[jaydicassdhy]

It's really easy to give advice such as 'just let go of the bad shots', 'don't think about your score', 'don't focus on luck'.....

It's really difficult to program yourself to actually do it though.

I'd recommend reading a book or 2. There will be some things in there that will ring true, and give you some thoughts and techniques for on the course.

Personally, there are a few things I try to do during a round to keep me 'present'.

Solid and consistent pre-shot routine.
Relax and loosen myself over each shot.
Commit to the club and shot I choose before attempting to swing it.
Be aware of when I'm tense (especially between shots) and try to loosen up.
Play for par. Make my target the fairway, then the green. Anything more is a bonus.

[drmarshallusa]

save the money you'd spend on a shrink and put it towards a new putter Seth!

[feroiodpiop]

save the money you'd spend on a shrink and put it towards a new putter Seth!

haha, I like your thinking Thanks!

The title of this thread was more of a joke than anything. I don't think I would spend money to go to a sports psychologist on a sport at which I don't make any money at.

One of the things that I am good at on the course is forgetting a bad shot. This is a life skill of mine that I have learned over the years. I can forgive myself of mistakes.

[Mifsnavassy]

man i need all this advice... when i play with my brothers...
when we get together for a round... all bets are off...
all 3 of us could have had rounds in the 70's the whole week before... but the day of our game... its on like donkey kong... and we aint done till everyone is over 100+... hahaha
we completely get out of our games and just start swinging for the fences...
its all about pride even tho we know our youngest bro is the long baller... it doesnt prevent us from swinging out of our shoes... hahaha

[jinnsamys]

The thing about psychology, as it applies to golf, is that your psychological makeup stays with you wherever you go and “who” you are does as well.

For instance, if you’re the type of person who freaks out when things go wrong, your most likely going to freak out over an unexpected occurrence on a golf course. Or if you’re the type of person who holds a grudge or “can’t let go” of a bad experience, you’re most likely going to have a tough time forgetting about a bad shot.

The whole idea of “Sports Psychology” is somewhat silly because the term implies that there is some type of conditioning available to modify one’s behavior as it applies to a particular sport as if that activity can somehow exist separately from the rest of one’s life.

A person’s psychological makeup is not something that can be worn or removed as a golf glove or a pair of spikes and only applied to a particular endeavor. The thing is that you carry your brain around with you wherever you go and thus you carry your personality with you all the time as well. I don’t believe that behavior can be turned on and off like a light bulb and so I don’t believe it’s possible for a person who panics in a crisis, for example, to suddenly become “Mr. Cool” out on a golf course.

The point is that if a person is seeking to change their behavior on a golf course, they need to modify “who they are” in all aspects of their existence. I don’t think it’s possible for someone to “train” himself or herself not to be upset when they hit a bad golf shot only to come home and completely lose it because someone ran over their garbage cans. One either handles situations calmly or one doesn’t but either way that reaction has to apply across the board.

So the bottom line is that rather than wasting a lot of time reading books about how one “feels” on a golf course or contemplating one’s navel over specific golf-related behaviors, I think that time would be better spent modifying their behavior as a whole person and in the end, the “golf thing” will take care of itself.



-JP

[CVEGK7mV]

Good thread. In my case my swing is at the point where it is fundamentally sound. What needs serious work is my mental game. For example, I played nine holes today and was even after five holes. In the next four holes I carded a double and a triple. There was nothing wrong with my swing, but there was something wrong with my mental approach during my swings on those two holes.

The hardest thing for me to do is trust my swing. I don't know why. When I do the results are very good. Duh...

[jaydicassdhy]

More than just trusting your swing, for me it's about swinging without thinking about how to make the swing. Just going ahead and doing it, with just the image of the shot you're about to play.
I try to leave my swing thoughts on the range, and play every shot with the swing I know I have.

[CVEGK7mV]

More than just trusting your swing, for me it's about swinging without thinking about how to make the swing. Just going ahead and doing it, with just the image of the shot you're about to play.
I try to leave my swing thoughts on the range, and play every shot with the swing I know I have.

My ultimate goal. :-)

[drmarshallusa]

Having a minor in psychology, the general belief is that the more you try not to think about something the more you end up doing so. You have to somehow train your mind to just perform the task. Kinda like breathing, you don't have to think about doing it, you just do.

[jaydicassdhy]

Aw thanks, now I'm aware of my breathing and I'm all out of sync!

I'm really stuck on practising my pre-shot routine. It's helping me a lot with getting swing thoughts out of the way.