Stop Overthinking and Trust in Your Golf Swing
How many times has your indecision and self-doubt interfered with playing good shots? Do you want to improve your mindset shot-making? Please read on…
Spending extra time standing over the ball questioning your shot strategy, thinking of last second adjustments and possible outcomes is a surefire method to interfere with accuracy.
When you overthink, over-analyze or have too many swing thoughts, you inhibit your ability to pull the trigger on your shot.
Golf is a game of commitment and trust. When you are not decisive, you open your mind to a host of thought distractions that throw off your game.
Mental Game Survey Question
A golfer from our Golf Mental Game Survey sent us the following question:
“How can I calm my mind while standing over the ball and not second-guess myself?”
Lacking commitment leads to overthinking, second-guessing and over-analyzing. A lack of commitment affects both your comfort and confidence levels.
When you don’t commit to your shot, you end up taking extra time standing over the ball…
The seconds feel like minutes and you can feel the buildup of nerves…
You question whether you are playing the shot right…
With each passing second, you become more unsure…
You doubt your strategy and your ability to execute the strategy.
The more time you have to think, debate and analyze, the greater the anxiety you experience.
Questioning if you are playing the shot right changes your physiology, throws off your mechanics slightly and has a dramatic impact on the outcome of your shot.
Committing to your plan is critical but the act of committing doesn’t just happen… IT REQUIRES PRACTICE!
If you don’t work on committing to your shots during practice rounds, it will feel uncomfortable and difficult to put into action under the pressure of competitive play.
LPGA Lexi Thompson Mindset
LPGA golfer Lexi Thompson has put in a lot of training to help improve committing to her shots. Thompson has 11 LPGA Tour wins and continues to work on the mental side of her game.
After shooting a 7-under 65 in the first round of the 2020 CME Group Tour Championship, Thompson talked about the importance of committing to her shots.
THOMPSON: ”I was just overall very happy with how I committed to my shots. That’s what I’ve really been working on. I’ve been working so hard on my game in general trying to improve on it, and it’s been kind of an up and down roller coaster with an unfortunate [missed cut] last week.”
The decision-making process is important and should not be rushed. Once you factor in distance, obstacles, slope, greens, wind, weather, etc., you should identify your strategy, commit to that strategy and focus on your pre-shot routine.
At that moment, the time for debate is over and you should execute and carry out the plan.
How to Commit to your Shots:
Work on committing to your shots during your practice rounds. The first step is to do a good job with your “homework” and planning the shot.
Try the “plan it and do it” strategy. Once you have a plan for the shot or putt, no more debate in your mind about it.
Time to commit. At this point, no second-guessing as you move into your setup and execution!
Related Golf Psychology Articles
- The Mindset of Charging From Behind
- Mindset and Performance Ruts in Golf
- Mindset When Competing Against Top Golfers
- Subscribe to The Golf Psychology Podcast on iTunes
- Subscribe to The Golf Psychology Podcast on Spotify
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