Have More Fun Playing Golf

What Fears are Keeping You from Playing to Your Potential?

By Joan King, Peak Performance Strategist

Babies are born with two fears; fear of falling and a fear of loud noises. All other fears you have created in your mind from your own experience. Humans have wonderful imaginations and can conjure up all kinds of fearful situations.

When you are controlled by your fears on the golf course, it is time to change them into empowering thoughts. Fear is your teacher. Courage is your assignment. Confidence and self-respect are your lessons. Feed your fear and you starve your Spirit!

On the golf course, all golfers will experience one or more of the following:

1. Fear of Failure. A golfer with a fear of failure at times uses generalizations as an excuse for her lack of ability and self-esteem. This “all-or-nothing” approach is apparent in the golfer who misses the first fairway and worries about her driver from then on. Or the golfer who 3-putts the first two greens, and declares, “It’s going to be that kind of a day,” which creates a self-fulfilling prophesy.

2. Fear of Success. Unconsciously golfers can be afraid of success because it adds pressure to shoot lower scores. Most people are prepared to deal with failure, but not success. And so we are afraid that we won’t be able to maintain that new level of success. It is important for your mental game to program your mind to accept your success when it happens and to know that you earned it and deserve it.

3. Fear of Being Judged. From childhood we wanted our parents' and peers’ approval. Seeking this constant approval can keep golfers from their peak performances because they are continually judging themselves and others. Golfers who are afraid to make mistakes in front of others fear that others will think less of them.

4. Fear of Embarrassment. Most people don't like to experience the feeling of public embarrassment (looking foolish) over making a mistake. Golfers need to forgive themselves for their errors and learn from them, and not be concerned with the opinions of other golfers or what you think they might be thinking about you. Did you ever mishit a shot on the range, and then look around to see who might have seen it?

5. Fear of Rejection. Many golfers feel that others will reject them if they do not play well enough. The truth is that most golfers like to play with others who are fun to play with, and are less concerned with their abilities/handicaps.

6. Fear of Losing. Some golfers are so competitive they can't stand to lose. Losing will cause them to become anxious and tense which will interfere with their swings. When golfers want to win at all costs, they become afraid of making mistakes.

7. Fear of Not Being Perfect. While golfers know that no one can be perfect at golf, it doesn’t stop them from analyzing every shot and judging their shots. Fear of making mistakes causes golfers to play tentatively or to "steer" the club. The game of golf is about putting the ball in the hole in the fewest number of strokes, not making the most perfect shots. It’s the old adage describing the game of golf; “It’s not how, it’s how many!”

8. Fear of the Unknown. This is the greatest golf psychological fear of all. Life is full of unknowns. When we keep our thoughts in the present moment, we don't allow the fear of anything that happened in the past to influence us. When we don't allow our thoughts to move into the future and imagine the "what if" possibilities, we won't become anxious. The "fear" that we thought might happen, more often than not, won't happen. If it does we are usually more prepared for it than when we were worried about its enormity.

"Fear of failure becomes fear of success for those who never try anything new." Dr. Wayne Dyer

To overcome any of these fears, 

Use the following golf mental game strategies when it is your turn to hit:

•  Breathe deeply and relax all fear thoughts out of your mind.

•  Stay in the present. Don't let your mind wander into past or future thoughts. Let go of expectations.

•  Stay focused on the process of creating the shot. 

•  Give 100% to the preparation (pre-shot routine) of every shot.

•  Practice tolerance. You will like yourself a lot more, and so will others.

•  Be brave. Courage is acting with fear, not without it.

•  Believe in your ability to create what you can imagine.

•  Be patient. Your good shots will happen when you least expect them.

•  Focus on the reasons to succeed.

Know that as humans we learn from our experiences. Failure to execute a shot is a good learning experience. Know that a missed shot doesn’t make you a failure. It is just a skill that you didn’t pull off at that time. Learn from the experience so you will know how to execute it the next time. Don’t be distracted by a fear and miss this opportunity to improve your mental golf game.

Joan can be reached by phone at 828-696-2547, by email at pmi4@bellsouth.net or through the Positive Mental Imagery website at www.pmi4.com. On the website you can sign up for a free monthly mental golf newsletter, sign up for a free 15-minute conversation with Joan, and access self-hypnosis mental golf CDs.

“How Can I Keep from Getting Up-tight on
the Golf Course?”   By Joan King, Peak Performance Strategist

Tight muscles are a result of faulty thinking. To improve your mental golf game, begin to monitor the chatter that is going on inside your head. We all have self-talk that goes on constantly inside our heads. Remember that your thoughts are creating every moment of your life. Think the best ones. 

The banter on the first tee is a verbal indication of what golfers are thinking and saying to themselves. You will most likely hear conversation similar to the following: “I haven’t played in a week” (so don’t expect me to play well), “My handicap just went up” (because I am playing terribly),” or “This isn’t my kind of golf course” (It’s too tough for me to score well). These are examples of negative, defeating thinking that will reinforce your feelings of insecurity and cause you to become anxious and up-tight about your performance.

Begin to see the game (and yourself) the way you would like it (and yourself) to be. 

Change all negative thoughts into positive ones. You add energy to anything you focus your attention on. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance that you look for the good in everyone and everything for your mental game.  Talk to yourself as encouragingly as you do the members of your foursome. 

•  Talk to yourself as if you are the finest caddy on the Pro Tour.  A good caddy’s job is to reinforce the golfer’s self-worth, remind you of your ability, help you to think clearly, and keep you relaxed and calm. 

•  Treat yourself as if you are talking to your best friend, encouraging her and pointing out her good traits and past successes. 

•  As you give yourself positive affirming messages, breathe deeply through your abdomen to create a feeling of relaxation and acceptance. 

•  Adopt the attitude that you can improve, and that you believe in yourself and your ability.

Change your body physiology. It is not possible to be up-tight and relaxed at the same time. When you hang your head and look down at the ground, you are probably beating yourself up with negative, disempowering thoughts and emotions. Instead, change your physiology: stand up straight, walk with a purpose, look straight ahead or up, breathe slower and deeper, smile inwardly, and remember all the reasons you enjoy playing golf.