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Many years ago, long before Sports Psychologists invented themselves, I introduced a strong Mind Management element into my coaching at Golf Schools and when working privately with clients.
I was only one lesson ahead of my clients at the time, you understand, but they were not to know this and the more I studied the more I learnt - and the more my clients benefited, even in areas of their lives outside of golf.
I set off down this road when a friend, seeing that I was going through a "dark phase" in my young life, sent me a book entitled PSYCHO CYBERNETICS by Maxwell Maltz. There was no letter enclosed in the package just a handwritten message that said "Best Wishes, Roger".
The book, written by a Plastic Surgeon, changed my life!
In the same way that he helped patients, those with large noses or ears or whatever that affected their self-image and confidence, to realise they were neither ugly nor abnormal [and so perform less surgery], so also did he help me to look at myself in a different way.
The book helped me to see things clearly, to recognise that what I perceived of myself at the time was not true - that is was only an image that I had painted of myself in my mind, mostly based upon illogical conclusions that I had arrived at.
It taught me that my worries about the future were only images also; they were not real. The only thing that was REAL was that what was happening at this very moment; how I was thinking and behaving right now. All things past and future were/are irrelevant.
The more I read the more I discovered that one can learn from the past and plan for the future but that the only meaningful moment in our lives is right now; how we are thinking and how we "react" to these thoughts through the way we behave right now.
I realised that the way we react and behave are merely reflections of what we are seeing on our internal mental movie-screens and in the way we interpret those images - but they are not real, they are only images.
Everything that we see and everything that we think - we get! We REACT to those images.
If the Brain is nothing more than a computer sitting in "idle" until an instruction is given then the Programme for the Brain is our IMAGINATION.
It responds by giving us exactly that what we "put up on the screen".
I am going to share more of my "discoveries" with you later but, right now I recommend these books to you. For me they were "inspirational". I know you will be inspired by them also:
- The Inner Game of Golf [Tim Gallwey]
- Winning [Frank Dick]
- Zen Golf [Dr. Joseph Parent]
Few things in life come easily. We must fight hard to replace old habits with new ones but within these pages you will find the tools to improve your yourself and your golf for the better.
Enjoy the Journey!
That is it for another year! All the pre tournament interviews and predictions and all the hype about Tiger's return can be assigned to the Recyle Bin!
Was it a good tournament? Yes, I believe so! Poulter gave us much hope for three rounds and Westwood, although he will be hugely disappointed, let neither himself nor his supporters down. A best ever performance can not be considered a "loss" and on this occasion it was the brilliance of Mickleson's play when it mattered most that determined the result.
I dont think that anyone out there will rue a loose shot here or there and the scores record what happened. A missed Putt or a loose Approach cost many a player a shot or two. It happens!
I don't care how much Tiger likes The Old Course I am going to have a good each-way bet on Westwood and Poulter for The Open ... and I am not going to ignore the possibility of a place by Casey.
Am I just a patriotic Dreamer?
Please note the change of date for the April Golf School:
Arrive Sunday 11th for 4 Night/3 Day or 7 Night/5 Day Options and NOT 4th as advertised on my website at http://www.peterballingall.com/
Stuart wrote in to ask advice on which ball to use and, I must admit, it is all a bit confusing when you read the sales pitches of all the manfacturers!
The truth is that no one makes a poor golf ball these days and it is probably true to say that there may be only three manufacturers in the business that produce balls for the entire market.
There are hard balls and softer ones, there are balls with dimple patterns that make them fly higher or lower. There are one-piece, two piece and three piece balls each offering differences of playability.
There are balls with high compression and others with a lower one but to find the one that is right for you comes down to personal preference.
When asked the question I tend to duck out and suggest they buy one of each over time to see which one suits their own game.
Generally, the amateur developes less club-head speed in the swing than a Tour Pro so a medium compression ball will react better.
Whilst hard balls are more durable they tend not to react well on fast greens but better slow greens.
Golfers buy equipment used by their icons on Tour wanting to identify with them whilst some buy a particular make simply because they like the look of it.
"Suck it and See" is my advice. There is no accounting for taste!
What are you doing, Tiger?
It was absolutely right that you should sit in front of the camera, put your hands up and apologise to your wife, your brother professionals, your sponsors and your fans for all of your indescretions ... but to do so in your chosen manner and at your chosen time was breathtakingly inappropriate.
To have done such a thing if front of selected "friends" in front of one television camera and reading from a script where journalists were prohibited from attending, and therefore asking questions, does not, in my view, constitute an apology. You could have done this in the living room of one of your houses rather than in a place that was "off limits" to everyone but your bodyguards and "Team Tiger".
Whilst we all look forward to your return to the Tour you disappointed the world by your [not so secret now] life-style and you have disappointed us again by this ill-conceived and ill-advised idea of an apology.
We know that it was a "big bullet" for you to bite but we might have admired you more if you had done this in another way, at another place and at another time.
The world may well be quick to condemn but it is also, often, quick to forgive.
I don't think you have earned our forgiveness just yet.
Get well soon!
It is said that GOLF is the challenge of a lifetime; a sport so emotive that promotes both inexpressible elation and unimaginable despair!
It is more than a game; it is a pursuit, a journey on which there is no destination. It is a mirror that reflects who we really are, the kind of person we are, through the way that we play the game.
It is a constant test to our patience. It demands us to keep focused on each and every shot, to continue to believe that, no matter how badly we may be playing at the time, if we grind it out we can still achieve a score. It demands that we never give up or give in and it demands that accept our good shots and bad shots with equal grace.
A good shot to a novice gives the same satisfaction as a good shot to a tour professional albeit the results are quite different.
It is a game that drives us to do better and to improve for who really can be content with their own mediocrity?
Whether we play golf to enjoy the fresh air, the exercise and companionship of friends or whether we have ambitions on a higher level it is a game that demands our respect.
It is a game of trust where we call our own penalties knowing that others will do the same. Break that trust and that person will be ostracised and outcast forever.
We strive always to do that what is right, also that what is fair; to leave the course the way we would like to find it and to treat others in the way we would like them to treat us.
GOLF! It is not how well one plays the game that counts for not everyone can be a champion, it is the way in which one plays the game that really matters.
The truth is that the biggest compliment one will ever get is that phone call saying "Would you like to play golf this weekend? I don't care what your handicap is, they say you are good to play golf with"!
GOLF! It is like our journey in life, don't you think?
The super-arrogant, conceited, knowalls generally have little problem in achieving some things. They are "wonderful" after all but since there are[thankfully] only a few of them around the rest of us often hinder our own progress by the way that we think or "see" things in our mind.
We bind and chain ourselves to our own FAILURE HABITS. See if you recognise any of these:
FEAR
- of failing
- of not improving
- of missing easy shots
- of not measuring up [to our expectations or the expectations of others]
SELF-CONSCIOUSNESS
- Being worried about what others think of you and your swing and your golf shots when you play
TRYING HARD
- "The harder I try the worse I seem to get - but it doesn't stop me from trying even harder next time"
EXPECTATIONS
- "The more I expect the less I seem to get"
PERFECTIONISM
- "I am never happy unless I am perfect. I am seldom perfect so I am seldom happy".
PROCRASTINATION
- "I recognise these things about myself and I am definitely going to change - but, because I have another golf shot to play right now, I'll do this tomorrow"!
Did you recognise yourself in any of the above? If so do not despair - you are normal!
All that we need to do is to train the Brain to "see" things more clearly, to view the bigger picture and recognise that we, all of us, have a greater potential than we imagine.
That "potential" is personal to each individual. The young have the potential to reach for the stars [given good guidance and training and the will to succeed]. The old, although losing the distance they had in earlier years, have the potential improve their Short Game and quality of contact in the Long Game. They [the old] can still play "to their Par" even though it means playing from the forward tees - and there is nothing wrong in that!
So, let us look at that list again.
FEAR
What is the very worst thing that can happen if you play a bad shot, miss a short Putt or lose a match? In reality there is little more than a temporary feeling of disappointment, annoyance, emabarrasment - whatever ... but this is temporary.
The point is that we "fear the worst" when we "see the worst" BEFORE WE BEGIN!
The Brain controls the Body. It is nothing more than a computer but it is our Imagination that programmes the Brain. Every single action, every fleeting thought is the result of a "pre-image" that you have seen on your internal movie-screen before you begin.
If "I knew I was going to do that" is the most oft-used expression in golf it just confirms that your worst fears were realised! We saw it so we did it!
"WHAT DO I WANT THE BALL TO DO"? is what we must ask ourselves before playing any shot. Given that what we want it to do is realistic we "see" the good shot clearly [ball landing in the target area, rolling to the hole etc.] before we Set Up. Of course we notice the trees on the right, water etc. but we focus only on our line and length in playing our shot.
Fear? Feel the Fear and do it anyway! Even the very best admit to being nervous whether it is on that 1st Tee or on, what they hope, is the final Putt and sometimes they fail on either but those who keep focused "in the moment" are those who fear nothing.
SELF CONSCIOUSNESS
So what if your swing is "unusual"! Probably your signature is too! The only important thing is what happens to the ball - just ask John Daly, Eamonn D'Arcy, Laura Davies and others; great golfers all whose swings you would not wish to copy.
Keep focused on your Target and let others think what they like!!
TRYING HARD
Natural Co-ordination is a phenomenon that manifests itself only when we do not "think about what we are doing". Our best golf shots "leak out" only when we make the outcome matter less.
If we could give ourselves permission to make a mistake we would lose the urge to "try hard" not to make a mistake ... and succeed more often.
Simply be clear in your Mind about what you are going to do and what you want the ball to do then TRUST ... & LET GO of all your doubts, inhibitions and fears. It is not a matter of being careless, just a matter of caring less.
"When your Mind can perceive it your Body can achieve it" [Archie Morrison]
EXPECTATIONS
The only rightful expectation we have is to enjoy ourselves.
Not even Tiger Woods knows for sure where his ball will end up and although he wins often he does not win always.
He, like we, must focus on our target [realistic] and act as though we expect to succeed and, when we don't, recognise that a poor shot was an accident not made on purpose. All we do is go look for our ball, select a new target and LET GO all over again.
PERFECTIONISM
We all enjoy "that perfect shot" but we have no right to expect all of our shots to be so.
Far better is it that we achieve a high rate of ACCEPTABILITY [almost, nearly, not quite] where the ball is still visible and playable!
Sometimes even the best golfers have to "grind out a score" when striking the ball or swinging the club poorly on a day. Their focus changes, not on how to make repairs during the round [they do this later], but merely on how to get the ball round with what they have brought with them that day.
I do not know the answer but would you get more satisfaction from hitting the ball well and scoring well or hitting/swinging poorly and scoring well?
The point is that nothing is achieved by "beating ourselves up" when things aren't going quite to plan. We "keep in there" keeping ourselves in the present, focusing on our target and "Letting Go" on every shot.
The real champions are those who can accept their good shots and poor ones with equal grace. These are the people who are a delight to play golf with.
It has been said that true "hackers" are thick-skinned ... and they always beat the "whiners".
PROCRASTINATION
Well, if we can now see that there is another way of looking at things and we want/ought to give it a go why not begin to make those changes NOW - right NOW!
Tomorrow never comes!
