Interesting article, though I’m not quite sure what the “Dark Side” is supposed to be as Grant sees it. To me it is no more or less than either the continuation of, or the return to, golf’s conventional wisdom, which is loaded with myths.

Mention of mental game issues goes, at least, as far back as Grantland Rice in the 1920s. I’ve a notion that there are earlier records than that, but I’m having trouble finding them.

If one believes what was presented in “The Greatest Game,” it is clear that at least Ouimet’s caddie understood what it was about, but it was not related to “conventional wisdom.” It was outside the box – then, and now.

What we do have today is a perpetuation of myths that have arisen about the mental game, with the only thing new being names changed to protect the present prominence of those who, as Grant puts it, have “found a niche.”

To me the mental game is about helping players, not find a niche.

Agreed, the title might be a bit cheesy but hey, you need the headline to grab people’s attention. I thought it was a good article, but at least in terms of forum users I’ve seen posting regularly, he’s mostly preaching to the converted. For me it just adds more weight to the argument. I’ve read a little bit of the author Bob Rotella that the article author refers to, and I certainly thought it was helpful.

Once training for the mental game is validated in the public’s eyes as a core element of the game of golf, it’s then commoditised (just look at the self-help section of any bookshop), and the Edward de Bono/Allen Carr/Anthony Robbins types come in, make whole new ‘systems’ and languages of buzz-words, and make a killing off it. That’s opportunism for you.

I agree there isnt anything particularly new in the article but how often do we use our mental side for good and not evil.
Golf is different to most sports in the amount of time we have to think about each shot. Football, Rugby and even to a lesser extent cricket only give you seconds between each effort to asses how it went and what to do to make it better next time. this leads to a more subliminal correction – eg “I should have kicked it longer” not the long walk between shots to completely pull appart you swing and put it back together eg “if I keep my head down, my left arm straight and rotate my hips more I might get more draw, or I could rotate my right wrist, come inside the line and follow through longer” as Timothy Gallwey said in his great book from the 80’s “the inner game of Golf” we use self talk all the time, why not use it to our advantage.
I highly reccomend his book

AJ

Thanks guys – wasn’t meant to be anything new in there – it’s just a commentary piece on how far the sport has come in terms of understanding the need to look at the mental side as well as being able to hit the ball.

And yes the title is cheesy but headlines are there to make you read the article :)

next time your at the range try this little excercise. stand behind the ball and think about the end result – close your eyes and imagine the ball flight.
then step up to your ball and clear your mind and start your swing, say “back” as the club reaches the top of your backswing and “hit” as you strike the ball, try and time the words in your head to the exact place in your swing. its a great way to shut your mind off other things and it works.

tingayj: how do you ‘clear your mind’?

By putting Back and Hit in there you are creating a “trigger’ rather than a “clearer”. “Superflow Golf” (book) uses the trigger concept that are the beginnings rather than the end of understanding mental control:) Same with Extraordinary Golf.

I read The Inner Game Of Golf about 10 yearas ago and it got me started on how to think better onthe course, clear my mind (not hard) and relax.

I also recommend Golf In The Kingdom.

Can you find most of these books on the net?

see link below.

as for clearing my mind, normally my mind is pretty vacant but on days of stress when I just cant shut off, I try and think of a particularly annoying song and hum it just before I hit (and sometimes during) trust me, there is little room for offputting swing thoughts while your trying to remember the words to “copacabana”

AJ

Rob Rotella is worth exploring, heard him briefly on some audiobooks. It made sense.

i Grant, interesting that you can remember that session at the Australian Golf Club 20-odd years ago. I remember being intrigued by the culture of that state team, its bravado being quite different from the cultures of the AIS and national team programs I was working with at the time. But then golf was very new to sports science and systematic training programs back then. Good teams and programs attempt to “establish an environment where success is inevitable”.

There were players from that group and future state teams who went on to highly successful amateur, professional and coaching careers using the ideas and programs we were introducing to that group that day. These programs are constantly being developed and refined by our elite coaching teams.

If you would like to get some idea of where these programs are up to now you might like to have a look at “Golf Excellence”, a book published by Fairfax press late last year. Edited by former AGU Coaching Director Dominic Wall, Golf Excellence puts together (in Ross Herbert’s memory) a very complete coverage of the skills, drills, attitudes and systems that constitute “state of the art” player preparation. Readers can use it as a checklist on their journey to becoming a competitive tournament player.

We’re proud of the fact that 11 out of the 66 players who made the last 2 rounds of the recent Australian Open were graduates of the AIS program documented in the book. I have been privileged to have also worked with Australian and international tour members and tournament winners from all the major international tours over the last 20 years, internationally competitive amateurs, and player development programs from around the world.

The 3 chapters I have contributed to Golf Excellence give a comprehensive view of the integrated programming we conduct to help individuals develop their potential as competitors. The highly complimentary feedback we get these days from staff and management of international player development programs, professional management groups and elite coaches from all around the world indicates just how far ahead of the industry we are here in Australia. We intend to stay there.

Its nice to report that Mark Holland, one of the professional coaches who has made an outstanding contribution to this Australian elite system over the last 20 years was one of the players in that room that day. We find that contemporary players recognise the need to develop their skills as a competitor and appreciate the systematic and practical ways we go about helping them to maximise their potential. Perhaps ironically, just like a round of golf returns to the clubhouse after 18 holes, our elite system is being guided by at least 2 of the people from that room at the Australian back in 1987.

John Crampton
Performance Enhancement Systems