Mental vs Physical

[provisional]

We have all heard, or read how important the mental game is to one’s golf game. The pros often are heard saying, something along the lines of we don’t want Tiger’s swing, we want his thought process. So here’s the question. How much better would you be if you had Tiger’s mental abilities, with your own swing? For me, I am thinking 2-3 strokes better. I am bad at focusing on, and planning golf shots. I am a hit it, find it, then hit it again kind of guy.

We were tossing this one around after our morning, back 9 round. (we can walk the back 9 @ 5am for $15 which also includes an artery clogging breakfast, and beverage) The topic was how much better, and worse would two golfers be if they were to switch places mentally, and physically on the golf course. We used Tiger for his tough mental game, and we used Montgomery because of his very good ball striking. We gave Monty , Tiger‘s tough mental game, and gave Tiger , Monty‘s suspect mental game. Would Tiger continue to dominate, and Monty continue to just play decent golf? Obviously there would be not correct answer. But we did agree that Monty would benefit more in this scenario than Tiger would, but that Tiger would still be the better golfer of the two. :comp:

 

[JB]

I think his mental toughness around the greens and putting would give you 2 strokes a round. However it still comes down to a repeatable swing.

 

[Smallville]

I am thinking that having Tiger's swing wouldn't be a bad thing at all!

 

[Badger_Golfer]

I think Tiger's mental toughness and focus would save me 5 strokes a round.
He seems to have the ability to block out everything around him, focus and pull off shots that very, very few others would be able to.

 

[ShortButCrooked]

I don't have a problem focusing on the swing (my playing partners always comment on how they can't believe I can swing with certain noises in the background; I either block them out completely or hear them but don't let it bother me). But mentally, I have a serious issue with focusing on positive thoughts. I let things like wind bother me much more than it should.

If I had Tiger's focus, I'm sure it would save me 4-5 strokes per round.

 

[BigLeftyinAZ]

The mental game is such a vital part of the game and can trasform your game.I urge everyone to learn how to use your mental game.I've seen as much of 5 strokes a round drop from students,just by understanding the fundimentals of the mental game.Pre and post shots are important along with learning how to srug off poor shots

 

[TheGasman]

how to shrug off poor shots

Thats the part I have the biggest problem with. I have been working on some breathing exercises to calm me down a little.

 

[BigLeftyinAZ]

Thats the part I have the biggest problem with. I have been working on some breathing exercises to calm me down a little.

Don't waste energy fretting about those things over which you have no control over.

 

[Johneli]

I know I would be decidedly better if I could manage my shots as well as Tiger. Heck, I'm not thinking what side of the fairway will give me the best angle in.....I'm too busy worrying about hitting ANY PIECE of the fairway....especially with driver in hand.

 

[Ty_Webb]

I think it depends on how good you are. The better you are, the less of an impact his mental game would have for you. If you're a 90 shooter, with his head, I reckon you could well be shooting in the 70s. Jack Nicklaus I think once made a bet with someone that if he could go round with a 15 handicap and tell them what to do at every point, that they would score in the 70s. As I remember the story, he won too.

If you're shooting 70, it's probably more like 3 or 4 shots per round. Obviously it also depends on how good your mental game is as well.

For me, I can play pretty well at times, but have a yip problem with my long putts and chipping. When I don't yip, my short game is very good, but when I do, I miss greens from 5' away. It's horrific. If Tiger's mind would take that away from me, I think it could save me around 8+ shots a round. For example, I played Bethpage Black before the US Open and shot 89. I worked out that had I got up and down from just off the fringes of the greens every time, that would have been 76. Down in three from just off the edge would have saved me about 5 shots. Gah!!!

 

[C-Tech]

I think it is physical until you get down to single digit handicap. From there on in, it is more mental. My swing is pretty ingrained although I do work on a tweak or two at the range. The hardest distance for me to traverse is the 6" between my ears. I tend to make an error and then compound it with another poor decision. If I can make myself just get the ball back in play and settle for bogey, then I score well. If not, I can take a 9 on a an easy par 3 by letting myself get stupid.