One of the keys to playing better golf is a good pre-shot routine involving a sequence of positive thoughts. You can’t get rid of negative thoughts, only replace them with positive ones. In order to do this you need to have a structure that you follow every time, so your concentration is focused on executing those positive steps rather than allowing distracting negative thoughts to creep in. You simply commit to a positive process. Thoughts about your swing, your score, the potential embarrassment in front of people watching, or the “what if I hit this in the bunker or the trees?” are replaced by a commitment to the steps of your routine right up to the point when you are ready to start your back-swing.
If you watch the routines of the best players in the world, their pre-shot routine is the same even down to the number of looks at the target. It means that right to the very start of the back-swing, the focus is on the process and there is no room for doubt. It’s like a trigger. Ready, Set, Go!
Try this next time you are on the course. Once you have completed the steps of your routine (if you need help with this you can visit my “Shot Routine” article) and you are over the ball, take a look at your target, a look at the ball, a look at the target again (each time seeing the flight of the ball) and then back at the ball and then GO!!! You will be surprised how this affects the execution of the shot and makes it a lot more positive. Your last look at the target is like a trigger that tells your body you are ready to swing.
Right from the very point of deciding your target and your club, there is no room for any doubt or fear to enter your process right to the very point that you start your back-swing. Your shots will be more aggressive and committed as a result.
Staying positive and making each shot a sequence of positive events to prevent negative thoughts is a fundamental part of the Golf State of Mind Audio Teaching.
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Related posts:
- How to Turn Nerves from a Negative to a Positive
- The Sports Psychology Behind The Red Dot Trigger
- A Great Video from Golf Psychologist Bob Winters On How To Stay Positive During Your Pre-Shot Routine
- The Shot Routine: how to get "in the zone" for every golf shot
- Good Golf is about Visualization, Feel and Ingraining Positive habits
I like to think of things in the present …like how nice the weather is or how great the course looks. Sometimes I even replay a favorite movie scene in my head. This helps to keep negative distractions from creeping into my head during my round.