How to mentally play tournament golf ??

Any tips to staying in your own lane ? Not getting caught up in others bad rounds etc... sounds easy but I struggle with just focusing on my own game and not getting distracted by others.

Learn how to be antisocial

A tournament is long, you have to balance concentrating while also not burning out. If it's multi-day, its difficult to remain completely focused constantly over a number of days.

Game wise, I would understand you're going to hit bad shots, and its recovering from those bad shots. Basically, take advantage of your good shots, and try to hold on during your bad. Don't throw away a round because your start isn't what you want.

One other thing I'd mention, on the swing, on in relation to your question. You're swing changes over the round; it's different than hitting balls for an hour straight. Try to adapt practice to taking time inbetween shots.

A friend of mine who plays in tournaments all the time says, "I just think happy thoughts."

Mastering golfs mental game- been working wonders for me!

I thought I had something constructive to add, but I realized my dyslexia was acting up & I had read this as "How do the mentally ill play tournament golf?" Please carry on...

> @jonsnow said:

> I thought I had something constructive to add, but I realized my dyslexia was acting up & I had read this as "How do the mentally ill play tournament golf?" Please carry on...

>

>

We don't!

Interesting question. I used to have an issue with this as a junior. I think every golfer that plays competitive golf probably comes across this at one point or another. And while this is usually no longer a problem there are times where this can distract me.

I think the big thing is that I stopped caring what the other playing partners were doing. I will say that audibly ‘calling my shot’ before I hit the ball in pre-shot routine helped a ton. I took that from Dr. Bhrett McCabe and I have probably mentioned it about a million times.

You don’t have to say it so loud that you sound like a madman, but just under your breath.

Something like ‘okay, the wind is blowing pretty good from 4 o’clock. My target is the chimney on the red house. I’m going to aim at that small spruce tree and the ball will draw back to the chimney on the red house.’

While I try to not use swing thoughts/visuals, I might throw that in the mixed in that pre-shot routine. Usually if I’m working on something new. But it’s best to get it down and just ‘feel’ the swing thought(s) and then call your shot and go from there.

For me, it un-clutters the mind and I can focus. And I can still be very sociable.

I also go into rounds of golf with the mindset that a big part of this game is not just technique and results…it’s about being able to have razor-sharp focus in different spurts over 4-hours.

There’s an old saying ‘don’t let perfect get in the way of better.’ I think a lot of people, including myself, tend to think you need to have perfect focus and because that is such a daunting task that they don’t bother.

I don’t need to be Ben Hogan out on the course and have ice in my veins from the time I tee it up to the time I hit my last putt on the 18th hole for roughly 14,400 straight seconds.

Instead, I just need to focus the best I can on each shot. If I shoot 72, it’s a success if I focused well on every one of those 72 shots. Which may take me 20-30 seconds to on each shot.

In the other time that I am not hitting the golf shot, I can just be myself.

RH

> @RichieHunt said:

> Interesting question. I used to have an issue with this as a junior. I think every golfer that plays competitive golf probably comes across this at one point or another. And while this is usually no longer a problem there are times where this can distract me.

>

> I think the big thing is that I stopped caring what the other playing partners were doing. I will say that audibly ‘calling my shot’ before I hit the ball in pre-shot routine helped a ton. I took that from Dr. Bhrett McCabe and I have probably mentioned it about a million times.

>

> You don’t have to say it so loud that you sound like a madman, but just under your breath.

>

> Something like ‘okay, the wind is blowing pretty good from 4 o’clock. My target is the chimney on the red house. I’m going to aim at that small spruce tree and the ball will draw back to the chimney on the red house.’

>

> While I try to not use swing thoughts/visuals, I might throw that in the mixed in that pre-shot routine. Usually if I’m working on something new. But it’s best to get it down and just ‘feel’ the swing thought(s) and then call your shot and go from there.

>

> For me, it un-clutters the mind and I can focus. And I can still be very sociable.

>

> I also go into rounds of golf with the mindset that a big part of this game is not just technique and results…it’s about being able to have razor-sharp focus in different spurts over 4-hours.

>

> There’s an old saying ‘don’t let perfect get in the way of better.’ I think a lot of people, including myself, tend to think you need to have perfect focus and because that is such a daunting task that they don’t bother.

>

> I don’t need to be Ben Hogan out on the course and have ice in my veins from the time I tee it up to the time I hit my last putt on the 18th hole for roughly 14,400 straight seconds.

>

> Instead, I just need to focus the best I can on each shot. If I shoot 72, it’s a success if I focused well on every one of those 72 shots. Which may take me 20-30 seconds to on each shot.

>

> In the other time that I am not hitting the golf shot, I can just be myself.

>

>

>

>

>

> RH

>

that's a great post

I'm the opposite of Richie. When I was a junior and university golfer I had confidence and ice water in events

That changed when I got a real job and couldn't play and practice as much. At 51, I don't care as much anymore

I will say my great rounds in events are carefree. No stress, just picking targets (I myself using Richie's shot calling and with good pals I do it to antagonize them), then hitting shots and moving on . .whether the shot was awesome or awful

Funny story from the weekend on focus. Played a big 2 man scramble with my nephew. We're both 1 caps. He plays d2 golf. He lost focus on about 4 shots and all of them were awful. (Shank, fat, hook OB). He was literally chirping over the ball and then goosed the shot. He learned a lesson. Be loose but bear down for the 30 seconds during your shot. I'm not saying be Ben Hogan and abhor "Jolly Golf" but get in a target frame of mind when it's your shot

Nothing wrong with ice water. Playing a little pissed off helps with focus.

Keep ur head down. Dont watch them hit, just ask what they got on the next tee, if you finish the hole first, go to the next tee. Joke around during waits but just focus on what ur doing

> @"Santiago Golf" said:

> Keep ur head down. Dont watch them hit, just ask what they got on the next tee, if you finish the hole first, go to the next tee. Joke around during waits but just focus on what ur doing

I always hope I never get paired with guys that do this. And if I do happen to get paired with someone like you, I’m letting them know that they can help the group out by getting the flag when they are the first one to hole out.

There is not much worse than being the last guy to putt and then having to get the flag while you have the box on the next tee. It’s actions like this (and pros who recommend others do the same) that ruin it for the rest of us.

Several things. Expect bad breaks. It will happen. Cliche. But. The next > @RichieHunt said:

> Interesting question. I used to have an issue with this as a junior. I think every golfer that plays competitive golf probably comes across this at one point or another. And while this is usually no longer a problem there are times where this can distract me.

>

> I think the big thing is that I stopped caring what the other playing partners were doing. I will say that audibly ‘calling my shot’ before I hit the ball in pre-shot routine helped a ton. I took that from Dr. Bhrett McCabe and I have probably mentioned it about a million times.

>

> You don’t have to say it so loud that you sound like a madman, but just under your breath.

>

> Something like ‘okay, the wind is blowing pretty good from 4 o’clock. My target is the chimney on the red house. I’m going to aim at that small spruce tree and the ball will draw back to the chimney on the red house.’

>

> While I try to not use swing thoughts/visuals, I might throw that in the mixed in that pre-shot routine. Usually if I’m working on something new. But it’s best to get it down and just ‘feel’ the swing thought(s) and then call your shot and go from there.

>

> For me, it un-clutters the mind and I can focus. And I can still be very sociable.

>

> I also go into rounds of golf with the mindset that a big part of this game is not just technique and results…it’s about being able to have razor-sharp focus in different spurts over 4-hours.

>

> There’s an old saying ‘don’t let perfect get in the way of better.’ I think a lot of people, including myself, tend to think you need to have perfect focus and because that is such a daunting task that they don’t bother.

>

> I don’t need to be Ben Hogan out on the course and have ice in my veins from the time I tee it up to the time I hit my last putt on the 18th hole for roughly 14,400 straight seconds.

>

> Instead, I just need to focus the best I can on each shot. If I shoot 72, it’s a success if I focused well on every one of those 72 shots. Which may take me 20-30 seconds to on each shot.

>

> In the other time that I am not hitting the golf shot, I can just be myself.

>

>

>

>

>

> RH

>

Great post !

I was given that tip by a mentor of mine a couple seasons ago. He said “ tell you brain how far to hit it “. Especially on scoring iron shots. I’ll get a number I want it to land. Not including roll and I’ll simply say “ 147 , 147 “ 2-3 times as I step into the ball. I pride myself on distance control. I swear your Brain can calculate yardage and send it to your hands. You just have to tell it and then get out of the way.

> @"Santiago Golf" said:

> Keep ur head down. Dont watch them hit, just ask what they got on the next tee, if you finish the hole first, go to the next tee. Joke around during waits but just focus on what ur doing

Yep. Huge reason why I prefer to walk. Easier to stay to yourself and not have to be distracted by chit chat.

Learn to relax between shots, acquire the ability to focus on demand for the shot at hand instantly.

All the good golfers I know personally had the ability to turn on and off their concentration like flipping a light switch. One can not do that if too nervous or too tired. They all seem to be able to get in the zone around 10 seconds or less. No one could be focused and tense all through the tournament, even the best.

You lost your focus probably because you had spent too much energy between the shots.

> @RichieHunt said:

> Interesting question. I used to have an issue with this as a junior. I think every golfer that plays competitive golf probably comes across this at one point or another. And while this is usually no longer a problem there are times where this can distract me.

>

> I think the big thing is that I stopped caring what the other playing partners were doing. I will say that audibly ‘calling my shot’ before I hit the ball in pre-shot routine helped a ton. I took that from Dr. Bhrett McCabe and I have probably mentioned it about a million times.

>

> You don’t have to say it so loud that you sound like a madman, but just under your breath.

>

> Something like ‘okay, the wind is blowing pretty good from 4 o’clock. My target is the chimney on the red house. I’m going to aim at that small spruce tree and the ball will draw back to the chimney on the red house.’

>

> While I try to not use swing thoughts/visuals, I might throw that in the mixed in that pre-shot routine. Usually if I’m working on something new. But it’s best to get it down and just ‘feel’ the swing thought(s) and then call your shot and go from there.

>

> For me, it un-clutters the mind and I can focus. And I can still be very sociable.

>

> I also go into rounds of golf with the mindset that a big part of this game is not just technique and results…it’s about being able to have razor-sharp focus in different spurts over 4-hours.

>

> There’s an old saying ‘don’t let perfect get in the way of better.’ I think a lot of people, including myself, tend to think you need to have perfect focus and because that is such a daunting task that they don’t bother.

>

> I don’t need to be Ben Hogan out on the course and have ice in my veins from the time I tee it up to the time I hit my last putt on the 18th hole for roughly 14,400 straight seconds.

>

> Instead, I just need to focus the best I can on each shot. If I shoot 72, it’s a success if I focused well on every one of those 72 shots. Which may take me 20-30 seconds to on each shot.

>

> In the other time that I am not hitting the golf shot, I can just be myself.

>

>

>

>

>

> RH

>

This is "Mastering Golf's Mental Game" by Dr. Michael Lardon to a T. His method is to go through the same routine for every shot -- analyze (access lie, wind, slope, pin location, trouble) > visualize (call the shot you want to hit and visualize that exact shot) > execute (simple thought like "finish high"). But if you aren't in your routine, you're relaxed and not thinking about golf to save your focus for when you need it.

His method advocates playing rounds with a mental scorecard as your actual score. So if you make Par on a Par 4, but you only completed your focused routine on 3 of the shots, you would give yourself a 3 on the mental scorecard. At the end of the round, you divide your mental score by your raw score to get a percentage. So if you shot a 75, but only completed your focused routine on 67 of them, you scored an 89%, and you use that as a measuring stick. He claims tour pros are all 95% or higher.

I still have yet to figure out how.

I have joined a lot of tournaments in the last five years. So far, the best I have shot was 1 over par and I was really chatty with the people I played with because I knew them and they were ok with talking in between shots. I did not realize I shot that well after the round. The following day I got into the championship flight and both players did not say a word the whole 18 holes and I shot 16 over par. lol I think I burned my mind out and my body followed after.

For me, it seems like my best tournament rounds are when I get a break from the pressure in between shots and I just go on autopilot. I know that's not going to work because most of the time, I'll be paired with someone who I do not know. But looking back, it seems like all my best rounds where when I was not that serious in between shots.

> @RichieHunt said:

> I think the big thing is that I stopped caring what the other playing partners were doing. I will say that audibly ‘calling my shot’ before I hit the ball in pre-shot routine helped a ton. I took that from Dr. Bhrett McCabe and I have probably mentioned it about a million times.

For what it's worth this is something advanced drivers are encouraged to do in the UK by instructors. It helps concentrate the mind on the task and trigger appropriate responses.

https://www.iam-bristol.org.uk/index.php/articles/associate-s-guide/16-commentary-spoken-thoughts

Mind you these days most of my commentary tends to descend into sarcasm pretty quickly.

You play like you practice. For me that means no loose shots, ever, anywhere. On the practice tee or in a friendly round put all of your focus on hitting every shot as well as you can. Do that and its no big deal to do the same thing in tournament.

Steve

Notwithstanding conditions like ADHD and Dyslexia, allowing oneself to be distracted is simply a lack of self-control and takes time to learn. I dealt with both those conditions so was forced to learn self-control before I could ever focus on important tasks. If I allowed those conditions to drive me the lack of self-control would have hindered playing football and a myriad of other activities in my life.

If you have a modicum of self-control, it will take an undetermined number of tournaments to get used to the environment, its demands and making shots under pressure. Block out most everything around you and stay focused on the task at hand. If you can demand of yourself, it's that simple. Otherwise, it means all sorts of activities will distract you making shots more difficult. Each time you need to focus on the conditions you face, make a shot plan then focus on executing that shot and do that over and over +/- 70 times.

Breathe. Also, lots of good advice here but really you have to find your own space, and then figure out how to stay there. Some people want to be chatty all the time some people want to be left alone, but most people want somewhere in the middle.

Play comfortable. Hit low stress shots. Enjoy yourself, a tournament is still recreation.

I play in many golf assoc. tournaments. I enjoy it. You're usually playing with players that have some skill and have good course etiquette. I enjoy seeing them play well, also.

> @ryan983 said:

> > @"Santiago Golf" said:

> > Keep ur head down. Dont watch them hit, just ask what they got on the next tee, if you finish the hole first, go to the next tee. Joke around during waits but just focus on what ur doing

>

> I always hope I never get paired with guys that do this. And if I do happen to get paired with someone like you, I’m letting them know that they can help the group out by getting the flag when they are the first one to hole out.

>

> There is not much worse than being the last guy to putt and then having to get the flag while you have the box on the next tee. It’s actions like this (and pros who recommend others do the same) that ruin it for the rest of us.

In Junior Golf they always reconmmend to keep by first person done go to the next hole, 2nd person grab the flag, and 3rd finish the hole

Tournament reps, I don't know many people that play great when they only have a few competitive rounds a year. Kind of like public speaking, I don't know any great presenters that do it randomly here and there. Said another way, also keep your expectations in check if you're not in a regular tournament schedule.

Betting during casual rounds is also a great way to prepare.

You need to play enough competitions to get your tension level just where it needs to be. Hint: when the weekly money games in you cc don’t get the juices flowing, you’re close.

> @gators78 said:

> Tournament reps, I don't know many people that play great when they only have a few competitive rounds a year. ...

Getting used to tournaments and oddball events is part of it. You need to play a year or two of tournaments just to get used to the grind and the unwritten protocols. And tournament circuits themselves vary in formality, pace of play, etc. I have played mostly district-level amateur circuit so far. Some of my adventures:

* At the district senior championship, it rained heavy the night before the second round. We got a text telling us tee offs would be delayed by two hours. I got to the course after an hour drive, as it was still raining and slow going due to secondary roads being underwater. We had the "awards luncheon" before play even started. They changed my PM tee time and playing group twice in the hour after lunch, as no-shows mounted. The marshalls basically put everyone **on the clock** on the first tee before we hit a shot. Every other tee box we got a drive-by "hurry up" warning. The open championship flight, the final groups, only played 16 holes due to darkness. I got into the clubhouse and realized I was one stroke out of the prize money.

* At a much happier one-day event, we got to play Glen Echo Country Club, the oldest CC west of the Mississippi in its original location. This track hosted the original Olympics golf championship as part of the St. Louis World's Fair in 1904. It was an old-style course, worked into a beautiful rolling landscape a century ago by crews using shovels and horse-drawn wagons. My highlight: I was only +1 on the par 3 holes. As our circuit players were wrapping up, a hickory stick league was teeing off - guys in nickers and shirts and ties playing vintage clubs from the short tees. I've only played Glen Echo twice, but that was enough top put it into my Top 10 favorite courses I have ever played.

It also takes awhile to learn the various courses. We're supposed to a get practice rounds (for a side greens fee), but two of the busier courses never have any slots open. And, every course has three or four of "those holes" that tie everybody in knots. One such hole is No. 6, a 500-yd. par 5 with fairway bunkers in all the wrong places, and an uphill approach into a swirling head wind. After a couple of bouts of pain, I decided to go with back-to-back 4 hybrids and a knockdown 7i into the green. Bigger hitters had partial wedge shots blowing all over the place on their shorter approaches. I snuck my way to a bogie, which was better than half the field.

On two-day events, realize that one round will probably be better than the other. A 15-HDCPer I played with opened with a 94 and finished with an 81. And play within yourself. If you end up in the rough or behind a tree, take a shot that will get you back in the sunshine. Don't go from bad to worse trying to be heroic.

And try to have some fun playing golf. (Fun is allowed!!!)

Create a mental "wall" that separates you from others in the area, then keep that wall between you and the others when you start your pre-shot routine. Visualize the result you want, then hit the shot. Then let the wall fade away.

I can tell you that my main problem over the years has been thinking about score and not shot. Its so hard to do. "Oh, if I par this I'll break 80". Then comes a double bogey. Sometimes I just can't get it out of my head.

1. Ego is not your amigo.

2. Be the predator, not the prey.