Effortless Golf

A confident golfer is one who thinks in a positive manner and is focussed on what he/she wants to have the ball do. Example: “I want the ball to land on that tiny patch of slightly darker grass in the left hand half of the fairway and run out from there.”

A golfer lacking in confidence is going to be thinking about their shortcomings, inadequacies and what they don’t want the ball to do. Example: “I can’t afford to slice the ball here or it is going to be in the river!”

I am just going to throw something in here, out of place on purpose, because I want it to work around in your mind and be accepted while we discuss other things. Confidence comes before playing well. Confidence can and should be made by the player regardless of how they are playing and not waited for as a result of playing well.

There is no doubt that confidence has a big effect on our mind and body performance and given two players, one a little more skilled than the other but suffering a confidence problem, give me the lesser skilled golfer who is playing with confidence.

If you are suffering a confidence problem remember this. At a base level, you only need to be confident for the time that it takes to go through your pre shot routine and swing the club. That takes between 20 and 30 seconds max for the entire routine and the actual swing is only 2-3 seconds of that. So you could even say that you only need to feel confident for 3 seconds on every swing.

What makes you feel un-confident? It’s the fear of failure. The fear that the result of the shot will be bad. Think about it this way. If you knew you could not fail and the result would be fine, wouldn’t you swing with confidence, secure in the knowledge that the result would be good? Of course you would. So fear of failure in the future (because you have not made the shot yet) is what causes anxiety and a lack of confidence in the present.

What would happen if you were not thinking about the future and were not concerned with the result of the shot? Wouldn’t you swing away confidently? If you have no fear of the future then you will commit to the shot and swing with the confidence of a golfer in the zone. The zone is when you are so fully absorbed in the present moment that no past thoughts of poor shots creep into your thinking, and there is no worry over the possibility of a bad shot that has not actually happened.

Worrying about the possibility of a bad outcome of your shot is predicting the future in a negative manner. It’s a recipe for disaster and you deserve to get poor results from that thinking.

To help you stay in the present you must become fully focussed on your target. An exact spot where you want the ball to go and imagine it doing exactly what you want it to. Hold this image in your mind as you swing or fully focus on the back of the ball and see if you can notice the club striking it. The more you practice techniques to get your mind focussed the better you will get at it.

You will know you are doing well when you have no thoughts about the result and if you do have a worry about the direction of the ball, or outcome of the shot while swinging, then it is feedback that you must get mentally stronger.

Only developing the ability to play one shot at a time and remain fully in the present moment is acceptable if you have desires to play your best golf on the most consistent basis humanly possible.

Wishing you FIR’s, GIR’s & Blue Skies.

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

If you are interested in training your mental toughness, and how to get your mind to move your body and perform to a higher level like the Pro’s go to www.golfmindshop.com/albatross.html and read more of the “Featured Product”. Every golfers guide to the development and mastery of the inner game if you want to learn to play golf at a different level. Reviews of Golf Training Programs are now available at www.golfmindshop.com and you can Get Your FREE golf ebook Now.

Ever wondered why you’re the greatest golfer in your world at the driving range but when it comes to playing a round you can’t get it done? If this does happen to you then I’m willing to bet that your swing turns distinctly average on the course. If this sounds like you then its probable your mindset isn’t in the right place. Lets take a look at some of the problems this presents and what you can do to get the best out of yourself on the course.

A big problem for every golfer is nerves and lack of confidence on the first tee. For amateurs this is generally the only time an audience is in attendance as the tee time queue builds up. As a result you often see out of character mis-hits off the tee due to pressure of being watched by people they don’t know. To help reduce ths anxiety it is as simple as doing some preparation.

Turn up to the course early and do some stretches. Get loose so your swing is less tense. Hit a few balls at the range and get comfortable with your swing. Focus on the club you will use from the first couple of tees. Get your putting stroke in rhythm on the practice green. The confidence you will gain from a solid first hole will provide a great platform for the rest of the day.

Lack of commitment to your swing usually results in a poor shot. So when you step up to the golf ball mentally commit to the shot. If you second guess whether it was the right club selection or you think the aim might be off you’re asking for trouble. Make your decision and then commit to the shot. You’re better off hitting a good golf swing that was too much club than topping the ball 20 yards because you didn’t commit. It was a technical mistake you can learn from.

If you have trouble with your swing thoughts, i.e. you get easily distracted mid swing, formulate a simple phrase to focus on that gets you through your swing. It could be as simple as counting. For example, count 1 for your back swing. At the top of the swing count 2 and then 2 again. Count 1 on the downswing. This helps with rhythm and pushes out distractions. Experiment with this and see what works for you.

If you find yourself with a shot that requires clearing water or a bunker do not visualise the ball going into these traps. Your brain cannot distinguish between reality and what you think. By doing this all you are achieving is training your brain to instruct your body to get the ball in the sand or water. Visualise the shot you want and then allow yourself to hit it.

Now lets face it, golf is a difficult game and there will be times you go through a bad patch. Its how you deal with them that determines whether a bad day turns into an horrific day or whether you end up salvaging your round. There is simply no point in being negative. Its not going to improve your game. It will only make your game worse. Work on turning your negative self talk into positive self talk.

After a bad shot take time out and take a couple of deep breaths. Let it go and move on. If you become tense and angry your swing will speed up and your play will become even worse.

Accept that mistakes will happen – try and watch some pro golf on TV. We all think that these guys are perfect on the course but what you will see is that many of them make mistakes and mis-hit the ball. Their true skill lies in forgetting about the previous shot and making the absolute best of the next one even if it is a bad lie or in the rough.

Finally, never give up. The front nine may have been awful but there is still another 9 to go. Many a bad round has been turned around after 9 so why should yours be any different? Everyone, has tough times on the course but the best way to deal with them is to learn from your mistakes, stay positive and stay relaxed. You can’t expect your game to be turned round if you’re angry, tense and lacking in focus.

Tags : golf psychology,sports psychology golf,golf psychology books,psychology in golf,psychology of golf

Michael Lewis has put together a complimentary report that will help you improve your putting quickly and easily. To reduce your golf scores today download the complimentary report instantly at www.easyputtingsecrets.com