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Our special guest,
Dr.Bob Phillips "Golf
Psychologist" will be here exclusively every
month to reveal to you techniques used by top
level professional golfers to mentally prepare,
maintain focus, bring about their peak
performance and to help you improve your score!
SEPTEMBER, 2001:
You get what you ask for.
In
golf, as in most of life, you get what you ask
for. Specifically, I am thinking of how you aim
for your target. If you use a general target
like, somewhere out there, or along the left side
of the fairway, then you will get a general
response from your mind and body.
If
you want to get your full mental effort then it
is best to ask for the specific target you want.
In putting you are almost forced to be more
exact. You would not say, "well, how about
toward the cup". What this would lead to is
a sloppy shot that goes generally toward the cup
but not exactly into the cup.
This
is what happens by default when you are too busy
thinking instead of finding the exact point on
the back of the cup that you are wanting to use
as a target. Never leave the target as an
open-ended conclusion. Your mind needs to know
exactly what you want in order to give you an
exact shot. Many times a short putt is missed
because the golfer left the target unclear.
When
driving or using a fairway wood pick out the
exact spot where you want the ball to stop
rolling. Get your answer down to the smallest
point that you can. If there is a shadow crossing
a fairway set the shadow and the exact place on
the shadow be the target. If there is an object
on the ground go for it. Do not go for near it,
or by it or to the left of it. Go for it as the
exact target.
When
you are specific your mind will kick into another
gear to get you the exactness you ask for. If you
do not ask for exactness you will get a general
effort that is not a stretch or push for your
body. Most athletes are surprised at how exact
the mind can be.
I was
once asked to "Hit the base line"
during a tennis lesson. After I hit the baseline
with three out of the next six shots the
instructor stopped and asked me how I had indeed
managed to hit the line with such consistency. He
had actually just wanted me to hit the ball
deeper into the other court.
I
answered that I could not do it, but I know my
mind could. If I had simply tried to be so exact
I doubt if I could have managed it. What you are
using with this exact targeting is the additional
ability of your inner mind to do exact things,
even when, at a conscious level, you would be
hard pressed to do so.
In
baseball the hitters are beginning to think of
the giant Coke bottles as targets. Few are
consciously aiming at them, but I have a hunch
that more than one hitter has his inner mind
using the Coke bottle at a target. Because of
this, we will see a lot more home runs and a lot
more deep shots hitting those big bottles.
In
golf, set your exact targets and let your mind
find a way of getting the ball there. If the
target is within your physical ability why not
let your mind add the precision needed to get the
exact shot you want.
RETURN
TO DR SPORT MAIN MENU
Bob
Phillips, Ph.D.
Aspire
Training and Coaching Personal coaching for
success in sports, business and life. Helping you
achieve your goals. 748 Holcomb Bridge Rd.
Norcross, Ga. 30071 (770)729-0030 Fax
(770)449-5758
Ask Dr. Phillips about any
mental game of golf question or problem you have
and he will e-mail you an answer.
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Bob Phillips, Ph.D., has
been helping athletes, sales people and managers
perform at their best for over fifteen years. As
a leading performance psychologist and coach, he
has developed several methods of evaluating and
maximizing performance.
In this series of articles
Dr. Phillips gives golfers the information and
techniques used by top level athletes in all
sports -- especially golf -- to mentally
prepare, maintain focus and bring about their
peak performance. A number of articles will focus
on Junior Golf.
ONE-ON-ONE
COACHING
Now Available
- First Session Free -
Dr. Bob Phillips offers
one-on-one coaching by phone to home or office
for golfers who are "stuck" and want to
move up to the next level of play, taking 5-10
strokes off their game. For more information,
call Dr. Phillips at 770-729-0030 or e-mail him
below.
E-Mail
Dr. Phillips
"Check
out your mental game for FREE"
Visit
Dr. Phillips'
web site
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