Golf - Why is the Mental Game Important?
By Paul Stafford -
You will hear the phrase “The Mental Game” quite a lot in the clubhouse and at the range, but what does it mean? Well, it is all about your attitude to the game as a whole, a match, a hole and even down to each shot. It sounds very clichéd, but if you have a good mental attitude to the game you will enjoy it a whole lot more. A poor mental attitude will just add shots to your round, lose you holes, matches and potentially golfing partners.
It is inevitable that at least one shot will not go where you want it to during a round. That’s a fair comment wouldn’t you say? There are two trains of thought here - the first is to say that the shot ruined what would have been a perfect round. The second is to say that you hit 80 good shots out of 81. Which sounds better to you?
Ok, so you are thinking “only one shot - what’s the problem?” The same applies for 2, 3 4 etc shots going wrong. By all means have a think about what went wrong with a shot (that’s how we improve, after all), but don’t focus on the bad shots because when you play that course again, your mind will be fixed on those shots and guess what - the chances are you will do them again. You will need to concentrate on the good points of the round and when you arrive at the tee, you remember that the ball flew beautifully last time and imagine where you want it to go this time.
A true story to demonstrate how powerful the mind is. In the Vietnam war, an American was captured and held in solitary confinement for seven years. To get through his ordeal, each day he imagined he was back home playing golf on his local course. He played the round in his head, shot by shot. His best round was in the nineties, but as he imagined each round, he got better and batter in his head. Eventually when he was released he returned home and on his first round of golf on his course he scored 74. His name was Major Nesmith and if you Google him, you will find his story.
For me, it is impossible to underestimate the power of the Mental Game, so bear in mind these points and when you play a good shot, get fired up about it. If you play a bad shot, see if you can figure out why and then get fired up about getting it right next time and move on.
Have a look at my starting golf report at http://www.havefunplaygolf.com
Remember: Have Fun Play Golf
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