Positive mental states

A golfer’s state of mind is critical for performing well and having a great round, but what can we do to ensure we find the optimum state of mind and what are the factors that influence it?

So what do we mean by a state? Well a state is how you are currently feeling and experiencing the situation you are in and in the world around you this can be seen as anger, anxiousness, happiness, joy, nervousness or calmness. But the important thing to remember is that vary rarely do these states happen suddenly, they build gradually and are more often than not a consequence of the situation you find yourself in.

For the golfer these states can be triggered by many things such as a state of heightened nerves or anxiety on the first tee or worry when hitting a long iron shot over water. Now both of these examples show a negative state but by looking at these and asking ourselves two questions we can begin to turn this around into a positive state.

Firstly, what states are going to help us the most in golf? Secondly, how can we begin to produce these states on purpose, every time?

Of course, that first question is easy to answer. Calmness, concentrating, focused, determined, even happy, are all positive examples of good states to find ourselves in when on the golf course. But what about that second question?

Well our state of mind is a result of the interaction between three parts, our environment, which is the situation we find ourselves in (needing a par on the 18th for a victory), our physiology (the way we walk, breath, stand and swing a club) and finally our mental approach.

For many people controlling the state they are in is not something they would have given much thought to, in fact most of the time the state of mind they find themselves in is a direct result of the external circumstances or environment (such as nerves due to the people watching you on the 1st tee) and leaves them only “hoping” for a good game.

So how do you begin to develop a mental approach that will enable you to get into a positive state of mind?

When we look at golfing greats we tend to see that they create a good state by focusing thoughts purely on the positives. They remember the good shots they have played in detail, they can picture the scene, the results, the feeling and every aspect of the shot they played, and of course this helps them to set goals and more importantly achieve them.

What I’d like you to try now is to imagine you are standing on the 1st tee of your local course, and to imagine it’s your perfect golfing day. Focusing only on the positive mental image, go through each shot you would play. Visualise standing over your ball and hitting the perfect shot down the fairway, imagine the sound the ball will make off the club, imagine its flight, and where the ball will land. Make your way around the course, thinking back to great shots you’ve played in the past, go over them again and again, and slowly let them begin to be the only shots you imagine.

Now next time you go out to play, think back to this session and imagine those great shots. As you stand over your ball replay that image of the shot you want to play. If you keep working on this positive state of mind and reduce the negative states undoubtedly, like all the golfing greats your game will be on the road to success.