Shrink or "Sports Psychologist?"

[Fat Slice]

Anyone ever used or considered using a shrink or "Sports Psychologist" to help with the mental aspect of their golf game.

Yesterday I shot a 93 - about normal for me. After the round it was late and the course was almost empty but there was plenty of daylight left. I decided to whip around and play 13-18 to work on my short game a little.

Playing alone and with nobody in front or behind I shot par for the six holes. Not only that, but I felt much more relaxed and fluid. This has happened before in the same kind of situation. I clearly have it in me to play better golf, so, how do I get it out in a normal round?

[bshack]

this same thing used to happen to me. I once shot a 46 on the front 9. It was twilight so we could play the 9 over again. I played the first 6 holes at 1 over and then called it quits because of darkness.

Since then I changed it up a little. I try to hit 30-40 balls on the range and putt for a little while and then go rest in the clubhouse. It simulates a warm up and some time to calm the nerves before heading to the first tee box. On the range before a round I hit the balls as I would on the holes.

Driver, Iron, Wedge, Driver, 3W, Iron, Long Iron, Wedge... so on. If you hit 10 drivers in a row it wont help much because you will never do it in a round

[saevel25]

When you play in a group is in a league with were you go up againts a person?

I am curious because even with a group it shouldn't matter between playing by yourself. Because its you, the ball, the club and the course. If its competition, like league matches then theres a bit of strategy in play there. I have pulled out a fairway wood before on a par 5 to signify i am going for the green to see if i can coax my opponent to go for it. But really when i play is just me and the course, doesn't matter if i am playing with 1 person, by myself, ect...

[Shindig]

A good sports psychologist isn't a shrink; he's an enlarger.

I saw one once, when the teaching pro I go to had a seminar about the mental game. It was fantastic, but I can't imagine doing this regularly. I do re-read the Rotella book regularly.

If you hit 10 drivers in a row it wont help much because you will never do it in a round

Maybe if the in-bounds area is thin and the player's head is thick?

[The Recreational Golfer]

Recreational golf is not that easy to play, since it's a social game and there's an expectation to be polite and pay lots of attention to your partners, which can work the detriment of your own game. When you play alone you can concentrate solely on what you're doing. There's a balance point of being polite yet detached when playing with others that you might try to find.