Sunday, October 23, 2011

Improve Your Focus

By Richard Horowitz


Ninety percent of what it takes to master golf is all in the mind. Indeed, you could go as far as saying 95% of it is in your mind! Arnold Palmer once suggested that the 6 inches between the years are the toughest ones a golf player will ever encounter.

The fastest way to lower your score is to master the ability to focus.

Most golfers tend to think they must practice more, find a new instructor, buy more videos, get the swing right, change those clubs. But one of the often overlooked and most important mental aspects of the game is focus.

You should keep your focus set on your final result. In golf the shot is determined by your level of concentration. You have probably just gotten excited and played without really concentrating. And of course, that's the reason why the ball didn't respond the way you wanted it to.

You are better off investing time in 10 focused swings than 100 mindless ones. Your swing will naturally break down when you're fatigued. You should definitely consider taking a break during practices. Breaks allow both your mind and your body to rest and put to use what you are learning.

One good trick to learn how to focus is to light a candle and then to only focus on the flame. Every time your mind starts to move to any other thought, bring it back to the flame. Your complete attention must be on the colors of the flame, and on how they blend with each other.

The first time you do this, you might be hard -pressed to last for 3 minutes. If you can work your way up to focusing for 20 minutes, your ability to focus on anything will exponentially increase. You'll be able to take this enhanced skill to the golf course.

The only thing that should be in your mind when you play is your next shot. During down time, allow your mind to relax and wander for a few minutes. Trying to concentrate during the whole game will only tire you unnecessarily. Save the mental workout for thoughtful shot decisions and center on what shot you're going to play next. Also, keep your cool and behave in an emotionally controlled manner. You will perform more effectively. Emotions rise and fall in golf. Shifting moods from happy to angry can take place in no time. Believe it or not, anger is the result of a series of reactions that happen within 1/30th of a second.

Nip it in the bud. The important thing is to figure out what is really making you angry. focus on the bigger picture and see how today is but a speck of paint on it. Your game is even less important than that. Looking at the situation for what it really is helps in getting priorities straight.

Invest a little time in learning the fine art of focusing, and if you can master it, you will instantly have 95% of what you need in your game.




About the Author:



0 comments:

Post a Comment

Related Posts with Thumbnails