“Golf is 90% mental, and the other 10% is in your head.”
I’m capable of hitting great golf shots. I’ve hit thousands of them. I’m also capable of completely gagging and hitting horrid golf shots, like today when I limped to the finish line on the last two holes with bogey and double bogey to make a good round turn into a mediocre one. So why can’t I hit good shots more consistently? Why is it that I can play great golf for 15-16 holes but gag the last couple? How can I be -7 after 12 holes and shoot 74? How can I shoot a 31 on the front and a 41 on the back? How can I shoot 68 on a course one day and then shoot an 85 on the same damn course the next? Sometimes it seems like I can’t stand success during a round. It is all mental baby.
I do have the physical ability and the coordination to hit a great golf shot. Many people do. But why don’t they do it more often or more consistently? Their brains get in the way. During rounds I know my focus drifts and bad swing faults and bad habits take over.
Golf State Of Mind
David MacKenzie’s Golf State Of Mind is a program which coaches and teaches the mental side of golf. It is about cultivating the right mental approach to the game and building trust in the player’s ability. The program is intended to help players play without fear, and reach their full potential.
Trust, a great part of golf’s challenge
Speaking of trust… I have trust in my ability to putt and it shows. I make putts all the time. It drives my opponents crazy. I don’t have trust in my chipping and short game. Those same opponents know that it is likely I’ll make bogey if I miss a green because my short game lacks trust and conviction in the shot I’m playing. That lack of trust and lack of mental confidence results in poor shots which take great rounds an ruins them.
Staying In The Moment
Of of the biggest and most important concepts in the program is staying in the moment. The adage “one shot at a time” is extremely important. You can’t let what happened on the last hole, like a 3-putt, have an effect on the next shot or shots. It is just as important not to extrapolate the round or look into the future. How many times have you (me too) thought “if I can just par the last 3 holes I’ll shoot my best round ever,” only to fall apart and limp home. That sort of projection in golf is the kiss of death and we all know it. Yet we still do it, round after round.
Golf State Of Mind heavily concentrates on helping the player stay in the moment, and helps the player overcome the ghosts of shots past and shots future.
Conclusion
I’m still working through the program myself. To date, I’ve listened to the audio CD three times all the way from beginning to end. Sometimes I laugh at how obvious some of the concepts are, but I don’t laugh when I make double bogey because I didn’t employ them.
I have much work to do on my mental game, and much more time to spend working on refining it. Golf State Of Mind will be in my iPod, in my computer and in my car to help me get my game on the right mental path.
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I agree completely because just like today I shot 84 on a course that I have shot 74 on before. A lot of it is mental and some of it is physical, but mainly mental. Sometimes it is the difference between trusting your putting line and stroke and not trusting it. Sometimes you have those days where you just try to be too cute with all your short chips and other days you cannot get off the tee without putting the ball behind a tree. It nearly all comes down to what is in your mind.
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I’m around a 15-16 handicap right now, so I kind of feel like I should work more on my swing techniques and ball striking than the mental aspects. Just curious what you think. I realize that a lot of golf is mental, but sometimes it feels like I’m in total control and completely focused, but my shots are off because my techniques are off.
But that’s golf I guess – it’ll take a lifetime to master it! (and that’s probably why I love it so much 🙂
I see at as a combination of ‘being in the moment’ and having poise and good coordination. I’ve worked with many golfers who even when they think they’re relaxed are actually tense and lifting their shoulders. The problem is, that if they don’t know they’re doing it then it becomes an unknown part of their technique. This is what I believe leads to inconsistency as they might tense a little one day but not the next but still feel they’re doing the same both times but wonder why it works only occassionally. If you don’t know you’re doing something you can’t control it – this is where I see ‘being in the moment’ as a benefit because you become aware of so much more.