The Many Layers of a Quiet Mind in Golf
Let’s face it: Golf is a huge mental game… When playing with a lot of confidence, golf is easy, fun, and feels effortless for most players.
When playing with no confidence because of mistakes or poor play, a strong mental game is needed most.
Your biggest challenge is to stay positive (and keep confidence) when not playing up to your expectations. Your own mental gremlins want to punish you for not performing well…
“I should never make bogey on that easy hole.”
“I need to find another sport to play after missing yet another three-footer.”
“I’ll probably dump this ball in the water because I’m hitting the ball so poorly today.”
PGA Tour player Tim Simpson was asked: “What’s the hardest thing to do in sports?”
He said to play relaxed and keep the mind quiet is the hardest thing to do in sports:
“To play totally relaxed. I’ve talked to Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and Mike Schmidt about it. Any athlete performs at his best when the mind is the quietest. That’s all sports psychology is — trying to quiet the mind to let your body play instinctively.”
~Tim Simpson
I agree with Tim – at least for some players. A quiet mind is essential for peak performance especially for golfers who over analyze and over control their performance.
However, I can think of many layers of a quiet mind…
One layer of a quiet mind is coping with poor shots or poor play. I recently published a CD program called *The Relaxed Athlete* to help players perform with a calm mind.
I think the hardest thing to do in golf is remain confident, composed, and not let your inner gremlins win when you under perform.
Fragile confidence can block any talented golfer from realizing his talent. If you have fragile confidence, you ride the confidence roller-coaster.
With fragile confidence, confidence decreases after one bad shot! When confidence wanes after poor shots, you can’t play with a quiet mind….
Doubt can overtake your thoughts. When working with my students, I make sure we address how to overcome doubt. This is a must if you want to ride a steady wave of confidence.
You might be unaware when doubt strikes. Your doubt may be just a tough habit to break. Or your doubt might even be a form of self-punishment after mistakes.
In any case, you must cap doubt quickly before it erodes confidence. Your first step is to recognize when your negative thoughts are over active.
To learn all my confidence-boosting strategies I teach my personal coaching students, I highly suggest you join my new confidence coaching program: Golfer’s Mental Edge course.
During my new course, I assess your mental game, give you a prescription to improve, coach you for eight weeks, and give you 365 days of continuing education.
Get all the details here:
Your Golf Confidence Coach,
Dr. Patrick Cohn
p.s. The Golfer’s Mental Edge Program coaching program starts this week. The last day to enroll is Tuesday, September 16 because we begin on Thursday this week. This is the most comprehensive golf psychology course I have ever given:
Learn Proven Strategies to Perform with Confidence!
Do you suffer from fragile self-confidence after missed hits, playing with strict or high expectations that undermine confidence or the inability to play freely and relaxed on the course?
If you suffer from lack of focus, low self-confidence or other mental game obstacles on the course, you cant reach your true golf potential…
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“The mental side is everything in golf—the ability to see your shot or line and trust that you can hit that shot or putt. Dr. Cohn has helped me trust my game and putting stroke.”
~Frank Lickliter, PGA Tour, Nike Tour Winner
“My confidence level has never been higher! I can’t tell you how clearly I was able to think during all four rounds of tour-school. The simple game plan you gave me really focused me. My confidence level has never been higher during a tournament. No matter how much pressure was on, I was able to control my thoughts and execute. Thank you Dr. Cohn!”
~Patricia Baxter-Johnson, LPGA Tour
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Master mental game coach Dr. Patrick Cohn can help you overcome your mental game issues with personal coaching.
You can work with Dr. Patrick Cohn himself in Orlando, Florida or via Skype, FaceTime, or telephone. Call us toll free at 888-742-7225 or contact us for more information about the different coaching programs we offer!
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“WOW!!! What a week I had. I was able to perform with a confidence that allowed my style to shine through–no more entering the arena with that “deer in the headlights” look or feeling. I stopped evaluating myself while I was performing, and I actually left the arena after my patterns feeling like I had experienced a lot of fun. Thank you so much.”
~Julia Dreyer, National Champion Equestrian