not seem quite as exhausting as it sounds. As long as you are spending the time working on things like putting, short game areas such as chipping with your wedge, and long game, the overall time put in will be much more effective in helping you become a better player.
Don’t let this game fool you; even after you have a great round of golf, you will need to continue practicing and working on things. For more information and golf tips be sure to check out PG Golf Links.