Mind your game if you want to excel

We often hear that golf is more a mental game than a physical game!

I believe that every sport has a mental component, but what makes golf so different?

Golf is not a contact sport and without the physical contact or the speed and movement of other sports, there is no way to release the adrenaline that comes with professional sports. So does golf actually have more pressure than other professional sports you might ask.

We often see professional players lash out on the course, but there is no way to do that in the sport itself. So golfers have to manage that pressure and/or adrenaline in different ways. If you miss that putt with the whole world watching, there isn't someone to ‘pick up the pace' or to help you get back in the game like in other sports. Well, this is the theory many experts have.

But I somewhat disagree! The general idea is to relax and take the pressure off thinking about too many technical issues when getting ready to hit the ball. In my opinion, the pressure is there just as in other sports, not less or more of it, just a little different in how it affects golfers.

I regard golf as a form of meditation - the thinking mind is like a gyroscope - it just keeps spinning, reacting, judging, worrying and analysing. In golf, as in most things in life, these are necessary tasks. But at the moment of action, particularly in golf, the mind must stop all its activities and come to a place of quiet and peace. This of course is not that easy if you have an opinionated opponent who jabbers on about how you should address the ball or play the shot! Play your own game! Let your brain tell the body what to do before you actually do it to enhance your mental golf game. Instinct in golf is more important than skill.

Most instructors focus to help players with their technique. But where they are found lacking is the mental aspect of golf. It has become as important as the game itself.

Get real

The fundamental shortcoming of working solely on playing technique is that all work is done on the driving range. There are no hurdles or distractions, and the pressure is nowhere near the same as experienced in a real game of golf.

One of our members, Betsy Brock, is currently holidaying in San Antonio in the US and sent us an e-mail update on her golf game. She shot 96 points with her brand new set of clubs. Really!! It's all in your mind, Betsy, and has nothing to do with the new clubs. Adjusting to the mechanics of the new clubs can take a while. She is obviously playing ‘relaxed golf', which is reflecting in her score!

Golf is a mental tonic at work. From that first shot off the tee golfers capitalise on kinesthetic intelligence and naturalistic intelligence.

The game also adds brain chemicals for sharper focus - research suggests how the links hold mental benefits for the brain, beyond what most golfers realise.

Let's play smart golf!