Hypnosis for Golfers
"It's a Mental Game"
Golf is a game of mental attitude and visualization. It makes no difference if you play only on weekends with your buddies or are a professional, you are all looking to attain the same results.... a low score. You can have perfect technique, but the minute you get on that course in front of people or play in a tournament chances are you will choke up, especially if you play for money or against someone better then you. It is almost definite that you have hidden negative imprints within your unconscious mind.
Through my sports hypnosis I can remove these imprints and set your mind on the right track. With the use of self-hypnosis I will teach you how to concentrate, focus, and visualize like you have never done before. Along with your FREE CD's you will have the tools to finally feel comfortable on the course and improve your game. With each session you will increase your skills. Even if you are a golf pro, hypnosis can help your clients remember what you teach them and keep them coming back for more lessons.
Look at the professionals that tour. If you think they don't use some sort of hypnosis, then you believe in the Easter Bunny.
Gary Player won the British Open using Hypnosis, why not YOU!
Perhaps one of the
most famous examples of hypnosis assisting a sportsman, is the story of Rod
Carew, one of American baseballs finest. Carew had suffered an injury, which
while technically had healed, left him nonetheless with some pain (perhaps
psychosomatic, but real enough to him), and an elevated sense of self doubt. A
hypnotist was consulted, and he was instructed in mastering self hypnosis.
Carew then came back to the best season of his entire career, with a batting
score of almost .400, and went on to win 'The most valuable player award'!
The Enormous Power Of
Visualization
by Craig Townsend
(Dip. of Clinical Hypnotherapy).
Visualization is the most
powerful tool available
to achieve peak performance on the golf course (or
anywhere, for that matter) - which is the simple act of
running through your mind the exact scenario you wish to
happen on the course.
Whether they realize it or not, everyone uses
visualization to some extent, as ALL thoughts are
converted into images inside the subconscious - but the
problem many golfers have is that instead of using it
positively, they tend to run horror movies through their
mind before they hit a shot! Of course, this works highly
effectively and ensures they hit a bad shot!
So actively using visualization ensures that you are
running positive movies through your head, instead of
negative - which was the highly-used practice of Jack
Nicklaus and Ben Hogan. Jack Nicklaus said that whenever
he walked up to a ball, he 'went to the movies' which
basically meant that he first of all pre-programmed the
shot in his mind before he would ever consider addressing
the ball.
Visualization has the ability to overcome any negative
subconscious 'programs' which can create problems, such as:
* The yips
* 1st tee nerves
* Concentration lapses (e.g.. spasmodic lapses, or back-nine
lapses)
* Lack of belief in your own ability
* Slumps in form
* Regularly recurring problems on the course
* Technical problems
* Practicing hard but getting no results for your hard
work
* Doubts, fears, worries and anxieties
* Inconsistency in competition
* Playing great in practice, lousy in competition
* Overly worrying about the "obstacles" such as the
bunkers and trees
* Injuries occurring just before competitions
It is a scientific fact that in order for human beings
to 'create' anything, they must first have a mental image
conceived in their mind - this is true even of every
invention created throughout history, and also true for
your golf shots. You must first construct the shot in your
mind before you can expect your body to do it properly.
However, visualization should not only be used on the golf
course, but for a 5-10 minute session each day at home -
as this creates a new program within your subconscious for
your body to follow.
Building a Better Golfer
by Bill Hartman, PT, CSCS, ART
When was the last time you truly prepared to play your
best golf game? Now I'm not talking about buying the
right shoes or the best clubs, I'm talking about preparing
yourself to play your best game. Chances are, if you're
like most golfers, you never have. Sure you took lessons
from the best teacher you could find, but for some reason,
you continue to have good days and bad days on the course.
You still have that one simple fault in your swing that
forces you to hit inconsistently no matter how many lessons
you take. No matter how many balls you hit at the driving
range.
Now consider this. Does a football player just decide he
wants to play football and straps on the pads and takes to
the field? Does a baseball pitcher just head out to the
mound and throw 100 mile an hour fastballs? Of course
not. Then why would a golfer, regardless of his current
abilities, expect to go out and play his best game without
preparing his body first?
Some say, "Well, golf is game of technique and practice.
It's not an athletic event." I totally disagree. When you
swing a golf club, the club head speed can reach 100 miles
an hour. At the same time, the golfer's peak muscle
activity can reach 90% of his or her maximum. That is
equal to a weight lifter lifting a weight only four times
before he could not lift it again due to fatigue. Now if
you're a pretty decent golfer you may have to generate that
same force up to 40 times a round. And you thought you
were tired on the 18th tee because of the all the walking
you were doing. Guess Again.
Let me give you two recent examples which most golfers will
be familiar with as to how some specific forms of training
can improve your game. First is Tiger Woods, arguably the
best golfer around. He just finished the longest winning
streak in professional golf in 52 years. An astounding
feat in itself until you look at how he won it. How many
times did he come from behind? How did he play his best
golf at the end of the round and hit so consistently when
the other golfers fought themselves to maintain their
game? The answer is he trained for it. The second example
is David Duvall. Has anyone noticed the new slimmed down
version of David Duvall? Why did he lose all that weight
and start working with a trainer to improve his game?
Because he understands that with all the advances in his
equipment and his competitor's equipment, golf scores have
essentially remained the same. So the difference then must
be the golfer himself. When asked why he underwent such a
physical transformation to improve his game Mr. Duvall
simply said, "Because Tiger did it, and I need to keep
up." 'Nuff said.
Now sure, these guys are the big time. They make a living
playing golf. Why should you care? Well, have you ever
spent a little extra money on a specific club in hopes of
increasing your driving distance, and you didn't notice any
significant improvement? Maybe it's not the club. Maybe
your body hasn't been trained properly to produce the
appropriate force at contact with the ball to drive
farther. Have you ever taken a lesson with an experienced
teacher to identify a fault and no matter how much you
practiced, you just couldn't produce the adjustment in your
swing that you desired? Maybe you lack flexibility in your
shoulders, back, or hips that prevent you from making the
adjustment. You see, it's not your fault. You just
haven't been trained to produce the golf game you desire to
play.
Sport-Specific Training for the Average Golfer
Any one can improve their golf game without investing in
new equipment or hundreds of hours of lessons simply by
improving four basic physical qualities: flexibility,
stability, strength, and power. A deficiency in any of the
four will result in faulty swings and inconsistent play.
Flexibility
Lack of proper flexibility in the shoulder, back, and hips
can create restrictions in back swing, follow-through, as
well as a loss in your swing plane or create faulty
clubface angles on contact with the ball. Working
consistently toward ideal flexibility can eliminate many of
these swing faults.
Stability
Lack of stability in the trunk produces an inconsistent
address posture and alterations in the swing that can
produce an array of faults causing you to push on one swing
and pull on the next or hit fat then thin. Training for
proper static and dynamic stability produces consistency in
the golf swing from the beginning of a round to the end.
Strength
A lack of proper strengthening of the trunk results in the
most common injuries to the back, elbow, and wrist due to
overuse. Appropriate strength levels in the trunk
musculature allow the golfer to tolerate the tremendous
forces produced in the swing and prevents fatigue which can
reduce performance.
Power
Power is the generation of force per unit time. More power
means faster club head speed resulting in longer drives.
To develop power, you must train for it.
The Bottom Line
You can improve your golf game by training appropriately
regardless of your age or your current physical state.
It's not about building huge muscles or the perfect body.
In fact, bodybuilding type training will inhibit your
progress. It's about selective strengthening and
increasing flexibility, then integrating those new
qualities with the proper timing within the golf swing.
It's about building a better golfer.
by Dr Aidan Moran,
Professor of Psychology
Concentration, or the ability
to focus on the present task while ignoring distractions,
is probably the most important mental skill in golf. As
Paul Azinger said, ~Staying in the present is the key to
the golfer's game: Once you start thinking about a shot you
just messed up. You're lost~. But what can you do on the
course to improve your focusing skills? Here are some
practical tips that are designed to keep your mind focused
on the job at hand.
Develop a pre-shot routine
Routines train your mind to
focus on the ~here and now~. Remember the steps involved in
any good routine: Assess the situation, then prepare to
play and finally, trust your swing and let it flow.
Pick a specific target
Always ask yourself "What's my target?" for every shot you
play. Picking a target is a good way of blocking out
distractions.
Focus on the challenge of every shot
Try to see every shot as a contest between you and the
target. Nothing else matters.
Use "trigger words" to refocus your mind
If you find yourself thinking too far ahead, try using
phrases like "this one ~ now!" or "nice and easy" to
refocus your mind.
Visualize the type of shot you want to play
Visualization, or "seeing" and "feeling" a shot in your
imagination before you actually hit it, is a popular
concentration technique among top players.
Learn to put the past behind you
Develop the habit of "letting go" of the shot you've just
played. If it was a bad shot, remind yourself that it's the
next shot that counts. If it was a good shot say "well
done" silently to yourself but remember to re-focus on the
next target to aim at.
Developing the Right
Attitude to Golf
by Dr Aidan Moran, Professor of
Psychology
Developing the right attitude to Golf
Here is the first in a series of articles by Dr Aidan
Moran, Professor of Psychology Research at University
College, Dublin. Dr Moran is adviser to many of Ireland's
top Golfers including Padraig Harrington
Anyone who has missed a short putt in a competition knows
that although golf is played with the body, it is won in
the mind. But why is golf so demanding mentally? More
importantly, what frame of mind helps you to play to the
best of your ability on the course?
Golf is a psychologically demanding game for three main
reasons. First, it is an un-timed sport so you must be
prepared to play for as long as it takes to complete the
round or match. All too often, club golfers upset
themselves unnecessarily by losing patience with slow
players ahead of them. Remember what the late Payne Stewart
said: ~A bad attitude is worse than a bad swing!~ A second
reason why golf is tough mentally is because you have to
take full responsibility for what you do on the course.
Unfortunately, many players try to evade this
responsibility by making excuses ~ blaming the course,
their clubs, the weather and/or the balls they're using.
But research shows that only losers make excuses.
Finally, the ~stop-start~ nature of golf means that you
spend more time thinking about playing than actually
hitting the ball. In fact, in a typical three and a half-
hour round of golf, less than 10% of your time is devoted
to swinging the club. The rest of the time is spent
walking, talking, looking for balls, regretting mistakes,
losing concentration and, of course, making excuses!
The implications of this finding are clear. In order to
play consistently to the best of your ability, you have to
learn to concentrate on only one shot at a time ~ no
looking back and no thinking too far ahead. The best way to
do this is to regard golf as a target sport ~ a bit like
archery. Without a target, your mind will wander. But
remember, your target must be a positive one ~ something to
aim at (e.g., a spot on the fairway) rather than something
to avoid (e.g., a water hazard).
So, next time you play, make sure to pick a target for
every shot.