How many balls did Hogan hit per hour?

[golfdude54]

Rather than focusing on how many balls he hit per day in practice at the range, I'm more interested in how many balls he hit per hour on his full swings during 1953 (his best year), was he deliberate and took 1-2 minutes per ball? Or was he hitting them faster at 30 seconds per ball? Did he take planned breaks after hitting a specific amount of balls (say 10-20 balls) in a session to relieve the stress from his injured body? And last question (lol) when he practiced on the course on non-tournament days, did he ever do anything particular that set him mentally ahead of his other competitors in preparation for playing, i.e. playing worst ball 18 format practice?

[farmer]

Somewhere there is a video of Hogan practicing at the Masters. No idea what year, but you can see his pace.

[MadGolfer76]

As many as his caddie could shag.

[southplains]

My research so far indicates that many of the videos of his practice have

been edited to remove the between-balls time, so they only appear to be

rapid-fire. Reports are that he was meticulous in his practice objectives

and set-up routines and he frequently hit only 20 or so balls before stopping

to reflect on this results and what he wanted to accomplish with the next

20 balls.

[mocokid]

about 20 balls I'd agree in his post accident mode.

Then a tasty Chesterfield to rest and reflect, analyze.

Sometimes I wish I smoked to get me to take a real break after hitting 20+, especially when the going is not good.

[Jagpilotohio]

I can’t see how anyone would need 2 minutes to hit a range ball, but I can say that caring about what each ball actually does is very important.

 

I have a friend that’s a Terrible golfer and very impatient. I told him last summer that he really needed some range time. I saw him at the range a couple weeks later. He blasted through 120 balls in a half hour.

 

I told him very seriously, Mark, “If you aren’t actually aiming at something and working on something with every swing, you aren’t practicing, you’re just getting exercise.”

 

It’s So common. I used to work at a nice practice center in the 90’s. It blew my mind how many people would come in and rip through a large basket like it was some sort of race. Totally counterproductive if you aren’t working on something and aiming at something.

 

 

[shoot4par]

**“If you aren’t actually aiming at something and working on something with every swing, you aren’t practicing, you’re just getting exercise.”**

 

The number I've always heard is a ball a minute. The bold quote from Jag echoes what Claude Harmon (The old not Butch or the Third) used to say about practice. If you just hit balls without a swing thought or a target you may as well be playing pin the tail on yourself.

[hbear55]

Did you ever shoot a basketball without a basket. Don't know if you make or miss. You always need to aim at a target so you know whether or not you hit a decent shot.

[BrianMcG]

> @hbear55 said:

> Did you ever shoot a basketball without a basket. Don't know if you make or miss. You always need to aim at a target so you know whether or not you hit a decent shot.

 

That's a great analogy. Ill have to remember that and tell everyone I came up with it myself.