Pure Point Golf Swing The winning swing perfected by Bobby Eldridge.

As a golfer you must definitelybe aware that learning the mental game of golf is just as important if not more important as learning even something as essentialas swing basics. Perhapsto a greater extentthan with any other sport, conquering mental game of golf is essentialto becoming a single digit handicapgolfer. Without the mental game of golf, you can pretty much reserve yourself to ordinary playat best.

Think about the last time you played golf did you visualize every shot before making your swing? If not, you are deprivingyourself of a very significantstep. Withoutmental pictureyou have no capacity to send your ball in the right direction upon impact.

If you failed to visualize your shot, the chances are pretty good that you did not have a great shot. If this was the case, were you able to bounce back after sending your ball in the wrong direction? Or was your mental game of golf such that you fell quickly into a rut? On the other hand, when you have a great shot are you able to duplicate it on your ensuingshots? Improving your mental game will help you to repeat the good shots and isolate the bad ones.

To develop mental game you must be able to handle every distractionthat comes your way, be that a bad shot or a hazard on the course. But just like mastering your swing does not come easily, neither does the mental game of golf.

Additionally to visualizing your swing and having the capacityto not let little distractions get to you, there are many other components to the mental game of golf. Learning to cope with pressure is a big part of the mental game. We all know that anxiety levels rise when the game gets competitive. Learning to redirect pressure to your benefit will significantlyimprove your game. It is, in fact, reasonably possible to use pressure to take you to the next level.

Also, it is critical to the game of golf that you learn to stay in the moment. This technique is practiced by Buddhist monks around thw world; and it can be applied quite relevantly to the game of golf. If you are not focused, centered and attentive to your game, it is unrealistic to preform your best. Learning to stay in the moment is perhaps one of the best methods to improving your game.

If you learn to controlthe mental game of golf you will be far ahead of your competiton. While you might think it’s counter productive to work on the mental aspect of a sport before even the fundamentals, this approach works. Any professional golfer will tell you that the the inner game of golf is a very important aspect of the game that can’t be over looked. By working on the psychological element of the game, you in reality simplify the rest of the learning process.

Knowledge of the mental side of golf can also be a fun and rewardingpart of the game. Watching yourself as you get better at this part of the game gives you a feeling of accomplishment.You need to put in equal amounts of practise time on both sides of the game.When you can combine these two elements of the game that is when you will become a great golfer.

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So you may be wandering just what does the US Open Golf Tournament have to do with my game? Well if you want to function well in your own club championship it could have a lot to do with your success. When you go to the driving range to work on your swing and pound ball after ball it’s only one small part of practise. This is what is called the practise makes perfect method. Yet if you’ve golfed for any length of time you know this simply isn’t true: practice doesn’t make perfect. Practice makes permanent. So really you should be practising what is essential for you to play at your best. Your mental game requires the same awareness.

In order to play well with the anxiety of pressure you need to practise under the same conditions. When it counts the most and you need to pull off a great shot the stress of the situation you have forced on yourself increases 10 fold for some golfers. The trial by fire approach to improving your mental game of golf toughness and performing under pressure is a haphazard method. Yet it’s the only method that most amateur golfers know.

They enter more tournaments and matches with the hopes that by being in more events they will attain the mental game toughness and concentration skills to deal with the pressure. Unfortunately it just doesn’t work that way. What do you see happen most of the time with this typical approach ? Yes you guessed it; the vast majority of players never perform up to their own capabilities because they lack mental game preparedness.

Then they merely chalk it up to experience and hope to get in the position to win again. This strategy , if you can call it one, is the “natural” way. Just get in contention enough times and you’re sure to win. It’s a very haphazard mental game approach. Well this might be true, since a player will succeed eventually if they give themselves enough chances.

I want to submit to you that the more times you are in contention and don’t win that what you are doing is increasing the likelihood of losing again, not of making winning easier. What the problem is; it’s a lack of mental game preparedness . You have built a mindset of losing in your unconscious mind around not performing well under pressure. It will drive your behaviour (your thought processes and the swings you make under stress). You will unconsciously duplicate the experience of losing that you are accustomed to.

This a tough pill to swallow but if you want real and lasting change then mental game preparation can save you months, and even years for some golfers, of needless inner chaos around pressure, performance anxiety, competitive stress and its influence on your golf game. So what if you could replicate  the US Open tournament pressure when you practise and then were able to take that mindset out to the course when you play?

Now let’s say you have a mental game visualization routine that is filled with every imaginable pressure situation you could encounter. Do you think you would be perhaps a step or two ahead of your average player with the “natural” approach? I believe you most certainly would be!

By using visualization and in fact feeling with your mind’s eye you can invent the exact kind of pressure you would feel in competition. Your unconscious mind will absorb these sessions and add them to your mental game library and integrate them into your golfing self image. These become real events to your mind. With this methodology you are providing your mind and body with sensory specific information about what anxiety is to you and how to play when it’s present .

This is in fact preparing your mind and body to react in a desire behaviour when the anxiety of tournament play is present. Practise your mental game by imagining you are in the US Open and at the range hitting balls. Give yourself only one shot to hit your desired target. Create a scoring system to monitor how well you do when practising this way. crank-up the pressure by taking only one drive, then one iron, then a chip shot if you miss your imagined green with your approach shot. Try to pay very close attention to how your perform when using this technique.

If you want to accelerate your mental game improvement and begin to play well under pressure then it’s critical you simulate pressure in your practice sessions . What other way is there to get ready to face the inevitable? Do you really want to rely on the time worn approach of entering more and more tournaments and matches just hoping to get use to the pressure? How much time money are you prepared to spend before you make the changes necessary ?

Grab a hold of your potential and start to develop a dependable mental game. Your overall mindset on the course, your mental game toughness, your sense of clarity and inner confidence under the gun, and a list of other benefits will enter your game. Not just occasionally but for a lifetime. You will be absolutely amazed at how all the little distractions and rubs of the green that used to get under your skin and derail you don’t even enter your mind anymore.

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