Most golfers will say the hardest part of their game is focus. The mental side of golf is easily overlooked. You know your friend the one who golfs well every time he goes out? Why is that? Practice, they practice. What they usually do not share is, what they are practicing at. They practice at mental toughness; golf has often been referred to as 10% Talent 90% mental. When overcoming that mental side of golf, do you try to change your equipment, the time at which you play, maybe even they guys you play with. Here we go, some tips that are going to help get you on your way to being a better golfer.
The tempo of golf is often a concern for golfers. You are stuck behind a slow foursome, or maybe the guys behind you are rushing you, and you feel that pressure to golf faster. The tempo of the course should never affect the tempo of your swing. The tempo of your swing is so important; to achieve the desired results. How do I find my tempo you ask? A golfer can find their tempo by doing these simple things:
SLOW DOWN!! Let me say this again SLOW DOWN, if you just swing faster and harder you are not going to get the results you are looking for. This is true is some instances, but, for the sake of this article we will not be discussing those concepts. The tempo we are going to discuss today, is going to deal with how you approach every single shot in your game, you need to have the same back swing, contact, and follow through on every swing. How do you practice tempo? While at the driving range your focus should only be on one club at a time. Take your driver and hit 20 balls, then take your 9 iron and hit 20 balls work your way in 3W-8I and on until you have hit them all. To perfect your back swing come to the same position every time. When you hit the ball you should be contacting at the same speed every time. Some people have the misconception that you should swing harder and faster with big clubs and slower and softer with smaller clubs. You really want to be swinging all of your clubs at the same speed, you will see great improvement on how well you make contact with the ball. When you are working on your follow through it will be the same as your back swing, you will want it to be the same with every club. How you follow through directly affect your accuracy. When you focus on these three techniques you will find that your mental game will improve.
This is a three step process after you are done at the driving range it is time to head to the chipping green. You will want to work with your Wedge, 60deg, 8I, and 9I. You need to use every club for at least 100 chips. When you start in the deep stuff focus on yout tempo and making sure you land every ball on the green. When chipping just focus on your tempo, using the same stroke every time. Remember chipping should be another tool in your arsenal and not the final result. Many careers have been made from singles and doubles hitters it is not just the home run hitters that decide how games turnout. The idea is to get on the green and let your putter do the work. The 8i and 9i will be used to work out the tempo of the bump and run technique. Tempo here is the key still but keep in mind that now you have too much club for such a short distance. Block out what is going on around you and focus on your tempo!! Imagine you are still hitting that same wedge, Change the Club not the Tempo!!
Putting Putting Putting! This is so hard to understand but why? Now we have gone from the Driving range to the chipping green to the putting green. What you want to practice here is the same thing! You want to work on your tempo. You putt the same every time, you will not be changing your swing ever. The only part about putting that changes is the distance. Start with 10 balls and putt then in from 1ft away from the hole. Move your self out 1ft for every 10 balls you sink in a row. Stay focused on your tempo.
The goal for these exercises is to teach your to go through the same steps every time. You are trying to create a tempo that you are going to follow, now matter what is going on around you. Seeing results is going to depend on how much time you take to find your tempo!! The game is 90% mental; set a clock in your mind that only allows for the same tempo no matter when or where you are golfing. By creating this method of training for your body, your mind will have no choice but to respond by focusing on what you are trying to do.
