What is Your Answer to This Fundamental Mental Golf Question?

Whether you are a golfer preparing to get back to the course after a winter break or you're a year-round player with a renewed desire for change and improvement as spring approaches, your answer to a certain fundamental mental golf question will give you a good clue about your confidence and overall mental golf mindset.

The question is this: Do I believe in myself? Your belief in yourself and your abilities really sets the stage for all the thoughts and feelings that make up your mindset, which ultimately affects your game. If you do not believe in your abilities and your potential, doubt and fear will often fill your mind as you play, prompting tension, tightness, distraction, and over-effort, all of which detract from a smooth, effortless swing. On the other hand, if you do believe in your abilities and your potential, you are more likely to be relaxed and focused and open to the flow of productive thoughts that encourage a smooth swing and accurate shots.

These days, we are seeing an example of not believing in oneself with Tiger. His belief in himself, which at one time was strong and sure, is now at a low point, and that is powerfully reflected in his game. It shows that great ability does not necessarily reflect in playing great golf when it is not combined with a solid mindset, including a strong self-belief. Any player, though, from the top level to the novice, can strengthen their belief in themself. First it takes recognition of this mental factor and then continual mental practice to focus on your own strengths and your own game and letting go of self-criticism and dwelling on mistakes and weaknesses.

As you are practicing and preparing for your next trip to the course, take some time to ask and reflect on this fundamental mental golf question. Do I believe in myself? Really think about it and be honest with yourself. The answer may be surprising and the follow-up mental steps you take can do a lot to change your game.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
TheHeartofGolf.com

Ask Yourself This Fundamental Mental Golf Question

A point that is frequently made in golf instruction is that the swing is all about flow and the movement of energy and you want to allow this flow to happen smoothly and naturally. Most of the time, this point is made in reference to the flow of physical movement. Much less frequently, however, is there a reference made to the flow of mental energy, yet this flow is of fundamental importance to the swing as well. The smooth flow of productive mental golf thoughts is essential to set the stage for a smooth swing. For many, many players, however, the smooth flow of thoughts is frequently inhibited by fear, frustration, judgement of performance, and other mental "stuff." This disruption of the flow of mental golf thoughts is a common source of physical swing problems that many players don't realize. Many potential positive golf experiences are blocked due to the interference of positive mental thinking.

I was reminded of this flow principle recently when watching my two year old daughter playing with a plastic golf club. She was swinging away at the golf ball (and many other things as well) and my initial reaction was, "She's swinging away without a care in the world." It dawned on me that this was a great reminder of the value of being free and clear in your mind when practicing and playing, without the interference of thoughts and emotions that get in the way of the flow of positive, productive, "golf enhancing" thoughts. As I watched, I thought of this fundamental golf question: "What are you thinking and feeling that is interfering with the free flow of positive golf thoughts and ultimately the smooth flow of an effortless swing?" In essence, what is keeping you from being free and clear in golf? The answer to this question gets to the heart of golf improvement. It's a question I ask those I work with and I periodically ask myself as well. I encourage every aspiring golfer to do the same. Think about it: What are you thinking and feeling that is holding back the flow in your game?

If there are some golf improvement goals you have been working on this summer where you haven't seen results, this question can offer you some helpful insight for changing your mindset and ultimately your game. Remember to "let it flow" in mind and body! As always, I welcome comments on your insight and experiences.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
TheHeartofGolf.com

A Novel Approach to Learning About Mental Golf

I recently read a book that I am enthusiastically recommending to my fellow Positive Golfers titled Straight Down the Middle, by Josh Karp. Having the complete title of Straight Down the Middle: Shivas Irons, Bagger Vance, and How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love My Golf Swing, the book is a first-hand account of a real-life golfer's quest to gain a greater understanding of positive mental principles and practices and then put them to use in order to transform his mindset, his game, and his life. The author, Karp, is a journalist and, at the beginning, an 18 handicap golfer who realizes there is great potential in the mental realm, and having a great desire to enrich his game and his life he is inspired to explore various mental philosophies and approaches. Karp becomes a mental golf guinea pig, in essence, and immerses himself in learning from various gurus and masters and applying their wisdom on (and off) the course. He shares his experiences in great detail so the reader gets a very clear picture of what is taking place. Along with the details, Karp is open and forthcoming about his thoughts and feelings throughout, so the reader can follow his deepening understanding and development (and sometimes drawbacks). Karp also has a keen sense of humor which makes the reading enjoyable as well as enlightening.

All in all, Straight Down the Middle is a memoir of a noteworthy quest to understand, evolve, and improve. Karp delivers great insight into lessons learned about golf, patience, letting go, and much more. He presents the scientific aspect of positive mental practices as well as the practical side. And he illustrates how to put it all into real-life practice out on the course, with his own mental and physical game as a proving ground. By the end of the book and the odyssey of discovery, Karp has indeed discovered the effortless swing and lowered his handicap. He has achieved a deeper understanding of the game and himself as well, all of which have enriched his golf experiences and his life. In his final comments he says, "Most importantly, my swing became a source of pleasure, which more often than not brought my scores closer to par."

Straight Down the Middle leaves the reader with plenty of ideas to think about and act upon in one's own quest for golf improvement. You will gain a greater awareness and understanding of the mental realm and likely be inspired to begin or expand your own efforts in that arena. As a Positive Golfer who believes in the value of the mental game and who continually strives to strengthen my own mental golf mindset, I gained some new understanding and useful tools myself, as well as some inspiration from Karp. I also enjoyed the book as an all-around good read. It was especially engaging because it was written by a "real-life golfer." On the book jacket, it refers to "a journey of a common man in search of an uncommon kingdom." I recommend Karp's book to anyone who wants to enjoy a more relaxed, fluid swing, a lower handicap, and more positive experiences in golf (and in life!). If you feel positive mental practices are too advanced or impractical, then this book is really for you! You'll see the mental game from a whole new perspective in Straight Down the Middle. Check it out this summer! You can find it at Amazon.com.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

Five Mental Golf Things You Can Do Right Now to Improve Your Game

I often hear from people who have a golf outing or event coming up and they are feeling anxious because they haven't played in a while. They want a quick mental golf tip or two that they can start using right away to help their game. If you are in a similar situation, or are just interested in starting to beef up your mental game in general, I have put together a list of some mental golf fundamentals that you can start doing right now, wherever you are. A key idea behind all of these tips is one of changing mental habits that clutter your mind and distract your attention away from really focusing on your strategy and the shot at hand. These are things that I continually remind myself to do, especially if I am feeling "scattered" and off-track in my mindset and my game is reflecting that same thing. By starting these new mental practices right now and persisting with them, you will be headed in the right direction for building a stronger mindset and setting the stage for more Positive Golf experiences. Keep in mind, these things can (and should) be done both on and off the course, whenever you are playing or thinking about the game. These skills get more natural and effective with practice.

1. Let go of those bad shots. I know. I know. Easier said than done. But believe me, it makes a difference. Dwelling on missed putts and errant drives demands a lot of mental energy that distracts you from productive thoughts and better focus.

2. Don't dwell on fear. Here again, easier said than done. And here again, an enormous "consumer" of mental energy. Start by picking one thing you are really fearful about (i.e. missing short putts and looking bad in front of others) and consciously make an effort to "switch gears" to more productive thoughts (i.e. swing thoughts and your strategy) when this pops into your mind.

3. Let go of that blame. Like fear and holding on to bad shots, frequent blaming also consumes a lot of mental energy and distracts you. While blaming might help you justify things and help you feel better for a moment, it takes your thoughts away from the shot at hand and also from getting to the real cause of swing problems or other challenges. (Your clubs and the weather are not always at fault!) Make a concerted effort to tune in to your blaming tendencies and steer your thoughts in a more positive and productive direction.

4. Take the pressure off. It's a common practice to continually put pressure on yourself to hit farther, make more putts, and score better. Self-motivation is one thing, but persistent pressure can distract your focus and be counter-productive. Seriously, give yourself a break. When you notice those pressure-filled thoughts filling your mind, switch gears to swing thoughts and some self-encouragement.

5. Stop dwelling on "hitting." It's a very common tendency these days to think about hitting at the ball harder with more effort in order to achieve more distance. A lot of people spend a lot of mental energy dwelling on trying to figure out how to "hit harder," when the real solution is less effort and more allowing. Switch those hitting thoughts to more productive thoughts of feeling and allowing the smooth, natural swing. (For more insight and tips on this topic, check out my Goodbye Hit, Hello Swing e-book.)

Now, you're on your way to a mental golf mindset that is stronger and more aligned with the flow of productive thoughts and a smooth, effortless swing.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

Another Mental Golf Question to Improve Your Game

As a follow-up to my previous post on 4 Questions to Improve Your Mental Game, I am inspired to add another question to that list. The thing that inspired me were some remarks made by Tiger Woods regarding his putting at The Barclays. In his remarks, he wanted to make it very clear that it was those tricked-up greens that led to his near miss in Jersey City last week, and certainly not the player holding the putter in his hands. "Not too many golf courses that you misread putts that badly," he said, adding, "This course is one." Steve Politi, the sports columnist for the Newark Star-Ledger pointed out that Woods "sounded like a shortstop blaming the infield grass for an E-6 or a goalie blaming the Zamboni for a bad goal." He went on to say that "Tiger is forgetting the simplest truth about golf: Everyone in the field plays the same course. And everyone else - or at least the ones on the leaderboard - seemed to handle the greens just fine."

The remarks by Woods are a classic example of using blame when one is experiencing less-than-desirable results in the game. The thing about blame is that it might help you justify the situation and feel better about it for a while, but in actuality it distracts you from focusing on the real reason for your golf problem. Spending mental time and energy on blame takes you away from spending that time and energy on the actual cause of the problem - what you are doing wrong - and thereby hinders you from correcting it and preventing it from happening again. Using blame is like a "crutch" and is not a practice that ultimately leads to positive golf experiences.

Tiger's remarks show that blame is a practice that even a player with a highly refined mental game can fall into without keeping it in check. It's a good reminder for any player to ask themselves the question: Am I using blame as a "crutch" in my mental game? Tune in to your own thoughts and remarks as you are playing and see if this is a mental practice you are prone to. If so, stop the blaming and start making some mental and physical changes. Go beyond the blame and get to the heart of what is really causing your golf problem and make the appropriate mechanical changes in your game. This "blame-free" approach is more certain to lead to better results and more satisfaction in the long run.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer and
Co-Founder
TheHeartofGolf
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

4 Questions to Improve Your Mental Game

When mental golf practices don't seem to be helping your game, the tendency is to stop using them and chalk it up to mental golf not being right for you or mental golf not working at all. Before you throw in the towel and decide to stop developing and applying these skills, however, ask yourself these four questions:

1. Do I really believe mental golf practices work and can help my game?

2. Am I utilizing these skills consistently throughout each round (not just when the "going gets tough")?

3. Am I overwhelming myself by trying to change too many mental practices at once?

4. Am I putting too much pressure on myself to master these practices and get "instant results"? (This was one of my main tendencies when I was beginning the development of my mental game.)

Your answer to these questions can give you some very good clues as to why the application of mental golf skills isn't working for you. An answer of "no" to the first two questions and "yes" to the second two indicates some things that are blocking the success of using positive mental practices in your game. If you have been trying to develop your mental golf mindset this summer (or at any time) and have not experienced any improvement in your game, take a moment to reflect on these questions and the answers. It can be time well spent that gets you past the threshold of quitting and onto a new and more effective path. Changing your approach in any of these four areas (and certainly in all of them) can help to make a difference in your evolution as a successful positive golfer!

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer and
Co-Founder
TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

A Mantra for Your Mental Golf

At first, a mantra doesn't sound like something that could be helpful to your golf game, but the more I study and practice mental golf the more I realize the value of tools like this. In its basic form, a mantra is a sentence or phrase that is repeated verbally or mentally to help focus the mind on an idea. This concept can easily be applied to your golf game and can in fact be quite helpful to your mental golf mindset in a number of ways. For one, it's a good way to develop the skill of being focused rather than having "scattered" thinking that is prone to distraction. Using a mantra can help to get you in the habit of consistently staying on track in productive mental golf thinking rather than frequently "switching gears" back and forth from productive, helpful thinking to distracting, unproductive thinking. Overall, using a mantra gives you some good practice in using a mental tool, which is a great way to get started with or expand on the use of mental golf practices.

I want to point out that the idea of using a mantra in your mental golf practice is something different than having swing thoughts. The concept of the mantra in this particular application os to help change a mental habit, like fear, and establish a better way of thinking, whereas swing thoughts are generally related to the physical mechanics of your swing. Also, when it comes to using a mantra for your mental golf, I'm not talking about "mindless" or rote repetition of a phrase, but thoughtful or "mindful" repetition with awareness and sincerity.

A couple of examples of this concept in practice will help it make more sense. One example is a mantra that my wife has used to help her game. As a beginning golfer, a challenge she was facing was a lot of tension, which led to a lot of problems with her swing. This tension was rooted in her over-concern for what people were thinking regarding her swing and her abilities. It would almost paralyze her on certain holes and in certain situations. To address the problem and help her focus on more helpful thoughts, she used the phrase from a popular quote, "what other people think of me is none of my business" as a mantra, repeating it to herself frequently throughout a round. Here again, it wasn't mindless or forced repetition but thoughtful repetition done with sincerity and focus. It proved to be very helpful in re-orienting her thoughts and diffusing her concerns and ultimately reducing the tension that wreaked havoc with her swing. Another example of an area where I know this mantra tool has been used with success is in helping to change the habit of hanging on to thoughts of poor shots and other mistakes and developing the habit of letting go and staying in the present. A mantra that has worked for other golfers in this situation is, "It's all about this shot and this moment," repeated in the mind over and over with increasing belief and conviction.

A mantra is another tool that I recommend adding to your mental golf "bag of tricks." It's something you can get started with right away. You have to be sure to stick with it though. Just like any of the mental golf tools, being persistent and consistent pays off. Here are some other areas where using a mantra can help get you on the road to making some changes in your mind and your game:

- changing the habit of frequent anger about your game
- changing the habit of ongoing self-doubt about your abilities
- changing the habit of using over-effort and trying too hard
- changing the habit of putting pressure on yourself
- changing the habit of regularly using "what if" thinking and dwelling on worst-case scenarios while playing

One more tip: When choosing a mantra to use, pick something that is succinct, has good flow, and makes good sense to you about the issue at hand. It may even be a popular quote or a catch phrase. Avoid using "not" phrases, such as "I am not angry. I am not angry..." as this actually puts more focus on the problem at hand rather than away from it.

This idea of a mantra can be put to use right away to change and strengthen your mental golf mindset. Try it out, and give it a chance to "sink in" and work (practice it in multiple rounds, not just one time). I welcome comments about your experience.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer and
Co-Founder
TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

How Long Does It Take For Mental Golf Techniques to Work?

In my work with Positive Golf, I get a lot of questions about the hows and whys and the nuts and bolts of using positive mental techniques for golf improvement. It's great to receive these questions because it tells me that a person is taking an extra step to get insight and guidance into techniques that can help their game. We have started to include coverage of these questions in our Positive Golf newsletter in a periodic column titled "Positive Golf Q & A." When we started running this column, even more questions started pouring in! Occasionally, I will include some of these questions and answers in this blog because the topics are universal to so many players and so vital to success with the mental game. If you would like the benefit of seeing Positive Golf questions and answers more often, as well as other real-life insight, tips, and drills to promote positive golf improvement, then check out the details about our free Positive Golf Newsletter. I also invite you to submit a question by posting it on this blog or sending me an email through our website at TheHeartofGolf.com. In the meantime, here's a question from a golfer in Illinois who voices what a lot of other players have wondered about:

Q: Last summer, I started working on my mental game by trying visualization, but it didn't work. How long should it take for mental game techniques to make a difference in improving my game?

A. The short answer to this question is that it takes as long as it takes. It is going to be different for everyone because everyone's mindset, with all of its habits and tendencies, is different. Everyone's belief and acceptance of new ideas and techniques is also different, and this will also affect the speed and effectiveness of change. The good news is that it is possible for positive change in your physical game to begin with just a few rounds of using new mental game techniques. You may start to experience more consistency, better tempo, less frequent slicing of the ball, or better putting, for example, with continual game improvement as you continue to practice new mental techniques more consistently and effectively.

It may be the case, however, that improvement in your physical game is slow to occur or does not seem to happen at all as a result of changing your mental practices, leading you to think that the mental techniques don't work or that mental golf is "just not for you." A delay or total lack of results with mental techniques like visualization doesn't mean they don't work, but it does mean that something is interfering or getting in the way of their effectiveness. Some common things that get in the way of mental golf techniques "doing their job" and producing results include the following:

1. Inconsistency in using the techniques, i.e. trying them here and there, such as just when "the going gets tough," OR using one technique such as visualization in a positive way while at the same time using another technique such as self-talk in a negative way.

2. Incorrectly using the techniques, i.e. visualizing the results you do want to experience while also still mixing in visualizing the results you do not want to experience. (Even if you don't mean to do this or aren't doing it "on purpose," it still has an impact.)

3. Impatience at not experiencing better or faster results, thereby leading to mental tension, frustration, or even anger.

4. Lack of total belief or trust in the potential benefits of mental golf practices, thus sowing the seeds of doubt that detract from the effectiveness of such practices.

5. Doing too much at once, i.e. trying too hard to boost your mental game by changing or improving too many mental golf practices all at once which can dilute their effectiveness compared to improving them step-by-step one or two at a time.

Tuning in to your tendency to do one or more of these practices can help you nip some things in the bud and get you on a mental golf pathway that is more positive and productive in yielding the changes in your physical game that you have been hoping to see.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer and
Co-Founder
TheHeartofGolf.com

A New Book to Boost Your Golf Improvement

Two things that are key to successfully building a strong mental game and realizing consistent golf improvement are organization and persistence. Organization refers to an organized approach in setting your positive goals and the positive plans to achieve those goals (see blog post from April 4, 2009 for more on positive goals and plans) as well as organization in your practice to make it a more effective "smart practice" or "positive practice." Persistence refers to the stick-to-itiveness to stay with your plans and practice, day after day and week after week. These are the "nuts and bolts" that are at the core of productive change for players at any level. While seemingly basic and simple, they can truly make the difference in whether or not you achieve success. Many a desire for golf improvement has been "lost in the shuffle" of inconsistent thinking and efforts and the lure of the easier path of giving up.

I have learned about a handy new tool to help you stay on track with your organization and persistence and help increase the likelihood of your success in golf improvement. It's called The 20th Hole, Stat Book and Log for Golfers, by Matt Gullo, USGTF Teaching Professional. This recently published book is designed to help you in the analysis and development of your overall game, from statistics to swing thoughts and strategies. Matt's background as a teacher and a player dedicated to golf improvement really show through in this book. It's packed with practical charts and forms to fill out with scores and notes about your lessons, practice sessions and rounds. For example, the Practice Session/Lesson Notes pages provide sections to fill in your notes on parts of the game you worked on, tips to remember, drills to remember, and swing thoughts to remember. These sections act as "prompts" to get you on your toes and keep you on your toes in thinking about these crucial subjects. Anyone who has done training or teaching knows that the act of writing things down helps to reinforce the ideas and keep them fresh in your mind. Having the forms all ready for you in this book makes it even easier for you to do this. The Statistics Pages are also set up in a convenient format for recording your score as well as the number of putts, fairways and greens you hit, and up and down and sand save opportunities. Plus there is an area to record strengths this round, areas for improvement, swing thoughts for the next round, strategies next time you play the course, and what to practice most before the next round. This gets you to think about a lot more than your score and helps give you detailed insight into both your physical and mental tendencies, which is a productive and effective way to improve your game. Another tool in the book which will help your game is the Set and Achieve Your Golf Goals Pages, with sections to write your goals, your plan of attack, the date to be accomplished, and the outcome. Here again, it keeps you on your toes and on-track. The book also offers some good practical tips on swing thoughts, course management, pre-shot routine, how to practice more effectively, and golf in the off-season.

Altogether, this is a practical, insightful and highly usable book that is a great tool for effectively identifying strengths, weaknesses, and trends in your game, which is a critical step in golf improvement that is often glazed over or even overlooked. It also helps with the critical step of looking ahead and developing both mental and physical game strategies, all of which increases the likelihood you will achieve your goals. As an advocate of the "blended" (mental and physical), mindful, organized Positive Golf approach to the game, I give this book a thumbs up for format, content, and usability and encourage other Positive Golfers to consider it for helping with organization and persistence in your golf improvement. You will be more aware of your tendencies and more tuned in to your game! For more details, check it out at www.the20thhole.com.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

Positive Golf Improvement Project for 2009

While I continually practice using mental golf techniques and other Positive Golf ideas in all aspects of my game, I also pick one area for particular focus as my Positive Golf Improvement Project for the year. This practice gives structure and focus to my improvement efforts and helps to keep me from getting overwhelmed and "scattered" with too many improvement activities. It also helps me to stick with it and stay on track throughout the season. My wife, a beginning golfer, also picks a Positive Golf Improvement Project for particular focus each season as well. You can read about our previous projects in the archives of this blog. This approach has helped both of us experience more success in achieving our desired changes and improvements to our games than when we took a less formal approach of just saying what we wanted to improve but not having any structure to it. I have referred to the term "smart practice" in this blog before, which is practice with structure and purpose; a similar term of "smart improvement" can be applied to the approach of using a Positive Golf Improvement Project.

As we have chosen and carried out these golf improvement projects eash season in recent years, the format has evolved into an approach that incorporates all the key elements of Positive Golf that assure more effectiveness and success, including Positive Goals and a Positive Plan that incorporates both mental and physical elements. You can download a template for this approach by CLICKING HERE. Here are the Positive Golf Improvement Projects for 2009 put together by my wife Christy and me using this template. I will post updates on our progress throughout the season and include any new insights and ideas we have learned along the way. We encourage other golfers to use this approach as well and we invite you to share your feedback and experiences on this blog. When you implement a Positive Golf Improvement Project for one key area of your game, you are sure to see the "ripple effect" of positive improvements showing up in other areas of your game as well!

My Positive Golf Improvement Project for 2009:

Positive Goal:

To achieve a greater degree of balance throughout my golf swing so that I have more solid impact.

Positive Plan:

Physical Elements---

- Practice using better posture in the address position, with straighter, cleaner angles.
- Practice placing the ball a couple of inches back in my stance, so that my hands are more ahead of the clubhead.
- Practice feeling a consistent level of weight pressure on my left foot during my swing.
- Practice moving more weight to my left side by shifting my head, upper body, and hips (as a unit) an inch or two to the left so that I feel an increse of weight pressure directly over my left foot.
- Practice the "rotation drill" to get the feel of the preferred motion that promotes balance.
- Practice the high right hip/right leg "stability post" position by first swinging in slow motion. Strive to feel like my midsection is rotating up to the hip rather than on to the leg.
- Practice in front of a mirror to compare what I'm feeling with what I'm seeing.

Mental Elements---

- Continue to practice letting go of the idea that I need to use extra effort to hit at the ball.
- Practice tuning in to the feeling of a stable lower body foundation as I swing down to impact.
- Practice using the mental image of a totally connected elastic body.
- Remind myself that all motion is primarily rotational in nature, as opposed to lateral or sideways.

Affirmations---
- I tune in to feeling the movement of my hips and legs.
- I allow myself to rotate my weight as I follow through in the swing.
- I trust that my swing is held on a set track that is in harmony with my body rotation.
- I tune in to feeling a stable lower body foundation.

Positive Golf Improvement Project for 2009 for my wife, a beginning golfer:

Positive Goal:

To develop a tempo in my swing that is smooth and consistent, versus a jerky hitting at the ball that results from trying too hard.

Positive Plan:

Physical Elements---

- Practice swinging in slow motion.
- Pratice the "playground swing drill" to get the feel of an effortless swing rhythm.
- Check the grip pressure before each swing and tune in to keeping it consistent without extra tightening.
- Practice the "gravity drill" of letting the hands and arms drop down from the backswing with no extra effort and no extra grip pressure.
- Practice using a consistent pre-shot routine that includes one or two relaxed practice swings.

Mental Elements---

- Practice reducing self-doubt and putting "distance pressure" on myself.
- Practice letting go of the idea that I need to try to hit the ball with extra effort and focus instead on the idea of allowing the natural swing to happen.
- Practice tuning in my awareness to noticing and remembering the feel of the effortless swing motion.
- Before swinging, think "relax, slow down, swing smooth."

Affirmations---

- I release the need to control the club.
- I release the idea that more physical effort alone creates more power.
- I release the belief that I must keep trying harder to hit the ball farther.
- I am tuned in to a greater awareness of a natural swinging motion.
- I relax, let go, and let it flow.

Here's to great golf improvement!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

Getting Rid of the "Demons"

Mental Golf Tidbit: The road to meltdowns is usually filled with mental "demons," and the road to hard-fought success is usually filled with the battles of conquering these demons.

It was great to see Phil pull through and win the Northern Trust Open at Riviera over the weekend. More than one report pointed out that he had to "bury some demons" along the way in order to achieve his success. One of these demons was, of course, the meltdown two years ago when he had a one-shot lead until making a sloppy bogey on 18 and then losing in a playoff. There have been other demons along the way as well, including other unfortunate scenarios and some powerful mental golf challenges like self-doubt that eroded his mindset and his physical game.

It's really motivating to see a pro like Phil, or any player for that matter, achieve success after sticking with it and working through their "mental stuff." I was fortunate to be at the 2004 Masters, right there on the approach to 18 when Phil sunk his putt and leaped into the air in absolute relief and joy at burying some long-time demons and making the way for the thoughts, feelings, and actions that took him to the pinnacle of the success of winning the Masters.

Every player has "demons," and every player can overcome them. In either case, you don't have to be a player on the Tour. Phil is a great example but not an exception that shows it only happens with the elite players. Every player reading this post (and the one writing it) has one (usually more) "demons" that interfere with the effective mental and physical flow that supports your game. There is no doubt - "demons" interfere with your game - they distract you, they hold you back, and they keep you from playing your best. The "demons" may be a chronic negative mental habit or a negative golf experience you can't let go of. Below is a list of some common "demons." Look it over and see if anything sounds familiar or reminds you of something else not on the list. Then, go "tackle" this demon with a new awareness and clear it out of your mind. Be persistent and stick with it, and you too can be smiling like Phil at moving past some "stuff" and enjoying some great positive golf experiences.

Some "Demons" That Interfere With Your Game:

1. Hanging on to (dwelling on) previous poor shots.
2. Hanging on to (dwelling on) previous meltdowns/collapses/bad rounds.
3. Habitual and persistent self-doubt.
4. Freezing up on the first tee out of fear others are watching and judging you and you might hit a poor shot.
5. Freezing up on pressure shots out of fear others are watching and judging you and your might miss it.
6. Getting angry at poor shots and holding on to that anger for additional holes or even throughout your rounds.
7. Habitually comparing yourself to others and how your game measures up to theirs.
8. Habitually trying to hard and using "overeffort" to hit better and play better.
9. Habitually distracted with judgement - judging how you are playing and/or wondering how others are judging your playing.
10. Habitually thinking you are too old, too inflexible, too..., etc. to play a decent game.

For some more tips on identifying and conquering these "demons" that intefere with your game, check out the soon-to-be-released Positive Golf Handbook. It will help you "clear out the clutter" in your mind and play the game more effectively. Here's to getting rid of those "demons" and having a lot more positive golf experiences!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

A Golf Improvement Question to Ask Yourself - Are You Using "Positive Practice?"

"Positive Practice" is an excellent concept that has helped me experience greater success in my golf improvement. Positive Practice is practice that is organized and focused on specific golf improvement goals rather than just "hitting balls" for an hour or two. What sets it apart is that it has action and direction, like drills and techniques, specifically related to certain goals. Whereas unfocused practice doesn't always lead to change and can actually reinforce incorrect technique, Positive Pracice is more productive and conducive to improvement in the specific areas it is focused upon. You may have heard the term "smart practice" or "practice with a purpose" from prominent teachers like Pia Nilsson and Lynn Marriott and others. In fact, in their book, "Every Shot Must Have a Purpose," Nilsson and Marriott emphasize that great play begins with thoughtful practice. What I have done is put a positive twist on the "smart practice" idea and incorporated Positive Golf ideas into the practice time to make it mentally focused as well as physically focused. So, along with mechanical drills, I am also tuning in to and tuning up my focus, awareness, confidence, and sense of feel. These are the kinds of things that help make practice time more efficient and effective so you are really making the most of your time on the range and not getting the frustrated feeling later on of "all that practice and I'm still not hitting any better."

My suggestion to you is to ask yourself, "Am I using Positive Practice?" As described in the previous paragraph, this is much more than practicing with a positive attitude. Here are some things to consider when evaluating your practice time and determining if you are indeed using Positive Practice, or "practice with a purpose":

1. When you go to the practice range, do you focus primarily on hitting buckets of balls and strive to slam them as far as you can, OR do you practice different kinds of shots with different clubs, aiming for specific targets?

2. Do you go to the range with the plan of hitting balls for an hour or to keep hitting until you make three perfect shots in a row, OR do you go with the plan to focus on one or two areas of improvement with specific drills for these areas?

3. At the range, do you keep hitting away with the same kind of shots, OR do you challenge yourself to mimic different scenarios out on the course and utilize different shots for each?

The first half of each question indicates a more unfocused approach to practice and the second half indicates a Positive Practice approach. As we begin a new year and in colder climates approach a time of renewed practice activity, I encourage you to take a look at your practice habits and develop a Positive Practice approach. You will gain a lot more from your time at the range, which will help lead to more Positive Golf experiences on the course. For more tips on Positive Practice, you can subscribe to our Positive Golf newsletter - in the last issue we provided a Positive Practice tip for improving balance and solid ball contact. To view archives of our back issues and sign up to receive future issues, just CLICK HERE.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

What Is Interfering With Your Swing?

Is improving your swing at the top of your "golf improvement list?" Did you spend a lot of time and effort this summer trying to improve your swing and are still hoping that will happen? It's likely there are some things "getting in the way" of your optimum swing that you didn't realize...

Recently, I published a post about "What Are You Holding On To That Is Holding Back Your Game," with the main point being that it is a common mental practice (although not usually realized by the individuals) for golfers to hang on to bad shots, bad golf moments, and general negativity which has the unfortunate consequences of weighing you down, holding you back, and leading to less-than-positive golf experiences. All of those "could haves," "should haves," and "if onlys" literally take away from mental energy that could otherwise be put to good use on constructive thoughts that will help your game. There is a lot of mental energy you can be putting to good use!

In the same way, there are a lot of things we do, both mentally and physically, that interferes with our swing. It is a fact that the natural motion and path of the swing is literally "at our fingertips" and is ready to repeat itself smoothly, easily, and effortlessly, but all too often we disrupt the ideal motion by what we think and do. I understand this because I have experienced it myself first-hand. Fortunately, I was able to get to the heart of the problem and figure out what I was thinking and doing to interfere with the ideal, natural swing. The results were so outstanding - including more power and distance - that I wrote a book about it which was just published called GOODBYE HIT, HELLO SWING, PART III - "Swing Power," The Stress-Free Solution for More Distance. The ideas, insight, and drills in the book are practical, do-able, and effective. For starters, here are ten common mental and physical game tendencies (we are usually doing without our realization) that interfere with the natural swing motion, causing errant shots and other problems, even when we think we are doing "all the right things." Read over the list and see if any of these practices are familiar to you. This could be the "clue" you need to "get over the hump" and really make a difference in your swing improvement. Feel free to add a comment about your own experiences with recognizing and "stopping the interference" and enjoying the freedom and satisfaction of the flow of your natural swing motion.

Common Mental and Physical Tendencies That Interfere With The Natural Swing Motion:

1. The mistaken mental belief that you need to use more physical "doing" to achieve more distance.
2. The resulting physical practice of attempting to gain more speed and more distance by using more effort.
3. The physical techniques of trying to "power it out there," "muscle" the shots with your upper body, or "goose it" early on in the downward motion.
4. The physical techniques of deliberately attempting to force more speed toward the ball or trying to power the clubhead at the ball in order to "hit it far."
5. The mistaken mental belief that you are the source of power, or that you have to "create" power.
6. The mistaken mental idea that speed is something that must be produced in a sudden fashion with a sudden " burst" or "jolt."
7. The practice of interfering with the clubhead swinging down on a tilted arc by trying too hard to "make" it happen "right."
8. The practice of trying too hard to groove the "timing" of a perfect release.
9. The practice of focusing so much on effort, trying, and timing that you aren't tuned in to awareness and the feel of the natural swinging action.
10. The practice of not trusting gravity and thus forcing rather than allowing your hands (and arms) to drop by means of the power of gravity (versus your forced "effort).

Rather than continuing to think and practice the effort-oriented approach to trying and trying to power it out there, open up to the idea that these are the mental and physical tendencies you need to address to achieve real swing improvement and more positive golf experiences. Remember - trying harder often means interfering more and actually achieving less (distance).

Here's to a stress-free approach!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

Top 5 Ways The Olympics Have Helped My Golf Game

Like so many people, I have enjoyed watching the Olympic Games for the past 17 days. I have enjoyed viewing them for many reasons, with a primary one being that it helps my golf game. Even though golf is not part of the Olympics at this time, there are still a lot of beneficial things to be learned from a mental and athletic standpoint that can be applied to golf. The ideas and inspiration from athletes in a variety of sports can successfully be applied to golf, and many other aspects of life for that matter. Here are the top five ideas that stood out for me in the past couple of weeks and served as valuable reminders and motivators for my mental golf mindset and golf improvement activities:

1. Look forward, not backward. Let go of misses and mistakes and look forward to positive possibilities and outcomes. Don't dwell on what went wrong because that will hold you back. The past is the past, period.

2. Take responsibility - don't blame. It comes down to you on the course, the court, the track, the pool, or wherever. Blaming mistakes or poor performance on other people or conditions (i.e. heat) does not help anything, because while you are blaming and complaining other competitors are not - they are focusing on things that help their performance instead, and it shows.

3. Don't get affected by limiting ideas about "age." Don't buy into common ideas and beliefs that you can't do certain things once you reach a "certain age." There were several shining examples of athletes past what is traditionally considered "prime competitive age" who blew people out of the water (no pun intended) with their attitudes and performances. These athletes weren't "superhuman," but they each had a super attitude that did not focus on what are "supposed" to be the "limitations" of age (i.e. You're old and stiff and "over-the-hill" past 40.) They really get the idea that "You're as old as you think."

4. Believe that you can do it. Time and again, the athletes who surprised with their performances, did the seemingly "impossible," or just stuck with it and went on to win expressed this can-do attitude in follow-up interviews. They showed us the supreme value of believing in yourself and knowing that, yes, you can do what you put your mind to when you absolutely believe in yourself. This applies just as much to achieving a goal in golf as it does to achieving an Olympics medal.

5. Always strive to improve. Here again, those shining stars on the court, the track, and in the pool make frequent reference to their continual efforts to improve, whether it be their form, their time, or their strength. Their years of preparation, out of the public eye of the Olympics, are filled with days and days of dedication to improvement. And they fully embrace the idea of improvement - watching videos, seeking feedback, building their bodies and their minds. They strive for practice that is positive and productive, not merely repetition. And yes, this approach is just as beneficial for golf improvement for the recreational golfer as it is for the Olympic athlete! Take the open, receptive, and persistent approach to improvement and stick with it!

These are the "Olympic ideas" that have re-charged me and my game. I would like to learn about the ideas that helped others. Feel free to add a comment to the blog...

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

The Path to a Repeatable Swing

Starting in January, I have been making posts about my Positive Golf Improvement Projects for 2008 for both the physical and mental aspects of my game. For the physical game, I have chosen to focus on "increasing the repeatability of my swing by more consistently accessing the feeling of my positive golf swing motion."

Ah yes, the repeatable swing. What a lot of people don't realize is that the successful path to a repeatable golf swing is not just filled with hitting buckets and buckets of balls while trying every mechanical swing tip in the book. It actually starts with letting go of some old beliefs and thoughts about the golf swing, as well as some negative habits and tendencies, all of which block the smooth, natural flow of what really helps lead to a repeatable swing. And what is that? Here are a couple of remarks from the great teacher Fred Shoemaker in his book Extraordinary Golf that will give you a clue: "The ability to experience - to be aware and to feel - is what creates trust"..."You can never really trust your swing if you can't feel it." In the same way that awareness and feeling are essential to building trust, they are also essential to developing a repeatable swing. How? By enabling you to tune in to the instincts, images, and motions that are natural and dependable and essentially "want" to repeat themselves.

A pure, unrestricted swinging motion wants to repeat time after time. You just need to "get out of the way" of this natural, repeating motion by letting go of ideas and actions (like fear, tension, and over-effort) that get in the way.

So, what are some restrictive, inhibiting things that I have practiced to "let go of" on my path to a repeatable swing? Here are a few:

- the misconception I needed to try to hit the ball hard to make it go farther
- self-doubt in my abilities
- fear I would hit another poor shot
- continuing judgement of every aspect of my swing
- pressure on myself to stay "up to date" on trying all of the latest swing tips

Letting go of these things helped to "free up" my mindset to the flow of awareness and feeling and allowed my mind to focus instead on repeatable swing ideas and actions, such as:

- the idea and motion of the "no effort" golf swing
- the feel of the timing and acceleration of the natural swing motion
- allowing the body to take maximum advantage of natural forces that create power and speed

Embracing this approach to developing a repeatable swing has been a powerful and positive experience for me that has led to much success. So much so that at The Heart of Golf we have published two e-books on the subject this year, Goodbye Hit, Hello Swing Parts I and II, with Part III being released in the next month. The path to a repeatable swing, like the path to all golf improvement, is one that I continue to tread, with new ideas, developments, and evolution happening all the time. I look forward to sharing the ideas and experiences that have helped me and welcome hearing about how these ideas have helped others to have more positive, repeatable golf swing experiences. Please share your comments here on the blog!

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

Small Changes Can Make A World of Difference

Two factors contributed greatly to Greg Norman's magnificent showing at last month's British Open. One of them he candidly stated when asked about leading after 54 holes. "Obviously I played well enough to put myself in this position," said Norman. "That comes from a good, safe, happy mind in a lot of ways. I'm very content in my mind..."

Naturally one needs to have the ability (which Norman had), but how we perform with our ability, at any level, is determined by our state of mind, which in turn determines our flow of thoughts. Sometimes we can use a little "reminder" of just how powerful and influential our minds are in our golf game. Norman's performance at Royal Birkdale was a shining example of this fact.

The other interesting factor was the small change Norman made in his set up. Moving closer to the ball wasn't something "new." It was a return to the way he set up in his "heyday." Another good lesson for the rest of us. With all the "swing information" floating around out there, we often tend (knowingly or unknowingly) to move away from things that have worked well in the past, in search of something better. A wiser choice, in many instances, is to return to the fundamentals and reunite with the ideas and feelings which inspired confidence and nice shot making on our "good days."

With a bit of mental effort, almost all of us can recall that, When I drove it well, I used to do this, or During those great putting rounds, I felt a certain way. Well, what are we waiting for? These things used to work, and they still will!

Small changes, even so small as a couple of inches this way or that, can make a world of difference - in our mind. We change the way we feel, and the feeling is directly impressed on our golf game. Keep this in mind when you are starting to think you need to do a "major overhaul" to fix your swing. Remember - small changes can make a world of difference!

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

What Are You Hanging On To That Is Holding Back Your Game?

Did you know that hanging on to bad shots, bad golf moments, and general negativity is one of the most prevalent mental practices that weighs golfers down, holds them back, and leads to less-than-positive golf experiences? It permeates the entire mental golf psyche and distracts from focus, visualization, and awareness. In fact, all of those "could haves," "should haves," and "if onlys" take away from mental energy that could otherwise be put to good use on constructive thoughts that will help your game.

So what exactly is "hanging on?" It is a mental habit of actively keeping thoughts and memories of past negative actions and experiences in mind by dwelling on them, frequently recalling or "replaying" them, and allowing them to linger and fester and take the place of otherwise helpful thoughts and memories.

And what is it that golfers hang on to in their minds? The specifics vary from person to person, of course, but the common factors include:

Memories and thoughts of ---
- bad shots
- bad rounds
- bad tendencies
- mistakes and "flaws"
- "ruts" you have been or are stuck in

Plus negative mental habits and tendencies such as ---
- Fear
- Anger
- Frustration
- Worry
- Self-Doubt
- Self-Comparison
- Blame
- Dread
- Resentment/Envy
- Misconception that you need to try harder

"Hanging on" is a negative mental habit I have grappled with in the past, and it definitely affected my game. I would get so preoccupied with hanging on to the memory of a missed putt or errant drive that I would lose focus on my current shots and strategy, and then my game would suffer. I have known others who have hung on to bad shots for an entire round and even afterward, and they would keep talking about it. Thinking of your own game, you can probably recall some examples of "hanging on." What is it that you tend to hang on to? Maybe it's the memories of missed putts and poor shots like I did. You'll be doing yourself a favor by taking notice of this tendency, then doing something to curb it or cut it short.

A helpful tip that helped me to reduce my tendency for "hanging on" and is something I continue to practice is:

Consciously focus you attention on remembering the positive and letting go of the negative. Practice filling your "memory bank" with memories of good shots and positive outcomes and not "storing" thoughts of mistakes, problems, and poor shots. Think of it like putting thoughts of the negative moments in the trash. Leave your past in the past!

We'll have more practical tips on curbing this negative mental tendency for "hanging on" in our soon-to-be-released Positive Golf Handbook. Leave a comment on this blog about what you tend to hang on to on the course, and I'll email you some more of these tips.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

Positive Golf Improvement Project Update II

Recently, I posted an update and tips related to the Positive Golf Improvement Project I had chosen for this year (see May 12, 2008 posting). This post is for the purpose of giving an update and tips related to the projects chosen by my wife, which were first shared here in January 2008. As a refresher, here they are:

Positive Golf Improvement Project: To develop a smooth, repeatable chip shot and consistently chip the ball within ten feet of the hole.

Primary Positive Mental Habit for Improvement: Improve "Golf Self-Talk," or that "inner dialogue" or "inner conversation" that goes on in your mind when you are playing, and may also be expressed out loud. The goal is to give particular attention and consistent practice to changing and improving this mental skill so it is more constructive and helps rather than hinders the Positive Golf mindset.

Christy is making progress in both projects, thanks to persistent mental and physical practice, including some technical tips she got at a recent "Short Swing" Clinic she participated in at our club. Here are some tips and reminders she has been practicing in her "blended" mental/physical approach to making positive improvements in her game this year:

Mental Practice #1: Practice positive reminders as part of "golf self-talk," including the following: I AM making progress in my swing improvement, and I DO have the ability to chip the ball well.

Mental Practice #2: Practice putting less pressure on myself in my "golf self-talk." For example, stop telling myself, "I should be playing as well or better than her," or "I have to swing better than this, I have to swing better than this..." (an old, negative mantra I didn't realize I was repeating so much!)

Mental Practice #3: Practice reminding myself, I don't have to try so hard. (i.e. I don't have to use so much effort!).

Physical Practice #1: Lighten the grip pressure.

Physical Practice #2: Slow down the swing. Don't hit at the ball!

Physical Practice #3: Keep the hands forward in the follow through. Don't "flick" the wrist in an effort to hit at the ball.

Physical Practice #4: Practice, practice, practice the short swing. This will help with all of my shots, including chipping.

These are the "small," nuts-and-bolts mental and physical steps that really add up and make big differences in having Positive Golf experiences! Have you picked a Positive Golf Improvement Project and/or Primary Mental Habit for Improvement this year? If so, let us know what it is and what positive ideas and techniques have been helpful to your progress. We welcome your comments...

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

Positive Golf Improvement Project Update

On January 1, 2008, I made a posting regarding my primary positive mental golf habit for practice in 2008. The one I chose was to improve my golf self-image. Even after many years of playing, with a lot of great rounds, a decent handicap, and several winning championships, I still don't have a consistently strong self golf-self image (how I see myself as a golfer). This heightens other negative mental habits, like self-doubt, self-comparison, and putting pressure on myself, and it also has a negative impact on my game. The negative golf self-image and its "cousins" tend to show up in my mind early in the season, just before a competition, particularly when I have been watching other golfers who are playing really well and comparing myself to them.

Last weekend was the Spring Medal event, which opens the season at the Club where I play. It was a good opportunity for me to give some focused attention to improving my golf self-image. I had noticed my old negative golf self-image tendency cropping up, and I was saying things to myself like, I'm a lousy putter, I'm not playing as well as I should, I'll never play as good as that guy, and I'm not good enough to win the championship again. And sure enough, this was all showing up in my practice and my playing, with tension and errant shots. The day before the event, I caught myself in this old habit and made a focused effort to practice the positive. I started by reminding myself that I do have good putting ability, which I have demonstrated before and I know I can do again. I went to the putting green with the conscious intention of having a positive putting practice (not with the dread of, I will probably putt badly again). I focused on the positive putting idea about myself (I have putted well before and I know I can do it again) and focused on getting in tune with some key putting feelings in my arms and hands that led to a smooth, relaxed stroke and accurate shots. It was a good practice, and I got myself in a good mindset to prepare me for the next day.

Here are some mental golf ideas that I practiced focusing on the day of the championship to keep me on the track of a positive golf self-image and a positive game:

1. I focused on my own game - my own abilities, my own targets, my own strategies - rather than focusing on others and how I was playing compared to them.

2. I focused on the things I can do, and I was doing well, rather than dwelling on weaknesses and mistakes that would erode my confidence.

3. I focused on playing the game to the best of my ability, rather than putting the pressure on myself of thinking, "You've won this before and people are expecting you to win this again."

These mental practices helped me to be more relaxed and confident than I had been so far this season, and I played better than I had so far. I was pleased with my putting too. Did I win the Spring Medal? No, I didn't, although I did tie for second in low gross, and I made sure to focus on the positivity of that (rather than dwelling on what I had not accomplished).

I am glad to be off to a good start this season, and with more practice on my positive golf self-image, blended with my repeatable swing drills, I am looking forward to a summer of great golf.

Here's to great golf for you too!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com


P.S. To learn how you can use other Positive Golf ideas like this to improve your game, check out our Golf Improvement Super Special - six e-books for a super price until May 15!

The chicken or the egg question: Which comes first - the mental game or the physical game?

Which comes first, the mental game or the physical game? We get this question a lot, and it's a good one. My answer is always the same - you need to work on both of them together. Many are under the mistaken impression that you wait until you have a super swing and an excellent game and "go pro" or play in championships at your club, then you use the mental stuff to fine-tune your game and "psych out" the competition. The truth is, mental golf is valuable for every golfer at every experience level to use all the time. As an example, if you are striving to improve your swing but not getting the results you desire, it is likely that negative mental golf habits like self-doubt, self-induced pressure, fear, and old beliefs about your abilities and technique are limiting your improvement. On the other hand, you may have a beautiful swing and a superb game, but you experience a series of bad shots or bad rounds. Here again, it is likely that you are inhibiting your swing and your performance with mental habits like self-doubt, self-induced pressure, fear, holding on to the memory of bad shots, and old beliefs like inclement weather "makes" you play poorly. Even if you are using a positive mental technique like visualization, these other negative mental habits are going to get in your way and interfere with your swing and your game. It happens to the best of them, including Tiger Woods.

The key to remember is that you want to be working on your mental game and your physical game together, all the time, regardless of where you are in your experience level or the way you are playing at the moment. (In other words, you don't wait until you're in a pressure situation or you've reached the "upper echelon" and you're trying to fine-tune your game.) We call this concurrent practice of the mental and physical games "the blend that makes the difference" - we know that the mental game sets the stage and has a profound influence on the physical game, and they should always be practiced together - no waiting for the "right" moment or the "right" level of your physical game. And one more key thing to remember is this - mental golf is much, much more than visualizing good shots or "psyching out" your competition. There are so many factors to mental golf, in fact, that we have been working for nearly a year to create a Positive Golf Handbook to help golfers understand, address, and strengthen these factors in order to boost their game. In the book, we address nearly twenty critical mental golf factors!

Over the weekend, there were some excellent examples at the Masters of some of these points I am making. In an interview after his excellent round on Saturday, Paul Casey said that to prepare for the Masters, he worked on his fitness, his swing, and his mental game. (A good, well-rounded approach that included all the key elements of an optimum game, I might add.) Paul also said that during the Masters, he was also practicing "rebounding"- letting go of bad shots and not letting them hang over him, but "moving on" instead. He was also savoring the moment and allowing himself to "have fun" (which helps the body relax and the swing to flow). In contrast to this, we could see what happened to Tiger Woods when negativity crept into his mental game. Even the best swing in the world is affected by negative self-talk and self-induced pressure. David Farady said this about Tiger: "He's been battling against himself more than anything else." Tiger may have been visualizing great shots, but tension and anxiety definitely got in the way.

And then there was Trevor Immelman and Brandt Snedeker who were a joy and an inspiration to watch and to listen to in their interviews. A lot of great, positive mental golf techniques were expressed by them and also pointed out by the commentators (particularly Nick Faldo who does an exceptional job at highlighting the mental side of the game). Here is a highlight of the mental techniques used by these two great young players who expressed such poise and did not succumb to pressure from without or from within. Note the mix of mental techniques they use - it's not just about focus and visualization, although these are part of the mix - it is a combination of multiple positive factors:

For Brandt Snedeker:

1. Be patient.
2. Rebound - let go of those bad shots and move on.
3. Trust your swing - analyze, choose, then go.
4. Allow yourself to have fun.

For Trevor Immelman:

1. Positive, complete preparation - "no stone unturned"
2. Determination
3. Belief in yourself and your abilities - "I can do it!"
4. Focus on your game - don't get bogged down in self-comparison and focusing on what the other person/people are doing

These are practical, real-life mental skills that can (and should!) be practiced by any golfer at any level - and practiced all the time, right along with the practice of your physical game. Remember - don't wait or hold off on practicing mental skills (the physical game doesn't come first - they are done together). The mental game should be practiced by every golfer in every round as a regular, natural part of your game. That is when you will realize greater satisfaction and greater success. To help you with this, we offer a series of golf improvement books that give real-life tips and exercises on blending mental and physical techniques to cure your slice, improve your swing, and develop an effortless, repeatable swing. Take advantage of our Golf Improvement Super Special (6 e-books for $47 until April 30) and get a collection of books to help you transform your mindset, your swing, and your game.

Remember - always keep the mental game "in the mix" of what you do on the practice range and on the course!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com