If you are an avid golfer who likes to compete, you probably have a handicap that indicates your skill level. Handicaps and indexes allow golfers of differing skill levels to compete against one another. It is estimated that 2-4 million golfers in the United States maintain a USGA handicap that is updated twice a month during the active golf season. 

The United States Golf Association adopted a handicap system in 1911 where 3 of the last 20 seasonal scores were averaged to determine a handicap. Over the years consideration was given to using the lowest 10 of the last 50 scores, and then the lowest 10 of the last 25. The present system which became effective on January 1, 1967 uses the best 10 of the last 20 scores. Also effective on that date, course ratings used decimals instead of rounding off to the next whole number. 

At the request of state and regional golf associations, the USGA GHIN service was developed in 1981. The GHIN (Golf Handicap and Information Network) software program provides for scores to be electronically routed from any club within the GHIN network. It is the largest handicap computation provider in the world. According to the latest GHIN stats, the average index for men is 14.3 and 26.5 for women. Since 1991 the index has gone down two shots for men and three shots for women.  

What most golfers don’t know is that their lowest 10 scores aren’t averaged to give them a handicap. The USGA Handicap System is a complicated mathematical calculation using your adjusted gross core, the USGA Course Rating, and the Slope Rating. The system doesn’t indicate your current playing average……….it indicates your potential ability as it uses your lowest 10 scores from the last 20 rounds played. 

The mandatory Equitable Stroke Control (ESC) was added to the handicap system on January 1, 1999. In keeping with making the handicaps represent a player’s potential ability, the ESC sets a maximum number that a player can post for handicap on any hole depending on their Course Handicap. 

To play to your handicap and keep your Handicap Index at approximately the same level, you need to record low scores about 20-25% of the time. 

Golfers who are playing well do not understand why their handicap might go up. It depends on which of your lowest 10 scores in the last 20 have been removed.  

The more often you play, the more your potential ability will accurately be portrayed. Posting more scores will remove older scores and keep your index current.    

Play “In the Zone” With Joan

Entrain Your Mind & Heart for Peak Performances

Twenty-two years ago I named my business Positive Mental Imagery because I knew it is the most powerful way to achieve peak performances in any sport. Using positive mental images repeatedly creates success instead of reliving failures, instills confidence, and reinforces your abilities so you can perform easily and effortlessly automatically without thinking.

Imagery is making a mental representation through the use of your senses and imagination. Since your subconscious mind takes in everything literally, it doesn’t distinguish between what is real from what you are imagining.   

Visualization is only one of your senses

Visualization is not the same as imagery. We all know that visualization is the process of creating a mental picture in our minds. Not everyone “sees” in the same way. Some people are more visual than others. And not everyone “imagines” in the same way.

Seeing or visualizing is only one of your senses. Pre-school children are vivid visualizers or day dreamers, which is a right brain function. When they go to school they are taught using mostly left brain functions and begin to stop using their right brain capabilities. When you don’t use this part of your brain, you tend to believe that you can’t visualize. We all visualize, although it may not be as vivid as it once was.

Imagery is making a mental representation through the use of your senses. We all learn by processing information and stimuli through our five senses which are seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting and smelling. The senses we use in golf are visual (seeing), auditory (sound, rhythm, balance), and kinesthetic (touch, feeling). While athletes have good hand-eye coordination, they can learn and perform at their best by utilizing their dominant sense.

What is your dominant sense?

If your dominant sense is visual, you will “see a line on the green”, and learn the golf swing best by seeing it performed. If you are mainly auditory you will understand instruction best by listening, and be most confident by sensing the rhythm and tempo of the swing. If you process information kinesthetically, you will learn best when you can feel the swing. If you trust your sixth sense, you will know intuitively which club to use. When you know what your dominant sense is, you can then make positive internal representations of the shots you want to produce.

Guided mental imagery is a learning technique where descriptive language appealing to the senses is used to benefit the listener. Athletes as well as golfers use positive mental imagery in hypnosis to help them achieve their goals. Through the use of hypnotic suggestion you can communicate with your subconscious mind and program new ideas in your golf game for success. These new ideas must include positive self-talk, belief in your abilities and potential, and imagery of a superior performance in accomplishing your goal.

Be like a child and play in your inner mind, using your imagination to sense yourself practicing and playing, totally focused with calm and relaxed confidence. See, hear and feel yourself accomplishing your goals. Experience how good it feels within your physical body to hit perfect shots and putts. Enjoy your success over and over!

Available now at www.pmi4.com/cart are CDs created with powerful guided mental imagery suggestions to improve different parts of your mental golf game.

Play “In the Zone” With Joan

Entrain Your Heart & Mind for Peak Performances

Self-doubt surfaces in many ways when you are playing golf. Lack of confidence is one of the beliefs that golfers struggle with. Self doubt is triggered by expectations that are not fulfilled, a bad shot, an unexpected score, a lack of focus and many, many other factors. Begin now to develop a mental strategy for strengthening your self worth.

What are the mental blocks in your golf game?

All golfers experience many emotions on the golf course. Emotions come from the thoughts in your head. Every time you experience an unpleasant emotion, it is a signal to change your thinking to bolster your self worth. Here are some ways you can change the way you think about how you play the game of golf so you won’t develop a mental block.

1. “Golf is a game I play for my own enjoyment. I am not concerned with what others might think of my game. Conversely, I am not concerned with how others play their game.”

2. “My physical game doesn’t reflect upon me as a person, but my reaction to it does reflect on me as a person. I always act like a champion even when my game goes south. I believe in my ability to play well.”

3. “I see the good in every shot. Mistakes are to learn from. The shots that don’t come off as I desire are for me to learn so I don’t make the same mistake again. I believe that golf is a game where I will mishit more shots than I hit perfect shots. I accept my misses, learn from them, let them go, and recover easily.”

4. “One missed shot isn’t a game breaker. I take enough time to recover well. There are many ways to score well after making a mistake.”

5. “I congratulate myself when I hit good shots. I feel the euphoric feeling deep within my being.”

6. “I trust my pre-shot routine and do it consistently for every shot. I am confident in what I decide to do.”

7. “All errors in golf are mental errors. My mind controls my golf swing. If I haven’t put the right information into my brain, my body won’t give me what I want. Garbage in garbage out.”

8. “The only part of my golf game I can control is myself. I take the time to prepare my mind for the results I desire.”

Play “In the Zone” With Joan

Log on to the PMI website www.pmi4.com Archived Newsletters for more mental golf tips.

Since we are all part of the golf community and want to improve, I would like to hear from you. Please leave your comments below. Let me know what your concerns are, the parts of your mental game that you need help with, what excites you, and what you love about the game.

There are many mental factors that make up a consistent round of golf, such as desire, realistic expectations, and confidence in your ability to perform. Consistency comes from practicing your skill until you are confident that you can execute the shot or putt. But physical practice is not enough. You must believe that you can do it time after time under all kinds of conditions. Mental conditioning is what separates the great players from the field.

1. The short game. 
To win you need to score lower than anyone else. It is necessary to practice the parts of your game that will lead to lower scores. Most golfers think that long drives will bring low scores by giving them birdie and eagle opportunities. This kind of thinking does not produce steadiness. In fact, most of the shots you hit are the ones that require less than a full swing. To score consistently, spend your practice time in this ratio:
63% short game: (chipping, pitching, sand shots, putting)
37% full swings from the driver through the wedge.

2. The preshot routine.
To be consistent you need to have a consistent preshot routine. Having the same routine on every shot enables you to play automatically letting your learned skills take over. The routine keeps your mind focused on the present moment. If you vary your routine from shot to shot you can expect inconsistent results. Program your mind so it is conditioned to do the same routine on every shot and putt.

3. Your Personality. 
Players who are consistent in the way they live their lives off the golf course will usually hit more fairways and greens than players who like to “grip it and rip it.” If you are a person who likes action rather than routine, you need to change your thoughts, attitudes and actions to program consistency rather than excitement. Instead of trying to hit the longest drive of your life on each hole, set a goal for yourself such as hitting 8 or 10 fairways. Instead of trying to get the most out of the club each time, take more club and swing smoothly to ensure hitting the greens.

4. Putting
Putting is a game within a game and can be up to 40% of your score. Develop a feel on the greens for consistency. Give every size putt the same amount of time and attention. Use the same pre-putt routine every time. Use the same tempo on every size putt. Believe in your ability to relax, roll the ball well, and feel the distance.

5. Percentage Golf.
Do not try to hit shots that you are indecisive about. For example, if you are having trouble hitting your driver in the fairway, drive with your 3-metal. Hit your 9-wood instead of a long iron if you have more confidence in it. If you aren’t hitting your irons well, take one more club hitting into the greens to avoid the bunkers in front of the green. If you aren’t confident about your bunker play, focus on relaxing to get the ball on the green instead of trying to get it close. Don’t hit any shots that you don’t own.

6. Remain Positive. 
Change any limiting beliefs you have about yourself and your game. Enhance your self-image by seeing yourself as the player you know you can be even though you miss a shot. Talk to yourself on the golf course positively seeing only the solution to each situation instead of thinking negatively about the “what ifs” that could happen.

Play “In the Zone” With Joan

Self-empowering mental golf CDs are available at www.pmi4.com/cart

Before the golf season is in full swing, why don’t you take the time to analyze the holes at your home golf course? The golf course architect designed each hole with a specific purpose. If you look at the holes from the architect’s perspective, you might find a better way to play them.

Golf is a game where the position of your golf ball is vital for scoring. Without a strategy it is easy to beat yourself. Professionals have a plan to play each hole for the lowest possible score. With the plan in mind, they then focus by taking dead aim at each target, one shot at a time. 

In planning your strategy, visualize the entire hole and ask yourself the following questions:

• What is the length of the hole?
• Is the fairway wide or narrow?
• Is it flat, undulating or sloping?
• Is it straight away or a dog leg?
• What is the yardage from the tee to the trouble (bunkers, water, trees, etc.)?
• Where do I want to land my tee ball to avoid all the problems?
• Is there trouble around the green (water, sand bunkers, trees behind, etc.)?
• Is it better to hit short or long on this green?
• What is the shape, slope, speed of the green?

You may have lots of talent, but if you don’t know how to think your way around the golf course, you aren’t going to play up to your potential. Here are some tips for managing your game:

1. Play the percentages. Don’t expect to hit your best shot. Hit the shot that you can hit 75% of the time. Hitting to the center of the greens will give you more opportunities than hitting to the pins.
2. Hit the ball in the fairway. Sometimes that is easier said than done. Know where the widest parts of the fairway are. Hit to the largest landing area. This may require using a 3-wood instead of a driver off the tee. Know exactly how far it is to avoid the fairway bunkers.
3. Par 3’s: Know where to miss it away from any possible trouble spots. Plan to land the ball where you haven’t “short sided” the next shot. Give yourself the best angle to hit to the green. If the pin is on the left, tee your ball up on the right and vice versa.
4. Par 4’s: Use the terrain of the hole to help you put the tee ball on a flat fairway lie. If you miss the fairway, knowing the layout of the hole will enable you to change your strategy for the best possible recovery.
5. Par 5’s:  These longer holes give you one more chance to recover. If you have to lay-up, place the ball where you can hit a full shot and have a good opening into the green.

Play “In the Zone” With Joan

Having a good attitude during a round of golf and in your everyday life is essential for success and happiness. Your attitude is just a habit of thought that you have put into your subconscious mind. Your attitude is reflected in your state of mind, your behavior, and your conduct which reflects your opinion or purpose.   

Professional positive attitudes  

Ben Hogan was a fantastic lover of the game of golf, and this was his attitude. He said,

“I have loved playing the game, and practicing it, whether the next day called for a tournament, or a trip to the practice range, the prospect that there was going to be golf in it made me privileged and happy. I couldn’t wait for the sun to come up the next morning to play the course again.” 

Tom Watson summed up his attitude by saying it never bothered him to miss a green because one of four things could happen, and three of them were good.

1. He could hole the shot from off the green, or out of the bunker.
2. He could hit it close and tap it in.
3. He could hit it poorly and make a good putt, or
4. He could hit it poorly and miss the putt.

Tom said if you added up all those scores, a birdie, two pars, and a bogey, it came to even par. So if you practiced your short game, you had nothing to fear. 

Bubba Watson changed his attitude for golf and his life  

With his Masters win, Bubba has climbed 8 places to No. 4 in the world golf rankings. It didn’t happen by accident. After Bubba finished 8th in China last year at the WGC-HSBC Champions tournament, his caddy Ted Scott urged him to improve his attitude and commit to a timetable to do it. Scott told him, “’Look, you give me this kind of focus on the golf course for the next six months, and rejoice in all the great things in your life, and let’s see where you will be in six months.”  

Bubba Watson has said that his first Masters win was as if he lucked into it. The year after the win he was involved with the adoption of his son Caleb and learning how to become a family man. In addition he was “learning how to be a great champion” dealing with the constant media and sponsor attention, the newly increased fame, and the pressure and expectations of proving himself. 

“What I had to do was learn how to work more efficiently,” Watson said. “If that meant 30 minutes a day on the range or 15 minutes on the range and 15 minutes putting, that’s what I needed to do. I need to be a dad and take care of my boy when my wife can rest. And then set a time a day when I have a week off, the time here; I’ve got 30 minutes here, I’ve got an hour here. So I just had to dedicate myself and be more efficient when I was practicing to get back to a level that I want to play at. It took me a year or so to get adjusted that I’m not really that good, I’ve got to keep practicing. Finally I got adjusted to it and here we are another green jacket after a year.” 

If you aren’t able to maintain a positive attitude on the golf course, email Joan at info@pmi4.com for a complimentary 15-minute consultation about developing a new strategy.

Florida golf courses are noted for vast bodies of water and sand. When you dig a hole in the sand it fills up with water because the ground is at sea level. Add some wind, and the water comes into play often unless you have control of your ball flight, and your emotions.

At the Valspar Championship in Palm Harbor, Florida on March 14th, 47-year-old John Daly, winner of two major championships, made a 12 on the 475-yard Innisbrook 16^th hole after hitting into the water three times. After his drive and two 3-wood shots landed in the water, he played it safe hitting well to the left of the water, and then shanked his 7-iron well right of the green. Big John then took three chips to reach the green and missed a four-foot putt for a 12. He scored a career-high 90.

JD has made a 10 or worse 16 times and has shot 80 or worse 62 times on the PGA Tour.

One week later at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at the same hole where John Daly once made an 18, Bubba Watson drove three balls in the water off the 6^th tee. The 2012 Master champ recorded an 11, leading to a final score of 83 and a withdrawal after the first round.

How do you keep from having these kinds of meltdowns? 

Step away and take a mental mulligan. Mental errors are created by not thinking the shot through. Most golfers repeat errors because they are consumed by their emotions. In their hurry to override the feelings of embarrassment, disappointment, insecurity, etc. golfers don’t take the time to prepare adequately for the next shot.

Here is a strategy for preparing your mind and body to recover from a missed shot:

• Instead of thinking how you can make up for the miss on your next shot, ask yourself what you have learned from it.
• What was my last thought before I swung?
• Slow down your thinking and pre-shot routine and breathe deeply.
• Take the time to swing your club until you access the tempo you wanted.
• Replace the emotions with the new good feeling of a fluid tempo.
• Play your percentage shot. Resist the urge to hit another “Tin Cup” shot.
• Be realistic about the distance you can hit your clubs.
• Focus your thoughts and mental pictures on where you want the ball to go, not on what you want to avoid.
• Keep your swing thoughts simple. It is better to focus on tempo, rhythm, the target and basic strategy instead of getting involved with swing mechanics. 

To prepare mentally to play your best golf, listen to the guided imagery CD, “Self-Hypnosis for Playing In The Zone” available at www.pmi4.com/cart