Not hitting the golf ball well because of too many thoughts? Check this golf tip to help simplify your swing thoughts.
There are many things a golfer needs to do to hit a golf ball successfully and consistently. The margins of golf are so slight that sometimes golfers try to do too much all at once to be able to hit the ball better. This particularly occurs at the beginner level as the golfer is trying to improve as rapidly as possible. For example, a first golf lesson may include many points, the main one usually being to set up to the golf ball correctly. This can involve anywhere from 10-15 pieces of information just to stand to the golf ball. Once this is achieved, the lesson should really finish as there is already a huge amount of information for the beginner to process and register, however, would the beginner think that would be a great golf lesson? Probably not as there would be no instruction as to how to actually hit the golf ball and so the lesson often includes even more information! Likewise, during a practice session a golfer can focus on too many factors, so how many swing thoughts should we have for one swing?
The swing is approximately half a second in length from start to finish. Thinking about many more thoughts than one during that time frame is nearly impossible to compute and certainly not enough time to change a movement at 100 miles per hour. When learning and practicing in an ideal world, it would be far more beneficial to be patient and change movement by movement, slowly over a long period of time. This would mean that any changes will be made correctly, securely and will be made habit to last forever. At the practice ground or driving range, next time focus on one solid swing thought and practice it thoroughly for the whole session to maximize improvement.
To create a swing thought that promotes learning best, it needs two characteristics – to be short (the swing only lasts for a short amount of time) and simple (just one word so it is easy to remember). Examples may be something like “rhythm” or “smooth” or “foot still” etc.
Once the golfer has a short, simple swing thought to focus on it needs implementing correctly. To do this it is always best to say this thought out loud just before hitting the shot. Often human beings think too much, so even though we have a simple thought, it tends to develop into more than that. Saying the word out loud realizes the thought, helps to make it physical and keeps it short and simple. This act also encourages a one word, short thought to compliment the limited time available during the golf swing.
Practicing with patience and using one thought at a time will always produce better changes in the long term rather than trying to do everything all at once. Use these simple tips to guide your practice for the better.
