Ron Hanson's Golf Tips
Practice: Establish
Appropriate Expectations and Goals for Your Practice Time
Several years ago, I was at a facility where the pro shop
over looked the putting green. As I was working away, I could
see one of the better junior golfers practicing his putting.
He spent at least an hour practicing 18” putts. He
had apparently missed a short putt during his last round
and was trying to build up his confidence again. He was making
putt after putt after putt. Half an hour into the session,
he missed one of those 18” putts. Then he missed another
and another. I could see it in his face that he doubted himself
more and more. What started out for the first half hour as
a confidence builder became very destructive.
After he finished his session, we talked about what had transpired.
The fundamentals of his stroke were solid. The putt he missed
during the round was just a mental lapse which will occur
from time to time. He realized his mind had wandered beyond
the stroke at hand.
We set some goals for him. His first goal was to stay focused
on each putt and his second is to not dwell on the mistake
he previously made, to remember the made putts even after
a missed a putt.
We then discussed his practice session and we came to the
conclusion that his approach would have only resulted in
a negative outcome. The rebuilding of his confidence on the
short putt should have only taken ten minutes, not a half
hour or an hour. His expectation was to never miss an 18” putt.
That is not being realistic. Anyone given a task to repeat
without a break for a long period will lose their concentration
and make a mistake.
Prior to your practice sessions, establish appropriate expectations
and goals. Do not think you are going to be perfect. An appropriate
goal may be to perform your practice task correctly 3 out
of 10 times. The next session your expectations may be to
increase your performance to 4 out of 10. On the back side,
realize that you do get tired both physically and mentally.
If you have been performing the skill you are working on
at an appropriate level and it starts to deteriorate, that
does not mean you have lost it. Quite often, it just means
you are tired. Don’t dwell on it. Move on and do something
else.
Tip of the Month
When practicing any specific aspect of your swing, do not
get caught up in the outcome of where the ball goes. Only
focus on the particular skill you are working on and gauge
your success by your performance of that skill. Even if you
whiff the ball, it may be a successful swing because you
performed the task set forth for that swing.
E-mail
Ron about lessons!
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