How often do pros "practice"? What is enough?

1pocketguru

1pocketguru

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I knew a pro that would run drills by himself about 9 hours a day. He treated it like a normal 9-5 job and did it 5 days a week. If there was a tournament on the weekend then it was "extra time on the table".
What is enough for most?
I'm wanting to play my best and I've got a good system of drills and content. My stroke seems solid.
I'm thinking if I put in 2 hours minimum on a well designed routine and do that every other day, that should be enough.
Whaddya think?
 
S

SSP

Well-known member
I started playing again last year after about 10 years of not playing, got a practice table at the end October so it's been about 3 1/2 months since I have been able to practice every day, I find PRACTICING everyday has raised my game quickly, I love to compete but when I take the time to find my mistakes both physically and mentally I make less of them when I compete, I practice about 1 hour to 11/2 hours a day, missed a couple here and there but I really like hitting balls everyday.
 
C

ChrisinNC

AzB Silver Member
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1pocketguru said:
I knew a pro that would run drills by himself about 9 hours a day. He treated it like a normal 9-5 job and did it 5 days a week. If there was a tournament on the weekend then it was "extra time on the table".
What is enough for most?
I'm wanting to play my best and I've got a good system of drills and content. My stroke seems solid.
I'm thinking if I put in 2 hours minimum on a well designed routine and do that every other day, that should be enough.
Whaddya think?
Click to expand...
I’m sure depends on their tournament schedule, but to get to the level of being a pro takes a crazy amount of practice/play. I’m guessing a minimum of 60+ hours of table time a week for 10-15+ years. That 60+ hours will be a combination of tournament match play, $$ matches, and solitary practice time.

Once they get to the pro level, those that have impeccable fundamentals may be able to get away with a little less practice time but as mentioned above, it is very high-quality practice time/drills.
 
Bob Jewett

Bob Jewett

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The more good practice time you put in, the better the various parts of your game will be.

The good news is that an hour a day of focused practice -- as you are planning -- is far more than most pool players put in. On the other hand most pool players are under a FargoRate of 400.
 
justnum

justnum

Billiards Improvement Research Projects Associate
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Practice setting up shots for other people its the fastest way to keep someone playing.

Then take turns. You decide who needs more shots.
 
F

FeelDaShot

AzB Silver Member
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I think most pros don't practice as much as you might think. They already have the skills, they just need a little tune up from time to time to get mentally prepared and dial in their stroke before a match or tournament.

However, I'm sure all pros will tell you during their early years, they had a period of 5 years or so where they become obsessed and played/practiced non-stop everyday to develop their current skill set.
 
Bob Jewett

Bob Jewett

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As to how much pros practice, consider SVB.

A story from a tournament director: SVB had not been breaking well in the tournament or at least not as well as he thought he should. The TD happened to go by the arena around 9AM. There was SVB practicing his break. He had been practicing for a couple of hours.

My own story: I went to an expo where SVB was doing booth work and demos for a vendor. A 9-foot table was set up. When I first saw the booth there weren't any customers to do demos for so SVB was practicing a long rail-first shot to take the cue ball on an unusual path. I watched the practice for a while, then I started spotting the ball for him. He continued for about 20 minutes, then I had to move on. I think he continued practicing that shot.
 
C

ChrisinNC

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FeelDaShot said:
I'm sure all pros will tell you during their early years, they had a period of 5 years or so where they become obsessed and played/practiced non-stop everyday to develop their current skill set.
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5 years of obsession to get to anywhere close to pro level would be an extreme understatement, with the possible exception of super naurally talented players like Joshua Filler.
 
G

garczar

AzB Silver Member
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I'll use a golf analogy, some tour pros are dedicated 'range rats' in that they require constant work/maintenance where others just hit a few balls and go play. Pool is no different, some spend a ton of time practicing, others just warm-up and prefer to play.
 
BRKNRUN

BRKNRUN

Showin some A$$
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I think as much as physically practicing.....You need to also practice your knowledge.......Practicing for hours the wrong stuff could actually hinder your game in the long run.....Bad habits are sometimes hard to break.....The more knowledge you gain....the better practice you can put in.

Side Note (OP): Pretty sure you need to update one of your quotes.....The "Pool is a beautiful game played by ugly people" was Joe Rogan channeling his inner Earl Strickland.

 
Rocket354

Rocket354

AzB Silver Member
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Bob Jewett said:
As to how much pros practice, consider SVB.

A story from a tournament director: SVB had not been breaking well in the tournament or at least not as well as he thought he should. The TD happened to go by the arena around 9AM. There was SVB practicing his break. He had been practicing for a couple of hours.

My own story: I went to an expo where SVB was doing booth work and demos for a vendor. A 9-foot table was set up. When I first saw the booth there weren't any customers to do demos for so SVB was practicing a long rail-first shot to take the cue ball on an unusual path. I watched the practice for a while, then I started spotting the ball for him. He continued for about 20 minutes, then I had to move on. I think he continued practicing that shot.
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I can add one. I saw him this past November in Puerto Rico. There were both singles and teams events going on, so lots of matches scheduled for days in a row. Yet, there was SVB practicing any time he wasn't in a match. I sat there and watched him for a while. He set up jump shots and would try them, multiple times in a row. He missed one once and continued to set it up and make the one he had missed every time in a row for what must have been a good 10 mins (30+ times perhaps). Then he moved to a slightly different jump shot and did that maybe 10 times in a row, making every one. Then another. And another.

Many of the pros were practicing a lot. And maybe it was just me noticing more who I wanted to see, but SVB was beyond anyone, as were many of the Americans--Tyler Styer was also omnipresent.

So to the OP: For figuring out how much a top pro practices, I'd start at 40hrs a week and go up from there. What is enough depends on what you are trying to accomplish. If you want to be a 600fr player then 7-8hrs/week should be fine depending on how far you have to go. If you want to be a pro then that's not even close to enough.
 
Rocket354

Rocket354

AzB Silver Member
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MitchAlsup said:
In my case, I can't seem to put in more than 3 hrs/day without losing my focus.
It is better to practice while you have that focus than bang balls for hours.
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I enjoy pool. I can also concentrate on things for a long time. But for whatever reason, I can't concentrate on pool for a long time. 2-3 hrs for me in a day is all I can handle--and even then only about every other day. I envy those who can play more and focus the entire time.
 
Brookeland Bill

Brookeland Bill

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1pocketguru said:
I knew a pro that would run drills by himself about 9 hours a day. He treated it like a normal 9-5 job and did it 5 days a week. If there was a tournament on the weekend then it was "extra time on the table".
What is enough for most?
I'm wanting to play my best and I've got a good system of drills and content. My stroke seems solid.
I'm thinking if I put in 2 hours minimum on a well designed routine and do that every other day, that should be enough.
Whaddya think?
Click to expand...
I don’t practice enough. It shows in my game. I get about 2 to 4 hours every week if I’m lucky. I played a lot in college and law school. I may re-enroll in college just to get to practice and play more. At 77 I should be able to get into college without taking the SAT. I think I’ll major in women’s studies this time.
 
891014+1

891014+1

Active member
Francisco Sánchez Ruiz said in a interview during covid confinement "I practice 11 to 12 hours a day.. "
We all saw the result after.
In my local league, the best player plays every single day two hours before dinner, tree to four hours after dinner, we are amateurs!
Most pros practice a lot more than you may think, but the vast majority tries to hide that fact or make it look like "nothing's true" about it.
 
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