Jack Fleck and Ben Hogan took opposite approaches to preparation. Here’s what you can learn from each.
Yesterday, we followed Jack Fleck’s dream from a pro shop in Iowa to the U.S. Open.
The championship was held at the Olympic Club in San Francisco. A plane ticket was a luxury. So he drove 2,000 miles across the Great Plains to California’s golden coast.
In those days, pro golf was a lean and hungry game. If you finished outside the top 10, you might cover gas and entry fees, but you’d probably sleep in your car that night. Compare that to the 2022 U.S. Open. Last place earned 36,000 dollars. That’s about $400,000 in 1955 money.
Like Ben Hogan, his role model, Jack arrived a few days early to prepare. Let’s take a closer look at their practice rounds and see what we can apply to our own game.
Hogan played his first practice round with Sam Snead. And this is interesting:
They did not keep score.
They hit multiple balls off each tee, played approach shots from different locations, took several putts on every green — and still finished 18 holes in two-and-a-half hours.
Hundreds of fans followed Hogan. They expected to see the Hawk, the game’s great strategist, cold and focused. But Hogan was relaxed. People smiled as he walked by whistling the theme song from the hit TV show, “Davy Crockett.”
Hogan was getting to know the golf course. A scorecard would have been a distraction. He focused on the layout, the slopes and angles, the terrain and speed. That first practice round was all about feel. It was like making a friend.
Jack Fleck took a different approach. The more he played, the more prepared he felt. He shot 18 holes in the morning, took a break, played 18 in the afternoon, took a break, then played the first 8 for a third time. That’s 44 holes a day.
He recorded the locations of trees and bunkers, paced off yardages to the green, calculated every pin position and approach, and checked his mindset on difficult shots. Not even Hogan collected so much data. Jack’s notebook was a forerunner of today’s yardage book.
The differences between these two players extended to their strategies as well. Hogan had a conservative plan. So he spent time on the range, building the shots he needed. Jack had a go-for-it plan, so he spent time on the course, building the confidence he needed.
Their approaches reflected their personalities—and both would pay off in the days ahead.
Pastor Robert Schuller said, “Spectacular achievement is always preceded by unspectacular preparation.”
If you want to win tournaments, preparation is essential. Like Jack Fleck and Ben Hogan, you have to personalize your preparation strategy.
But I challenge you to try “Hogan’s No Scorecard Method.” Play one round without keeping score. Instead of counting strokes, pay attention to the layout, approaches, and pin positions. You’ll be surprised at how much you learn.
Hogan treated the golf course like a relationship. Many of us take relationships for granted, especially at home. And we never play our best when we take the game or the course for granted.
That’s all for today. Meet me back here tomorrow when we’ll learn Hogan’s strategy of “relative par.” Until then, keep imagining what’s possible.
