"VISUALIZE"
Decide exactly where you want the ball to go, let the image of the ball’s full trajectory fill your mind, and imagine the feel of your swing.
Did you catch Sunday’s master class in the art of visualization at the BMW Championship?
How else to explain Dustin Johnson’s 43 ft. double-break putt that sank for a birdie on 18 to force a playoff with Jon Rahm? Or Rahm’s mind-boggling 65 footer minutes later in sudden death to win? I’m just a little golf ball, but WOW!!
They sure proved Sir Nick Faldo’s contention that “Visualization is the most powerful thing we have.” Elite athletes in all sports practice visualization… because it works! Here’s how:
Since the brain initiates movement, the best way to perform a physical action is to feed it a picture of that action, along with the desired outcome. What’s crazy cool is that your subconscious—which controls your athletic movement—can’t tell the difference between real and imagined action.
Visualizing your swing stimulates the exact muscles you actually use to swing, prepping them for action. It tells your brain which pathways to use and programs your mind and muscles, which increases confidence. Other benefits include:
Controlling pre-round jitters and relaxing the body and mind
Re-framing negative outcomes to positive ones
Helping to groove swing changes and promote injury recovery
Improving concentration, reducing doubt, and increasing commitment
“Outcome visualization” gives you a clear picture of the path that I, your trusty ball, travels towards the target and how I’ll bounce and roll once I land. “Process visualization” shows you an image of yourself hitting me, er, your shot. Jack Nicklaus famously said, ”I never hit a shot, not even in practice, without having a very sharp, in-focus picture of it in my head.” If you can bring to mind a past successful shot, so much the better because it stimulates a positive mood as well.
ShoeTips’ power is that it promotes “external focus”, which makes you more committed and assertive. The alternative, “internal focus”, is centered on body mechanics, which tends to inhibit a fluid, free-flowing swing and leads to inconsistencies, making things much harder.
The uniqueness of the game offers other compelling reasons to visualize. Ninety percent of golf is actually between shots, so what you think about during all this time impacts your stress level, your mood, how you prepare for your next shot, and can help you stay present and fresh. Practice visualizing something pleasant to calm your nerves and keep yourself relaxed.
Unlike any other sport, you’re not looking at your target when you hit me; if you did, you’d whiff. So imprinting an image of your target in your mind’s eye enables you to “see it” and swing accordingly.
If you’ve ever changed your swing, you’ve learned it’s impossible without visualization. You need to tap the mind-body connection to create new neural pathways and develop new “muscle memory”.
Or when you’re in trouble on the course and need to hit around or over a tree or extricate me from deep rough or sand? You guessed it, you need to use your mind to visualize and get creative. Fortunately, by focusing on the task at hand, you’ll forget all about swing mechanics—see me and hit me.
Curtis Strange put it this way, “Visualization lets you concentrate on all the positive aspects of the game.” Amen!
Decide exactly where you want the ball to go, let the image of the ball’s full trajectory fill your mind, and imagine the feel of your swing.
Improve your Golf Game.
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