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Thursday, June 13, 2013

Five Tips To Help the Mental Game of Golf

As everyone has heard through the years and I have stated on my previous blogs the game of Golf is 10% skill and 90% mental.   With that being stated you would think since the game is only 10% skill that everyone should be able to play on the Big Tours.

I believe that most people could play on the professional tours if they do these two things.

  1. Spend countless hours perfecting their swing technique and control of the ball
  2. Have a Great Mental Game
This sounds pretty easy but, how many people want to work that hard at something they think they enjoy.  You have to give up so much to accomplish this goal.  Let's put this into perspective.  An individual wants to become a Dr.  They spend countless hours in books, classroom, medical facilities and constantly study the rest of their life.  Always learning new techniques and creating new ideas on how to perfect a field that cannot be perfected.

You Think since 10% skill is needed then all that would be simple.  Actually, that is the easy part.  The Mental Game in golf is much harder.  You have to constantly focus, think, visualize, and push your mind to stay in the game of golf.  The game has so many distractions.  The golfers that are within your ear distance that are loud, or yell that infamous word "FORE" in the middle of your back swing.  Mowers that start up in your back swing.  The people you are playing with or are watching you and they sneeze in your back swing.  The beautiful scenery that takes you away from your concentration on what you are doing.  The walk between shots.  And it keeps going on and on.

So you have to ask what can I do to help my Mental Game in Golf:

  1. Think positive
    1. visualize what you need to do,  not what you don't want to do
    2. don't over think what you are doing
    3. don't doubt yourself
  2. Play within yourself, understand your limitations
    1. Don't try something you haven't practiced
    2. Don't crunch the 7 Iron when smooth 6  will get you there
  3. Forget the last shot
    1. The more you think of the last shot the more bad shots you will make
    2. Golf is one shot made at a time
  4. Don't put undue pressure on yourself
    1. Don't start the hole with I have to make par, birdie or bogey.
    2. Don't stand over a putt wishing it into the hole and thinking you won't make it
      1. Use the stroke and swing that got you there
  5. Shut out the rest of the world
    1. Enjoy the course, the people, camaraderie, and scenery but when you get ready to hit your shot zone everything out and focus on what is at hand, your current shot.
    2. Don't worry about the tier of the green on the approach shot, establish your distance, swing thought and stroke the ball. 

The mental game of golf is the hardest to accomplish.  How many of you have seen one of the PGA pros on TV get aggravated at the phone camera click in their back swing and they give them a dirty look or say "C'mon Man".

If anyone has more tips that would like to interject feel free to comment.

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Until next time, Remember what Bobby Jones said, "Golf is played on a course five-and-half inches long...the space between your ear..."





1 comment:

  1. Very nicely written. Thanks for taking the time to discuss about this topic.

    Best Regards,
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    ReplyDelete