What Impact Does Mental Preparation Have On Golf Performance?
Performance within a golfing context as with most sports can be broken down into two distinct categories, these being mental and physical aspects. The physical side of the game is significantly simpler to quantify, as it is a physical thing that can be seen and therefore analysed. The mental side however is far more dubious, it is not something that can be physically seen and therefore is difficult to measure.
Mental preparation within golf is a key feature as it determines the state an individuals mind is in before they play a shot. As stated by Kingston and Hardy (1994a) not many researchers have gone into great depth in examining psychological affects on golf performance.
Glein (2002) broke the mental side of golf down into three areas. He defined these areas as ‘pre shot routine’, ‘course management’, and ‘thoughts and emotions’. He then stressed that ‘course Management’ is about setting yourself goals and objectives on the golf course, and that positive thinking is the key when analysing thoughts and emotions.
GOAL SETTING
Goal setting strategies are a key area within the psychology of golf. Locke, Shaw, Saari and Latham (1981 cited Kingston and Hardy 1994b) made a widely accepted definition of a goal as “a specific standard of proficiency on a task, usually achieved within a time limit.” Locke and Latham (1985 cited Kinston and Hardy 1994c) went on to argue that when goals were set within a sporting context then level of performance would increase.
McCaffrey and Orlick (1999 cited Lee 1999) backed this up; through studying golf touring professionals they found that they were all very goal-orientated people, and that they would perform better when they set themselves goals. Furthermore they found that tour professionals were a lot better at setting goals than regular club professionals.
PRE SHOT ROUTINE
The role of a pre shot routine is also of great importance in the mental preparation of any golfer. A pre shot routine is clearly defined by Owens and Bunker (1992) as a “precise sequence of movements and thoughts used before every shot.” Blakemore (2003) describes the use of pre shot routines. He states that a pre shot routine can be used by golfers to ‘ground’ themselves and to eliminate ‘extraneous thought’, which should ‘focus’ them on the shot in hand. This focus eradicates any time to think of irrelevant or unwanted things that could interfere with the shot to be performed.
The need for this ‘focus’ is emphasised by Rotella (1996a). Rotella is a golf psychologist who works with many of the world’s top pros, he said that “To play golf
as well as he can, a player has to focus his mind tightly on the shot he is playing now, in the present.” He went on to say that if the golfer thinks about anything other than the present then his mind will become ‘polluted’, and the performance as a result will normally suffer.
Within the pre shot routine the importance of imagery must be stressed. Owens and Bunker (1992a) explain this. No two shots in golf are ever the same, however the muscles used and emotions experienced are often very similar. Consequently the awareness of a golfer over his/her own body is important. Imagery compensates for this by analysing ‘current levels of tension’ and planning through ‘capitalising on past experience.’ Thinking very hard about a certain shot will cause a reaction from the muscles and senses that would be involved. If these responses are used to aid preparation for the shot then performance will be enhanced.
Owens and Bunker (1989) linked the use of pre shot routines to an improved state of self-confidence. They stated that if each shot performed by a golfer starts the same way then greater self-confidence can be achieved, and this will, as shown below lead to enhanced performance.
POSITIVE THINKING
The role of positive thinking or more specifically self-confidence is well defined by Owens and Bunker (1992b) as “a belief or trust in yourself and feeling sure that you will be able to perform the skills required.” They went on to say that a combination of ‘goal setting’, focusing on what you ‘want’ to happen rather than what you ‘fear’ might happen and thinking about the ‘desired target’ rather than the hazards around it will optimise performance.
Mitchell (1994) studied 17 golfers referred to him between the ages of 20 and 35. He handed out self-report questionnaires to the participants covering both physical and mental aspects of their golf game. Mitchell used muscle tension exercises where the participant would tense then release his/her muscles then release, thus proving that they were in control. This exercise gave the participants more confidence, which in turn caused them to feel more in control of their golf. Rotella (1996b) commented on positive thinking; “ But a player who is committed to the process of hitting good shots will never draw a club back until he knows where he wants the ball to go and believes that the club in his hand will send it there.”
CONCLUSION
As stated earlier the amount of study conducted within the area of golf psychology, and more specifically research that is relevant to mental preparation and its affects on golf performance is very limited. The vast majority of theory in the area is unscientific; it is more focussed on opinion than fact. It must be taken into account however that it is very difficult to conduct scientific research in this area. Another consideration that needs to be made is that of individual differences. Individual’s minds work differently and this accompanied with diversity in physical ability will have a strong bearing on performance.
There is however as shown a selection of evidence that suggests that mental preparation plays an important role in enhancing performance in golf. However more scientific research needs to be carried out to discover exactly how performance is enhanced, the most efficient methods golfers can use to prepare mentally, and how physical ability can be linked to mental preparation to achieve optimal performance.
