After all the years i have been trying to make it as a professional golfer i have had many ups and also many downs. When i look back on the start of my career in 2000 i have such positive emotions and feelings as it was a very quick and successful start to my golfing career. I played for just one year as a serious amateur and in this year came second on the order of merit on the then Dinners Club Tour. I won the first event of the year and remained on top of the order of merit for the entire season but was pipped at the last event to come second by just R100. After my results and seeing that i could beat the current professional golfers playing along side me turned professional and played on the mini tours for a year in order to get ready for tour school. I worked hard on the course, on the practice tee and in the gym to maximize my playing skills. I won my first professional golf event at an Assoupol Pro-Am and was steaming with confidence toward the Sunshine Tour School. Unfortunately i broke my neck the day before the Tour School and was in bed for 14 months.
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This was a let down of course but not for me as much as for my family. I stayed confidant and up beat and took these months to work on something i had never worked on before.
"THE MIND".
I used the works of Dr. Bob Rotella and started to build on all the fundamentals in his works. The one book in particular "THE GOLFERS MIND, Play to Play Great" was a great help in staying in the present and trusting every shot i play. I recommend buying a copy of this book and keeping it as a bible for your own golf game whether you are a
One other great tool i acquired whilst in bed was a sublime patience. This is a must for every professional player that wants to improve their game. Patience gives you a clear mind and purpose for each shot. It also helps you to forgive yourself and not dwindle to long on the bad shots. I brains are programmed in a way as to remember repetition. when something is repeated enough in our minds we can eventually never forget it even if we wanted to. This is the same for all golfers, both Professionals and amateurs. I am sure that after a round of golf one can sit in the pub and hear more disappointing stories than great stories about the days round of golf. This is because humans have been programmed from a young age to remember what they did wrong and to make sure they never do it again.
For example, when we were in school and wrote a test our teachers used a red and green pen to mark it. A green tick for correct answers and a red tick for incorrect answers. When we got our test papers back we never looked for the green ticks but looked for the red X to see what we did wrong and then made sure to find the right answer and then to never forget it again.
Unfortunately this methodology is terrible for the game of golf and building a confident self image. Instead of dwelling on all the bad shots and talking about them one should accept that they happen and never talk of them again. You should rather focus on the good shots you had and celebrate them and talk about them. I understand that talking about success to other golfers can often come across as arrogant and pompous but if all golfers starting sharing only ups instead of downs it would make for a far greater level of success for all golfers. I am pretty sure that if the media ONLY focused on the professional golf winners each week, they too would shoot in the low 60's more often.
So by always focusing on the good things and repeating them in ones mind it creates more confidence and a superior self image which in turn helps us to believe in our ability and trust every golf shot we make. So whether you are a playing professional, a great amateur or a weekend golfer, i am pretty sure that this blog will help you improve your game even if you don't have the time to get to the golf course or the practice tee.
And remember to TRUST YOURSELF
Article
This was a let down of course but not for me as much as for my family. I stayed confidant and up beat and took these months to work on something i had never worked on before.
"THE MIND".
I used the works of Dr. Bob Rotella and started to build on all the fundamentals in his works. The one book in particular "THE GOLFERS MIND, Play to Play Great" was a great help in staying in the present and trusting every shot i play. I recommend buying a copy of this book and keeping it as a bible for your own golf game whether you are a
One other great tool i acquired whilst in bed was a sublime patience. This is a must for every professional player that wants to improve their game. Patience gives you a clear mind and purpose for each shot. It also helps you to forgive yourself and not dwindle to long on the bad shots. I brains are programmed in a way as to remember repetition. when something is repeated enough in our minds we can eventually never forget it even if we wanted to. This is the same for all golfers, both Professionals and amateurs. I am sure that after a round of golf one can sit in the pub and hear more disappointing stories than great stories about the days round of golf. This is because humans have been programmed from a young age to remember what they did wrong and to make sure they never do it again.
For example, when we were in school and wrote a test our teachers used a red and green pen to mark it. A green tick for correct answers and a red tick for incorrect answers. When we got our test papers back we never looked for the green ticks but looked for the red X to see what we did wrong and then made sure to find the right answer and then to never forget it again.
Unfortunately this methodology is terrible for the game of golf and building a confident self image. Instead of dwelling on all the bad shots and talking about them one should accept that they happen and never talk of them again. You should rather focus on the good shots you had and celebrate them and talk about them. I understand that talking about success to other golfers can often come across as arrogant and pompous but if all golfers starting sharing only ups instead of downs it would make for a far greater level of success for all golfers. I am pretty sure that if the media ONLY focused on the professional golf winners each week, they too would shoot in the low 60's more often.
So by always focusing on the good things and repeating them in ones mind it creates more confidence and a superior self image which in turn helps us to believe in our ability and trust every golf shot we make. So whether you are a playing professional, a great amateur or a weekend golfer, i am pretty sure that this blog will help you improve your game even if you don't have the time to get to the golf course or the practice tee.
And remember to TRUST YOURSELF
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