Welcome to our “Golf Psychology Coaching” Program. Golf is a game of both competence and confidence. What separates good golf players from great ones? In most cases, it’s a matter of those with the strongest minds that are able to overcome distractions, conquer negative thoughts and beat their competition. Golf is known to be one of the most fragile sports when it comes to psychology. One negative thought can have you tightening up your muscles and send your ball the opposite way of where you were aiming. For this reason, it’s no wonder why so many golfers (both male and female) regularly consult with sports psychologists in order to keep their mental muscles sharp.

Whether you’re a serious golfer or only play occasionally, working on your mental game can have a huge impact on the way you play. If you’ve ever had the experience of choking while playing (or you’re terrified that it’s going to happen), you’ll know that your thoughts can have either a negative or positive impact on your game, and at times these thoughts can feel completely uncontrollable. Sure, if you don’t have the necessary physical skills, you’re unlikely to automatically transform into a winner simply by changing your thinking. If you have a bad swing, it’s still going to be producing bad shots and you’ll need to have a level of physical competence if you want to play well.

In saying that, the importance of the mind can’t be overstated when it comes to a game of golf. No matter how often you practice your golf swing, how skilled you are, and how many games you play, your muscles and body are controlled by your mind. If your mind isn’t functioning well, your muscles won’t do their job, and your head is bursting with negative thoughts, you’ll find that your scorecard will be full of bad strokes. We’re only humans, which means that just like everyone else, golfers have good and bad days. Sometimes those bad days will be because you burnt your toast, heard some bad news, can’t find your favorite hat, or had a fight with your significant other, while other times you simply woke up on the wrong side of bed. Whatever the cause, realizing that your head isn’t in the game can lead to panic, meaning the problem becomes worse, you play terribly, and you become terrified that the same problem will happen again- leading to a vicious cycle. It’s important to recognize that we all have off days. No one wakes up feeling good every day, but the way you react to this bad day is what will determine whether you succeed.

Taking ownership of your emotions, thoughts and behavior is the first step, and will determine whether you shake these feelings off quickly or give into them. Even the best golfers in the world can get distracted or stressed and lose control of their golf game. The difference between those players and the average golfer is that they’re a lot better at making a comeback instead of watching their whole game go down the drain. Training yourself to handle distractions is one of the best ways you can improve your game and work on your mental muscles.

Many of the techniques you’ll learn in the “Golf Psychology Coaching” Program will have run-on effects throughout the rest of your life. Conquering your mind, overcoming negative thoughts, calming your “monkey mind” and learning to focus will help you with your work, your family, your sleep, and of course, your golf game. It’s natural to be nervous both before and during a golf game, but some golfers can end up feeling actual fear about how they’re going to play. Fear is an emotional and instinctive response to imminent danger, and without mental techniques that control it, the emotional response turns to a physiological one, in the form of tense muscles, a racing heart, panic, sweaty palms, and poor focus. Below are some of the topics that the “Golf Psychology Coaching” Program will explore to get your head back in the game:

• Identifying common stressors and distractions
• Analyzing your cycles of Defeat
• Determining your self-fulfilling prophecies
• The power of thought
• Reducing stress
• Embracing pressure
• Making every shot count
• Tuning out the noise
• Modelling, visualizing
• Knowing your target
• Breathing
• Picturing the shot
• Learning to slow down
• Realizing your goal
• Strategizing
• And much more