Daylight Saving Time (DST) begins this Sunday, March 13th at 2:00am signaling the beginning of longer daylight hours and more time to play golf. DST is the practice of setting the clocks forward one hour from standard time during the summer months, and back again in the fall. Germany became the first country to introduce DST in 1916. In the United Kingdom, British Summer Time (BST) is the period when the clocks are moved forward to make better use of the natural daylight. In Ireland, the DST time zone is called the Irish Standard Time (IST) or “Irish Summer Time.”
The idea of Daylight Savings Time (DST) was first conceived by Benjamin Franklin while he was living in Paris in 1784, but DST was actually first seriously advocated by London builder William Willett. During one of his pre-breakfast horseback rides, he observed with dismay how many Londoners slept through the best part of a summer day. And as an avid golfer, he also disliked having to cut short his round of golf at dusk.
While the Pro Golf Tours have been playing in warm climes since the first of the year, here in Western North Carolina the daffodils are just now in bloom and the days are warming up after a cold and snowy winter. The Spring Equinox which signals the beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere begins on Sunday, March 20th. On an equinox, day and night are of approximately equal duration all over the planet.
As the heaviness of winter fades, it is time to lighten up your diet by reducing sugar and fats and eating simple, light foods. It is also time to make sure your body is well hydrated by drinking more pure water. As you “spring forward” it is also time to prepare your body for the flexibility it needs to swing your golf club easily for maximum power. Pilates is a good way to develop your core strength and maximum flexibility.
If you live further north and the golf courses aren’t operational yet, you can prepare by practicing your mental and physical skills indoors. Begin to practice your mental skills now so you will be ready to play in the scoring realm of your choosing.
The easiest and most effective way to practice is inside your mind by imagining, visualizing or “day dreaming” like you did as a child. As you visualize or imagine your swing, you are sending messages to your body and programming your muscles.
Begin with your putting stroke. Performance anxiety comes from your belief about yourself and the way you view your putting ability. When you have a good attitude, good feel, and image in your mind, you can then trust your putting stroke. Remember that great putters are great because they have fun putting!
First, change your thinking to believe that you can roll the ball well enough to give it a chance to hold the line and go in. This means you must accelerate the putter through the ball on every size putt.
Second, Focus your eyes on a mark on your ball, and don’t move your eyes until after you have hit the ball.
Third, believe that you are a great putter by doing written affirmations.
Fourth, practice giving every putt the same importance instead of putting pressure on yourself to “have to” make the putt. Don’t label putts as “makeable” or “miss-able.”
To help you imagine or visualize the peak performances that you are capable of, I have created eight self-hypnotic golf CDs full of imagery and positive affirming thoughts. Improve your golf game by simply listening repeatedly at your convenience. On the PMI shopping cart (www.pmi4.com/cart) find the CDs that will help you change what is missing in your mental golf game.
Play “in the zone” with Joan
Entrain Your Heart & Mind for Peak Performances
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