Dr. Bob Rotella Collection

I just received the CD collection with four of Dr. Rotella's audio books after reading recommendations on this site. For those who have read the books or listened to these, any recommendations on which one to listen to first? Here's the four:

Golf is a Game of Confidence
Golf is Not a Game of Perfect
Putting Out of Your Mind
The Golf of Your Dreams

I'm thinking of starting with the first one and working my way down but will take any recommendations.

SRJ

Absolutly amazing collection there. And I am actually looking at three of those right now in the shelves on my desk in my study.

Start with Golf Is Not a Game of Perfect

Best books I have ever read in my life. Completely changed my game

For the better? I've been considering picking up the collection soon.

absolutely

After i read the book.. and it talks about your real potential/ hot streaks and getting out of your own way.. I birdied the first 5 holes in a row on a very difficult course.

Some call it luck??? I call it my real potential lol

I have all Rotella's books and often thumb through Golf is not a Game of Perfect from time to time. His books are well written and have a very simple, recurring theme. You'll read (or listen) to them and think, "That's so simple."

His points are very valid but the hard part is applying them consistently. When I've been able to, I have played some of my best golf. Any golfer will enjoy his books. I think that you could stop after the first three though. Like I said, to me, they have a recurring theme and I got less and less out of his subsequent books. Golf is not a Game of Perfect is the best starting point though.

I agree. I read Golf is not a Game of Perfect earlier this summer and played some of my best golf since reading it. I've also recommended it to several others. NCGolfer is right that it's pretty simple stuff and becomes a bit redundant. However, it's effective and your paying 50 bucks for the same advice for which tour pros are giving him millions of dollars.

And now that I read my post and User info, it reminds me that I need to change my Index from 3.2 to 2.3 (which has occurred since reading the book).

I agree with the redundancy... And also this book will help any golfer of any handicap.

I just finished reading 'Golf is not a game of perfect'. Now the challenge is to carry the same mentality throughout every round of golf. I think it really works. I think I scared my regular playing partner with a new mindset the last time we played.

Thanks for the input. I started with Golf is Not a Game of Perfect and so far really enjoy what I have learned. You guys are right, very simple. I can't wait to get out and give some of this a shot.

This is interesting, can someone elaborate a little further on what it actually talks about and who would benefit the most from reading these books. I struggle with the mental part of the game on the course. My last post about having quirks in my swing mid round im sure stems alot from the mental side of the game. The beginning of this golf season I read Hogans Five Fundamentals of Golf, and it was an absolute great read, changed my game....What do these books stress? Thanks

I just finished Golf Is Not a Game of Perfect this morning. Definitely worth getting the book and seeing for yourself. It covers a lot of parts of the mental side of the game from practice, pre-shot routines, and playing.

I used some of the information I learned today and definitely saw an impact in my short game. I wasn't able to accurately track my shots but my chipping and putting were much better. I'm playing the next two days so hopefully I can see if there are any significant benefits simply from reading and applying what I have learned.

SRJ

Cool, I just purchased the book today and cant wait to read it. Give updates within the next few days if you can. Good luck.

I have the CD collection too, and it is useful to put the CD in on the way to the course, putting it to key sections for you; having this little reminder before you go play, or practice for that matter, is quite beneficial.

Played 18 today and tied my best round ever (87). My short game definitely saved me today though. I wasn't hitting the ball terribly, however my long game wasn't as good as it should have been. The few bad short shots I had around the green I did not apply what I had learned and it was obvious. When I did apply tools from the book I did very well.

I had 32 putts today with no 3 putts. I even sank a couple of putts outside of 20 feet that I felt confident were going into the hold about a second after I hit them. I definitely had better confidence around the greens today.

Now if I could just get the long game to improve a little I will be able to make some improvement on that handicap. I'm not suprized though since I really have not been able to practice much the past couple of weeks like I had been. The last four to five holes my drives and iron play really improved as I got my feel back.

Trying to not get too specific about what's in the book, but one thing I really had a hard time with today was not thinking about my score and what the outcome could end up being. I felt like I was doing well and thought I had a chance to finish strong. My mind started thinking score on the 14th hole and it took all I had to try to keep that out of my mind. I did have one double from there on out, and that happened on the first hole after I started thinking about it. I was able to relax and forget from there until I got to the last hole. That was tough not to think about!

Overall I think it was a combination of the book and my practice. I've worked on the short game quite a bit recently and it's really hard to say what specifically helped today but I truly feel the mental side was a huge key to implementing what I have practiced around the green.

Second update...(a little late)

Played another round after listening to the audio book "Golf Is Not A Game Of Perfect". The long game was definitely lacking, and the short game was not as good as the last round I played. I was rushing things and I definitely was not applying what I had learned on every shot. However, I also had three absolutely amazing shots throughout the round. Any one of those shots would have been memorable by themselves after the round, but the fact that I had all three of them was amazing.

The first shot was a chip that I put in the cup. Nothing that was super amazing, however it was a solid shot that my playing partners made a big deal about at the time.

The second shot was a six foot putt. What made this putt amazing was that my line started almost 90 degrees away from the hole and the ball actually finished by rolling in from behind the hole. What was reallly funny was that I called my shot by saying "this one is going to look awesome when it goes in." Of course, I call about 20 shots a round, but it was still cool

The last shot was a 25 yd pitch that went into the hole. It landed exactly where I wanted it to, and it ran right up to the cup and dropped in with perfect speed. That was definitely the furthest out I have ever holed a shot in my life.

On each of these shots I visualized the shot, relaxed, and trusted my swing/putt. I had no worries. Why I did not do that for the rest of the round I do not know.

I'll be practicing for the next couple of weeks and then playing hopefully two to three more rounds soon after.

I just started listening to "Golf Is A Game Of Confidence". We'll see how that adds to the things I have learned so far.

SRJ

Got these books a few months ago and think I got lots of good stuff out of it. Might be time for a review of them as I am in a bit of a slump at the moment.