YOURCADDY PRO | MIND FIT
(neuro-linguistic programming) discovered that
they were having great results with patients
who were depressed when they regularly
attended therapy.
They discovered that the positive results
attributed to each individual was from what
they were doing on their way home. Each
patient was asked to walk some or all of the way
home and on their journey they were to count
chimney pots. That’s right count chimney pots.
So, let us look at what they were doing. Where
does someone who is depressed spend most
of their time looking? They spend most of their
time looking down. When looking down they
are also spending lots of time running lots of
internal dialogue or talking to themselves.
When someone looks up and begins to focus
on things at eye level and above they change
their physiology (body position) and then they
interrupt their ‘self-talk’ by focussing on a
different aspect.
Now, next time you are on the golf course,
just take a look around and look where many
of your fellow golfers are looking? You will find
that many of them walking around and looking
down at the ground approximately 15 to 20 feet
in front of them. I am by no means suggesting
that golfers are depressed, I suppose it depends
how bad they are playing.Many golfers express
feeling ‘mentally’ tired after a round of golf and
by the time you finish reading this article you
will have some tools that will change that and
help you to concentrate for the whole round of
your 18 holes.
The actual amount of concentration time
needed on the golf course amounts to
somewhere between 60 to 75 minutes, that’s
all. It is not possible to concentrate for the total
time you are on the golf course; you have to
have to give your brain some down time.
You should need no more than 40 to 45 seconds
to assess your shot and decide what you are
going to do with each shot and play it. You need
a little time to assess what happened after you
hit the ball and asking the three questions to
enable you to learn from every shot.
Now it is time to put your club away in your
golf bag and begin the journey to your next
shot. Instead of looking down at the ground, it
is time now to look up. Your focus should be on
anything on eye level and above. You may not
see many chimney pots on the golf course, but
there are trees, look for patterns in the clouds
and enjoy the walk, break up the norm.
Just following this routine ‘in-between’ your
shots will preserve concentration time helping
you to switch off between shots. Arriving at
your golf ball and looking down again will
become the signal to switch on.
You do not need to be engaged in the game for
the whole time you are on the golf course, only
when you are at your golf ball, when deciding
what to do and when committing to and playing
your shot.
Your routine for playing becomes: Decide what you are going
to do | Commit to it | Believe you ‘can do’ it | Execute with
trust | Assess what happened – use the three questions for
learning | Clean and put your club away | Look-up and enjoy
the walk | REMEMBER and REPEAT | EVERY TIME
A PGA ‘AA’ Professional & Level III Coach has played and
coached golf internationally since 1985. From a youngster he
has always been interested in learning and skill development
and golf proved to be the perfect discipline for him to explore
and discover what is possible.
As Director of both Westwood Golf and Mind Fit Golf, Tony
has created a unique process that is changing the way
golfers learn and develop their games.