Your mind, Your game

The 2018 golf season is now in full swing! All the pent up energy and desires of winter are now reflected in the drive of golfers on the courses.

You have had some good rounds and some not so good rounds. You have made decisions and declarations by now. Some I have seen even toss a club!

So let's revisit some of what you may have forgotten.

There are 3 things you control in a round of golf:

1. Your attitude

2. The target you pick

3. Your swing

The average recreational golfer swings in 1.5 seconds with the golf ball staying in contact with the face of the golf club on average one fiftieth the blink of the human eye. Why does the average golfer try to control so much with their mind?

All my students at one time or another have heard me say, "One of the oldest sayings in golf is that we do not hit a golf ball, we swing and the ball gets in the way". You must divorce your mind from trying to control a motor skill of a golf swing.

In 4 1/2 hours of the average round of golf, the average golfer spends 60 seconds in total actually striking a golf ball, and the other 4 hours and 29 minutes thinking about and re-enforcing all the bad attributes of their swing and the results.

Why is it that you play better golf when you are relaxed and enjoying the game, rather than analyzing the process while playing? Don't you dance better when you go with the flow of music?

At this stage of the season, I am not saying not to go to the range and work on mechanics. But when playing a round of golf, the more focus you put on mechanics, the worse you will (usually) play. Then you will re-focus on mechanics, keep the head down, left arm straight etc, and then play 'more badly' (insert smiley emoji here).

There is a time for work and a time for play; everything has a season, so to speak. Now is the time for play. Now is the time where you are trying to be focused on playing lessons. Try to keep the order intact, and as simple as that, not only will you have more fun, but it will generally result in better scores!

Remember; golf, after all, is a game.