Readiness is routine on Tour

Golfers, except probably for the vomiting part, are no different. Any good player, from junior golf, up through high school and college, and all the way to the PGA Tour, has a routine before every competitive round that puts them, physically and mentally, in the best position to succeed.

Head over to the TPC Boston practice areas this week at the Deutsche Bank Championship and you’ll see how players prepare for their rounds. Your typical weekend hacker might show up at the course minutes before tee time, head straight to the first tee, and begin without so much as a practice swing, much less quality time on the practice range or putting green. That won’t fly out here.

“You try to get ready for the round as best you can,’’ said Stewart Cink, who has been on Tour since 1997 and has won six times, including this year’s British Open. “You never can predict the way a round of golf is going to unfold in front of you, but you can be ready for most of it.’’

More and more players are incorporating workouts into their pre-round routines, spending as few as 10 or as many as 30 minutes in the tour’s sprawling fitness trailer, which features equipment from Cybex, a company based in Medway.

With apologies to Gary Player, who has been touting the benefits of physical fitness for decades, call it the Tiger Woods Effect. The toning and shaping of golfers’ bodies through weightlifting and exercise has grabbed hold of the tour the last decade, with chiseled stars such as Woods and Camilo Villegas pumping fitness into the game. Not everybody has followed the fad - “I don’t do any stretching or any working out prior to playing, I just make sure I’m relaxed and ready and focused on what I need to do for the day,’’ said Steve Stricker - but it’s quickly become a steady part of many players’ workday.

“I’ll spend as much as 30 minutes in there, just to make sure I’m loose and ready to go, get the heart pumping,’’ said David Toms, a 12-time tour winner.

Brian Gay brings his trainer with him into the fitness trailer and spends 20 minutes. Cink says he likes stretching in there so he doesn’t need to get loose once he reaches the range and can focus on his warm-up. Both players say they incorporate lunges, stretches, and a medicine ball.

On average, players like to give themselves between one and two hours before their tee time to prepare for the round, although Anthony Kim admits that as a hard-partying rookie, he’d occasionally show up with only 30 minutes to spare, and wouldn’t spend much time warming up. A bite to eat and a quick stop in the fitness trailer might take 30 minutes, usually leaving ample time to utilize all areas of the practice facility.

This is where the routine really takes shape, with quite a bit of variation. Some players always go to the putting green first; others leave the putting green for last and head straight for the range. Some base their decision on logistics, and whether they’re teeing off on No. 1 or No. 10. Chipping areas and bunker practice might also be involved.

Almost without fail, when players start by hitting golf balls on the practice range, they start with a sand wedge. But not everyone. Tom Watson, for instance, frequently opts for a 4-iron at the beginning, thinking that if he hits shots well with that club, solid swings with the shorter clubs will follow. But most pull a wedge first, and produce an assortment: half shots, pitches, lobs, full shots.

After that, a player typically works his way down the bag, skipping clubs (8-iron, then 6-iron, then 4-iron, or 9-7-5-3), then hitting multiple practice shots with the driver and 3-wood, since many of the holes require those clubs off the tee. Most players take 35 or 40 swings to get ready; others more, others less.

“I probably only hit 20 balls,’’ said Tour rookie James Nitties.

“I don’t hit a lot of balls,’’ said Charlie Wi. “I just try to do my routine, get a feel for what I need to do that day.’’

Time on the putting green can give players an idea of how fast the greens are rolling, and most stick to the same pattern of preparation. Maybe they’ll use three balls, maybe one. Perhaps they’ll start with long putts and work their way closer and closer, while others start close and work their way back out. Making sure the putting stroke feels the way it should is the goal.

That’s not to say that every range session goes well. Sometimes pitchers have poor bullpen sessions, then go out and throw complete-game gems. Same applies to golf.

“I don’t think there’s a carryover,’’ said Wi. “I hope not, because there’s probably more days where I hit it poorly than hit it good, and if I brought negative thoughts with me out to the golf course, I probably wouldn’t be out here.’’

A player’s pre-round routine can serve many purposes. It can confirm that a swing change is working, or might expose an area that needs work. It can help calm nerves minutes before the competition begins. It definitely brings some comfort, knowing that following the same pattern, day after day, tournament after tournament, is as much a part of success as that long drive, close approach shot, and long birdie putt.

Without warming up before a round, the odds of playing well are sharply reduced.

“Warming up could mean the difference between a good round and a poor round, to tell you the truth,’’ said Stricker. “If you’re not loose right away, you could make a bad swing off the first tee and end up making double or triple bogey, which might set the tone for your round, and not a good tone.

“If you loosen up and practice, it can set a good tone for the day, and it’s important, no matter what level you’re playing on, to get off to a good start.’’