Golf Coaching I 2011/12

CONCENTRATION

What winners focus on:

“At no time did I consider the mechanics of the stroke. Of course, I knew what the putt meant, but I became absorbed in the line of the putt. I could see it exactly from beginning to end. My only job at that moment was to set the ball off on the line that I had chosen. That was the only thing I could control” (Paul McGinley, 2002)

As you can see from the quote from hero Paul McGinley, concentration is the ability to focus one's attention on a task and not to be disturbed by irrelevant information from either external or internal sources (Schmid and Peper, 1986). The process of attending to task relevant information is called selective attention. This process is one of the most important skills a golfer should learn. When performing a golf skill the mind should work in a way that will filter out what is necessary to focus on and what is not necessary.

"I was blessed with the ability to focus intensely on whatever I'm doing, usually, to the exclusion of whatever else might otherwise preoccupy me.” (Jack Nicklaus, 1985)

In golf, focus changes regularly throughout a round. An important thing to note here is that players often perform poorly because their focus is in the wrong place at the wrong time. For example, when a player has too much internal focus before they prepare to hit a shot they nearly always miss the target either short or long. If a golfer changes their attention and narrows their focus to an external stimulus such as the position of the flag or a landing area on the green, most golfers with good swings will usually play better shots. This type of focus is what golfers do when they play in the zone. Paul Broadhurst, a former Ryder cup player, performs all his pitches around the greens with no internal focus at all. He sees the target and reacts to it. Interestingly, he often reports having no thoughts when he plays his best.

Nideffer (1976)

According to Nideffer (1976), our ability to focus and maintain focus on a task can be measured in two dimensions - width and direction. The width of attention refers to whether a golfer's focus is on a broad or narrow range of information. The direction of attention refers to whether external or environmental cues or cues from within the performer's body or mind are being attended to. Taken together, these functions combined highlight four different types attentional style.

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EXTERNAL

Broad-External Narrow-External Eg. Assessing the situation from behind Eg. focusing on a the ball as you prepare specific target on the to play fairway or green

BROAD NARROW Broad-Internal Narrow-Internal Eg. playing the first hole of the course in your mind while sitting Eg. - focusing on the in the locker-room feel of a putt

INTERNAL

Figure 2. Niedeffer’s Model of Attention (1976)

Nideffer (1976) developed a psychological inventory referred to as the Test of Attentional and Interpersonal Style (TAIS). This provides a measure of an athlete's dominant attentional style as well as his or her ability to shift focus from one style to another. Clearly golf requires different degrees of each attentional style and this means training procedures designed to assist players will improve their attentional flexibility and are extremely important.

Below are some of the task relevant cues tour players focus on:

Wind direction and speed Positive self-talk Distance to the hole Looking at the slope of the green Club selection Reading the line and picking a line Target Seeing the ball go in the hole Type of shot and plan Feeling the ball go in the hole Seeing a good shot Committing to the line Feeling a good shot Focusing on the line or target Taking a practice swing Aim or alignment Lie of the ball Trusting your putting stroke Aim and alignment Focus on the hole

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It is important to concentrate on one shot at a time, to focus on a specific target every time you prepare to hit the ball and to maintain consistent routines before your shots and after your mistakes. To maintain this behaviour requires an unnatural mental skill.

“A focused state of mind requires deliberate mental effort - you have to prepare to concentrate - it won’t just happen by chance. “ (Ronnie O’Sullivan)

Our minds are focused optimally when we concentrate on targets that are specific, relevant and under our own control (see McGinley quote). We lose our concentration when we focus on things that are outside our control, irrelevant to the job at hand, or too far in the future. Negative emotional states such as anxiety tend to narrow our concentration and cause us to focus inwards on doubts rather than outwards on actions.

Pre-Shot Routines

A pre-shot routine is an excellent way to integrate your focusing skills into your regular practice and competition. You should use your routine all the time. Indeed, a golfer without a pre-shot routine will not perform consistently.

The pre-shot-routine should be described as one of the fundamental skills in golf. A routine you adhere to every time you play a shot will make you think consistently. If you think consistently you will play consistently. If you play consistently you will score consistently.

When won the 2002 English Open, his pre-shot routine consisted of a relaxation strategy followed by listening to music (Eye of the Tiger, the theme from Rocky). This helped him to capture the rhythm of the swing and some of the emotions he normally experiences when he plays well. To help him remove conscious thoughts of his swing, an image of one of his best shots was used while he stood over the ball. The last part of Darren’s routine was to focus his attention on the target, which was either the hole or part of the fairway. Darren kept the target in his mind throughout his swing. This also kept him from thinking technically and directed his attention towards the most important thing on the golf course - the direction the ball needs to travel.

As you can see from Darren’s routine, you must focus on task relevant information to achieve a successful performance. Other methods that improve focus on task relevant cues and golf performance are:

• Post-mistake routines (Tom Watson) • Using your imagination: Seeing and feeling your next shot. “You have to see the shots and feel them through your hands” () • Using trigger words such as “Target” - Point your club at the target at the top of your backswing (tip from ) • Setting performance goals for yourself

Consistent application of these techniques will create a new level of concentration.

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END OF CONCENTRATION REVIEW

You should now be able to;

• Understand how concentration affects golf performance. • Describe Nideffer’s model of attentional style. • Appreciate the importance of pre-shot routines. • Understand what elite golfers focus on.

If you are unable to achieve any of these outcomes, then please re-read the topic area until you are happy you have understood the content.

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