Also depends on how many weeks you plan to study.
Visiting friends might be ok - taking one day off a week (possibly a weekend day) is a good idea in general, and I think weekends off would not be a horrible idea as long as it doesn't turn into a looong weekend (skipping studying Friday and Monday too due to traveling or something). If you want to golf in the mornings and get your usual studying done in the afternoon/evening, that could work as long as you stay in the routine of studying every day. If golf disrupts your entire day, then you'll have to save it for your day off. The trouble is getting into the habit of studying every day, and I think that works best if you study 5-6 days a week. More than 2 days off a week and I think it could be hard to get into "study mode."
Basically, during the time you have, I would think of studying as a full time job. You can study 9-5 or whatever hours you choose, then the rest of the day is yours. I think you hit the nail on the head when you said you usually get 8 productive hours - I think for a lot of us that's about the maximum we can just sit and stare at a book! Some SDNers have an immense amount of stamina for reading (or at least claim to), but the main issue is that your study time needs to be productive and efficient. It doesn't matter if you put 16 hours a day in -- if you're not learning what you need to learn, you're just spinning your wheels. I studied about 8 hours each day and had plenty of time for whatever I wanted to do afterwards. No need to avoid all fun - but don't have so much "fun" that you have a headache the next day. 😉 Like everything else in life, it's important to strike a balance that works for you.
