Congratulations on your willingness to explore new avenues in pursuit of a better golf game.
My fundamental goal is to help you see that joining the elite ten percent of golfers who score in the eighties consistently, does not require abandoning your family or taking out a second mortgage for professional instruction (I can’t believe I said that!)
Once you’ve mastered the three fundamentals, the key to improvement is learning how to access the memories of your best shots on demand - the more vivid the memory, the better your chances of re-creating the results.
This is a process you can rehearse anywhere!
On the following page I have outlined a few examples to get you “kick started”. They are offered as tipping points for you to develop your own unique system.
STOP THE DEMOLITION!
Tearing apart your swing after every poor shot is an exercise in futility. Yet the vast majority of golfers are duped into following this ritual for years.
If you think you’ve developed a critical flaw, then seek the guidance of a competent teaching professional.
Stop rehearsing your mistakes!
The odds are that you have temporarily “lost” the recipe for re-creating your best performance. Revive the memory of your best shots and the formula will come back.
Interrupt the habit of looking for mistakes. Remember the axiom: you get what you focus on.
Here are a few suggestions to help you break the habit.
Use Bob’s record player analogy. Imagine a huge needle scratching the surface of the What’s Wrong with My Swing record. Keep scratching it over and over until you can’t play it any more.
Snap your fingers. Pinch yourself. A little pain will do wonders to shake up your nervous system.
Talk to yourself (nicely that is). Whistle. Hum a tune.
Immediately after a poor shot, look above the tree line and smile. Focus on the next shot.
If you have to blame something, blame the ball.
Develop a series of pattern interrupts. Use your pre-game practice to decide which ones are most effective on that day. Whatever method you use, the key is to vapourize the emotional fallout of a poor shot.
Start a new habit.
Link the memories of your best shots to a regular habit; when you’re sitting in the Tim Horton’s drive-thru, start replaying the best shots from your last game.
When you’re at the gym, plug in the earphones. Review your best shots while listening to your favorite music.
For information on additional resources (additional publications, audio programs, seminars and private consultations) please check out the website: www.davejohnstongolf.net.