How often should you practice golf? This is a simple question, but there are some interesting concepts to consider if you want to maximise your time and progress. Let’s dive in.
More is better
Let’s start with the most obvious point: more practice is better. In the game’s history, no one has reached a high level of performance without practice. I should note that I class practice as hitting golf balls, practicing chipping and putting, and spending time on the golf course — all of these are types of practice.
This is known as the power law of practice, it is a famous concept in motor learning where golfers get better with practice but not in a linear form.
When you are a beginner you get better quickly. However, as you advance, this same ‘unit of practice’ gives you less return in skill. This is known as the law of diminishing returns in motor learning. we’ll revisit this later when we discuss how much you need to practice based on your goals.
When to stop a practice session
Despite this rule, hitting more than 60 golf balls in a session is a bad idea for most golfers for two reasons.
How much golf practice is too much?
Firstly, over time our levels of focus dip, and you can become complacent with your reps. This can result in engraining bad habits and paying less attention to the shot outcome and what you are trying to improve in your golf swing.
Secondly, many golfers fatigue after hitting 50-60 shots in a row. This results in poorer golf swing, poorer shot outcomes and increased risk of injury.
It is tricky to say exactly when these two factors will kick in for you, but pay attention to your level of focus and levels of fatigue during practice.
It is probably a good time to stop practicing when your focus drops to a 7 out of 10, or your fatigue levels reach a 3 out of 10.
This is one of the hidden benefits of strength training. Yes, you would have the potential to gain distance, but it can help you practice to a higher level for longer.
How often should you practice?
Again, if all things are equal more is better, based on the research. However, what matters more is what skills you are practicing and how closely they are aligned to the areas limiting your progress as a golfer.
The graph below shows practice time by handicap group for golfers who lowered their handicaps and those who got worse over a 12-month period. You can see that golfers who improve tend to practice less…
You can read the full study here, but the real difference in who improved was golfers who kept playing stats which gave them insights into how they. were building their score.
Until you reach scratch I think you can make really great progress if you have 3 golf sessions a week (2 practices 1 play or 2 rounds and one practice). Two sessions a week will work well, but three smaller sessions really tends to move the needle (if you are working on the right things).
This fits what we know about motor learning, where there is a small gain in learning when we space out practice sessions. We talk about this and more in the Golf Insider Lab if you want to learn more.
Fitting this in with life
This all sounds great, but unless you are a full-time pro, life tends to get in the way. Little and often with high levels of focus is ideal, and as you develop your ability to focus and gain strength you can start to fit in longer sessions and string different elements of your game together.
Try to think how you can fit extra chunks of 5 to 10 minutes of practice seamlessly into your day. Leaving out your putting mat with a putter and balls is a great way to cue yourself to practice.
Likewise, leaving a space golf club by a mirror so you can practice your set-up and posture is another great way to spend an extra 5 minutes a day.
Summary
More practice is better, but you really need to watch your levels of focus and fatigue to not end up as one of the many golfers who practice more but get worse.
Spacing practice into smaller chunks tends to work well for most golfers and is supported by motor learning theory too.
Happy practicing – Will @ Golf Insider
Thank you will,
quite interesting. Have you also investigated the concept of periodization of training, i.e not practice everything all the time, but instead focus for a period on one or two things e.g pitching and putting or Driving and bunker play ?
Best Regards Christer