An exploration of the Mental side of the Game

I'm not sure where this discussion is going but lets start with a definition of what I mean by the mental side of the game and perhaps life itself. Please keep in mind that this is just my opinion, your mileage may differ. With that is mind here we go:

MENTAL is the exercise of your free will to control your emotional reaction to events that either are or may be occurring on the golf course at some future date or took place some time in the past. A future date could be anywhere from the next second to infinity. Past events also stretch to infinity. (Non golfers may substitute life for golf course :-) )

Let's talk about the golf shot that was just hit. Here are the questions I ask myself if the shot doesn't produce the results I wanted. All of these questions are designed to lead me to a logical conclusion not an emotional one.

1. Was the shot the right shot for me? Is it a shot that I could execute 80% of the time? If the answer is no then I stop the analysis right there and resolve to try to make better shot selection. If the answer is yes then the questions go on. I am saying that if I can't make this shot 80% of the time I NEVER attempt it. So if I only hit 10 of 14 fairways with the driver it stays in the bag until I can hit 11.2 of them. We will deal with this more under course management.

2. Did I go through a complete pre-shot routine including shot visualization before I made my swing? The same process used in #1 now occurs if no then I stop the analysis if yes then I go on.

3. How many swing thoughts did I have? Anything more than one is a no-no

4. Did I give more value to this shot than any other shot I had made this day?

Please note that the process for fixing the "mental" side is the same that I use when I'm practicing. I fix the most important things first and only one at a time. I'm always trying to come to a meaningful conclusion rather than the "I hit a crappy shot".

5. Was I focused on something other than golf? Was this something a something that I could change right now? For example was I thinking about a business deal or a relationship that was a little "iffy".

6. Did the lack of success with my previous attempt with this shot give me doubts about the success with this swing? As long as I'm successful 80% of the time then I'm trying to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory because I know that I'm going to miss at least 20% of the time. The better golfer you become (btw) reduces your 20% miss rate. Touring pro's are probably in the 5% or less range.

I like to shift gears a little bit and go to the Mental side of Practice. A book I recently read gave a definition for meaningful practice

1. Have a specific goal in mind
a. Maintain the spine angle
b. Drop or swing your arms into the slot
c. Keep your chest from revolving to square until after your arms have dropped in the slot
and many more

2. Get immediate feedback
a. In a lesson that's my job
b. When you are practicing by yourself that is your job and requires great disclipine

3. Be more focused on the process than you are on results


I see all the time and I suspect you do to people who are doing nothing other than getting exercise at the driving range. The hit one ball then before the first one has stopped they have dragged another on over. They do this day after day and wonder why they don't get better. They remind me of an infinite number of monkeys, typing on an infinite number of typewriters trying to write King Lear. People who are actually working on their game are going to hit bad shots. It's part of the learning process


Speaking of practice. I need to head there now. More next time.

What I hope this blog will be about

I've been in golf since I was 12. I'm now 71. I've been a professional for the last 24 years. The last 3 as a full time instructor. I want to share the things I've learned down through the years and am still learning from my present students. Some days I may say something profound and others not so much. Let me know how it reaches you.

Golf has 4 major components
1. The long game
2. The short game
3. Course management
4. Mental

The better player you become the more important the Mental becomes until it becomes almost 90%.