Golf Tip

Presented by Dr. Robert Winters, Camp Director

Golf Tip: Five More Mental Tips for Tournament Play

1. Commit Yourself to the Moment

Committing to every shot provides you with a chance to execute with full intent and purposefulness into each and every shot. Commitment helps to implement positive action into every moment and eliminate negative cognitive anxiety. When you commit yourself to a shot, you are creating a positive energy flow via a goal driven behavior that will help insure what you want to happen. Failure to commit totally to your shot should always be the “other players” error, never yours.

2. Keep things simple

The simplicity of your thoughts and swing keys lead to greater gains in terms of reliable scoring results. The greatest players in the history of the game have always known that the simpler they keep their swings and their thinking, the better they will be. It is a fallacy to believe that high tech and complicated swing thoughts are better for golf performance than simple and efficient swing thoughts. The best players of today understand that simple does not mean easy, but simple thoughts and swing keys are most easily repeated when the pressure of the moment shows up. Keep your swing thoughts simple and your target focus specific!

3. Let go of expectations

Expectations are pre-set standards that interfere with simply playing one’s game. The only

expectation that works in a performance setting is that you are totally focused in the moment and

strive to stay on task in that single shot sequence. Let go of the expectations of score, results, 2 winning and the high standards of others. You must realize that the only player you need to please is yourself! Let go of the burdens of expectations and play golf with a carefree mindset!

4. Trust Your Thoughts and Decisions

Trust is the conscious letting go of over-controlling tendencies to hit the ball correctly. When you play with trust, you allow yourself to swing to the target and forget the notion of “how to swing.” When you play with a trusting focus, your mind is more interested in “where”….. than “how”. You merely swing to the target and the ball finds its way to the intended target. Playing with trust is about letting go of trying hard and just playing golf. Trust is the key element in finding out how good you can become!

5. Never, ever GIVE UP!

Never giving up is about having an emotional and mental resolve that suggests you won’t quit, give up or give in. You will give your best on each shot until the very end. This value is fundamental to success in every walk of life. The best players in the world today all understand the value of this mental command and they would never, ever, play a tournament without giving every shot their undivided best effort. Neither should you! Remember, it is easy to play like a champion when things are going well, but you need to give a championship effort even more when you are playing like a chump! Always give your best and play with a winning effort!

For more tricks and golf tips, come to one our our Nike Junior Golf Camps!