Professional golfers, who are consistently playing great golf, share one common element — they have the right mindset. Wanting to play great golf is not enough. You have to have an unshakable belief that you are capable of delivering the type of game you desire and reaching your dreams.
Your performance in any arena is driven first and foremost by your belief systems —
- Do you believe you are capable of the goals you are trying to reach?
- Can you see yourself playing great golf, hitting beautiful shots, sinking every putt, swinging with confidence?
Setting yourself up for a “win” on the course starts before you ever step foot on it by developing a mindset for success. If you want to become a strong golfer, you need to nurture a solid self-image of that reality in your mind. You have to know that you are leveraging your gifts to their fullest potential. The right mindset will support your dreams in order for them to become your future. And playing great golf competitively requires consistent application of your mental training tools.
I am not suggesting that “Pie in the Sky” thinking is the way to go. To achieve true success, you must limit your weaknesses and leverage your natural gifts into championship form, thus reaching your full potential. That does not guarantee that your full potential on the course will be the same as that of Arnold Palmer. Your vision of the future has to be based on far reaching, but achievable results. If you don’t believe you are capable of playing great golf, you probably never will. Ultimately, what you believe is what you will achieve.
Your expectations have the power to create or limit your future, so it’s important that you pay close attention to the self-fulfilling prophecies you create in your mind. Your belief influences your attitude; your attitude directs your focus; your focus feeds into your emotions; your emotions drive your actions; your actions create proof of your abilities; and that proof reinforces your beliefs about yourself, good or bad.
Your success or failure is a driven by your expectations. Limited or negative thinking will only produce a poor mindset and limited or undesirable results. What do you spend the majority of your time thinking about when it comes to your potential? The space between your ears is a powerful predictor of your success in golf. Share on X
You are in complete control of the future you will experience. If you can’t see it, talk openly about it, and embrace it with emotion, it will not manifest in your life. So what does playing great golf look like for you?
Here are a few golf tips to remember.
- I challenge you to begin thinking about what it is you really want, and the gifts you bring to the game.
- Become aware of whether your mindset supports this with certainty.
- If not, then begin the process of making your desire bigger than your limiting beliefs about yourself or your fear.
Be aware of the power you have to elicit change in your game. The image that emanates from deep within your soul will be the driving force in creating your future. Create with intention, learn to expect success and discover what it’s like to be playing great golf! If you have specific questions about your game, I would be happy to talk to you. Give me a call at 239.431.6810 to discuss how we can move your game forward.
I know I’ve got the ability but I get the yips. I’m 43, was playing off 11 when I was 15 , didn’t play regularly for 20 years and now am capable of having anything between 80-115 . I choke up with pressure on myself and turn to alcohol which works sometimes, please help
Andy, Thank you for sharing your challenge. You are not alone. I work with plenty of golfers who struggle with swing fluidity issues which stems from lack of trust. Note that I don’t use the “y” word as that in and of itself can become a label with many golfers that is hard to shake when you take it on as part of your identity as a golfer. I encourage you to no longer use that term when speaking and thinking about yourself. Secondly, I recommend that you steer clear of seeking alcohol as a remedy. You want clear thoughts when playing rather than fuzzy. The key is to take control over your thought habits. My guess is that you probably spend a lot of time worrying about your swing challenges, which is the root of the pressure you feel you self-impose. Instead of focusing on what’s not working, you will need to start working hard to be more mindful about what is working. Every thought has the potential to become your next golf shot, so guard your thoughts well. You are the author of your thoughts, so instead of being a passive bystander to them, acknowledge the direction they’ve been taking you, and start to course-correct in the moment to point your thoughts in the direction you want your game to go. For help building a great mental game foundation for your game so you can play with more consistency even under pressure, you may want to check out my new online training program here – https://trainingforoptimalperformance.com/consistent-from-tee-to-green
left my desk at work, drove to Indian Hills Golf course in Jurupa Hills. Then I walked from my car to my hole # 1 on the back side, Tripel, # 2 double., the next 4 holes all pars. Hole 18, my 9th, I stopped counting after i reached 100. Guess I lost focus.
Tim, Thanks for sharing. I don’t recommend that you “play out of the trunk” as it seems you did. You must precede every round with a great warm up to get your body AND YOUR MIND ready for a good round. You may wish to check out my post on a good warm up here – https://trainingforoptimalperformance.com/planning-proper-pre-round-warm/
Plus, keep in mind that we never lose our focus. We are always focused on something. You just need to determine where your focus went during the round if it didn’t remain on what you wanted to do one shot at a time.