Mental Attitude

A positive mental attitude is probably more important in golf than ability, as golf is as much a mind game as it is a physical game.

If you want to improve your golf and your putting, it is not only your stroke mechanics that you must work on. You must also work on developing your mind. This is because you are more likely to fatigue mentally during the round before you fatigue physically if your mind is in poor shape.

Your mental attitude is based on your general outlook on life. It is the filter through which you perceive the past, the present, and the future. It depends directly on your belief system and what you say to yourself – your self-talk. It is your reality.

An important difference between success and failure is the way you think. Your thoughts become your beliefs and values. They are sent as positive or negative messages from your brain to the rest of your body and translate themselves into your actions.

The ability to be positive is the inclination to be in an optimistic, hopeful state of mind. The more positive you are, the more you are likely to achieve your goals. Abraham Lincoln reflected that you are about as happy as you make up your mind to be.

To succeed at anything worthwhile is not easy. Champions are made from those who have the mental strength to keep going despite the obstacles. The first win for a tour professional is usually the hardest as it often takes a number of failures to know how to win.

It is important to remember that your mental state can kill instantly any effort to do better. If you live in a world of 'Don't' and 'Can't', you are setting yourself up for failure.

Here is a simple test for you:

When you play your golf do you find yourself hitting away from the hazards rather than towards your target. In other words is your mindset occupied with avoiding trouble or is it focused on achieving your goal.

If you tell yourself not to leave your putt short, your ball probably won't reach the hole. Nicky Price instructed his caddie never to give him any advice with the word 'Don't' in it.

An optimistic golfer treats a missed putt as an isolated incident. You will often see a professional golfer tap down an imaginary spike after a failed putt. The incident is treated as an anomaly - something out of his or her control.

It takes practice and persistence to think positively. Most of us tend to adopt a pessimistic way of thinking, perhaps to cushion disappointment. However, pessimistic thinking is just a habit and a habit can be changed. You can't stop a negative thought popping into your mind, but you can replace it immediately with a positive thought.

While a positive mental attitude doesn't take the place of practice, it helps you to play to your best potential. Remember the time-honoured advice. Win some. Lose some. But never give up.

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