Pro golfers are creatures of habit. Once they find a routine that works for them, they stick to it. Golf is a game of variables, so being able to control even the tiniest things is hugely beneficial to their process.
How a golfer prepares for the round is one thing that is easy to control. From what time they wake up to what they eat for breakfast to when they arrive to the course, golfers are obsessed with consistent preparation.
Count Billy Horschel as one of the pros who has a strict regimen for his preparation. In a recent video from the DP World Tour, Horschel was spotted with a curious arrangement of balls on the range prior to his round. But as he explained, there’s a method to the madness.
With five-ball pyramids stacked in neat rows next to his hitting station, it looks as though Horschel has a little bit of obsessive compulsion. However, these range-ball pyramids are not just for looks — they also help Horschel create consistency in his warm-up routine.
“Scottie Vail, he was caddying for me, he caddies for Keegan Bradley now. He said, ‘What if we start having a certain amount of golf balls we hit every time?'” Horschel says. “There’s 44 balls down here, he throws me about five or six drivers, so I’m hitting about 50 balls.”
With a consistent number of balls placed down, Horschel will always have the same exact warm-up routine. There’s no guesswork involved.
“I know with this setup, it’s going to take me about 25 to 30 minutes to hit my balls,” Horschel says. “So I’m always on track with my time. I’m not getting lost in time.”
For each stack of five balls, Horschel uses a different club. Five balls with a lob wedge, sand wedge, gap wedge, 9-iron, 6-iron and 3-iron, and then he hits three balls with a 5-wood and 3-wood. He finishes the routine by hitting five or six drivers and then two 7-irons and two pitching wedges.
“Same way every time,” he says.
Consistency is king in golf — and that even applies to how you warm up.