Golf Practice… Makes a Fine Stroke

Just like any other sport, the game of golf is also affected by the proverb: “practice makes perfect”. One important factor in improving your golf game is for you to actually spend a lot of time on practicing.

Golf is an outdoor game where individual players or teams play a small ball into a hole using various clubs. It is defined in the Rules of Golf as ‘playing a ball with a club from the teeing ground into the hole by a stroke or successive strokes in accordance with the Rules.’ Golf is believed to have originated in Scotland and has been played for several centuries in the British Isles and continuously in the United States since 1887 (Foxburg, Pennsylvania). Its name has been derived from the Dutch word ‘kolf’, meaning club, but the game was invented in Scotland game going back at least to the 1400’s. Its popularity was hampered by requiring close-cropped grass. The lawnmower was not invented until 1831 and not really practical until the machine-tool industry was able to cut steel gears c. 1880’s. Golf wasn’t played in America until 1888, when the St. Andrews Golf Club of Yonkers was formed.

This article is not going to concentrate on your golf plans, or with any technical areas. The main focus here is the importance of practice and how it will help your confidence. We all know we play better when we are feeling confident about our selves and our game.

Practice and practice wisely is the main point towards your golf game. First of all you have to make a conscious decision to spend some quality time practicing that would help your game. Self-reflection is one of the key qualities that make a true champion. To the subject of practicing; the reason is that it will not only improve your skill set but when your skills improve so does your CONFIDENCE!

Here are some golf practicing tips that will make your practice session more realistic.

• TIP 1: Make any practice situation as realistic as possible. When practicing your short game or putting use only one ball and always have the intention of getting the ball in the hole as if you were playing the shot. For your tee shots and irons ask your Club Professional to set goals to practice on the driving range which will emulate the sort of pressure you feel when playing a round.
• TIP 2: Get yourself a hard covered journal to write in and get into the habit after every game of writing down and re-living your best shots. This will help you gain confidence in how you play and give your sub-conscious mind the chance to remember the good shots. This will make it easier to visualize playing well when you need some positive mental in-put the most – during play!
• TIP 3: It is not easy to keep reminding yourself to stay focused and in the present with your golf – even top professional golfers struggle and spend a lifetime mastering this most simple yet most challenging of skills. But if you are aware of what a difference this new skill will make to your game and you also choose to work on the bigger picture; creating a more confident and calmer you, then not only will your golf benefit but so will the quality of your life.

Finally, choosing to remember all the great shots you have made in the past will definitely help you to start changing any negative perception you have about your game.

REMEMBER: You become what you think about most of the time so make a new resolution to STOP thinking negatively about any part of your game and start supporting your self-belief by choosing to remember all the good stuff!

Golf is a game played with the body but won with the mind – so you need to practice both areas because remember what Einstein said – the definition of insanity is to keep doing what you have always done and expect different results.