Mental

[theyoungone]

Hello fellow golfers I'm a 16 yr old and a junior in highschool trying to play college golf. I'm a 4.0 handicap and obviously need to be lower for college. I know my swing is there. I hit good shots but everyone now and then I have an awful hole and take a double. How do I stay focused throughout a round and eliminate those holes?

[edhalsim]

Congrats on being such a good player already!  Most players spend their whole golfing life and never get to that point.

There are tons of good books on the mental side of the game.  Here's my two cents for what it's worth.  I don't think you should focus on trying to eliminate bad shots or bad holes.  Realize that you and everyone else are not perfect.  A single bad shot can lead to a double or worse.  Pros take doubles all the time.  What they do better than the rest of us is put the bad shot/hole behind them and focus on the next shot only.  You don't want to focus on the past (why did I mess up that hole) or the future (since I messed up that hole, now my round is ruined).  Mentally tough players focus on the present - how can I play THIS SHOT to the best of my ability, then accept whatever happens and move on to the next shot.

You also want to examine your shot selection.  If you're in a tough situation, instead of trying to make a heroic par save and bring double into play, play safe and accept bogey.  You can make pars with a wedge and putter.

Remember that golf is a GAME that's meant to be PLAYED.  Try to relax and have fun.  It's not the end of the world if you have a bad round or don't qualify for a tournament.  Your parents and friends will still love you.  Don't fall into the trap of letting your golf score determine how you feel about yourself.  The less pressure you put on yourself makes it that much easier to play well!

Good luck!

[Pretzel]

I was in your same boat for the longest time before I learned to eliminate the blow-up holes. When I hit a bad tee shot my goal is to put myself in a position for the next shot that the worst score I can make is a bogey. This means avoid, at a high cost, out of bounds or stroke and distance penalties, along with anything (like tall, tall grass) that could cause you to be unable to put your ball in a position to make a bogey or better.

A lot of it had to do with my pre-round planning. I map out how I plan to play every single tee shot for my round, club and target, to minimize two things: risk and distance to the hole. By doing that I'm never wondering what the proper play is off the tee, and it means I can be more confident that I will avoid the blow-up holes. The confidence helps me hit a good shot off the tee and it all sort of feeds off itself to help me play better.

[Rich1212]

Forget books, in fact forget everything.

By this, I mean you should make sure your brain is not thinking anything when you swing.

Empty your mind (swing thoughts ruin swings).  When your ready to swing, empty your mind and exhale your breath. When you exhale, you will feel your body set firmer, it just does drop slightly.  Hit the ball.

Your brain is a funny thing.  It will tend to do the last thing you thought about before you swing.  Seen too many guys say to them selves, dont slice the ball.  guess what happens, yep, a slice.

Empty your mind, exhale, and take a smooth swings.  Shortly your blow up holes will disappear.

Your skill level is very good.  You swing so well because you have developed muscle memory for the swing. It has become pretty automatic for you.  Guess what?  This means you dont have to think about it, so dont, empty brain and smooth swing.