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How do you guys keep focus during a great round?

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pollock21

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So far my best round to date is an even par 72. Been trying to get back there with my ultimate goal of breaking 72. Came pretty close this Saturday with a 76, but that was a terrible 76.

I was 1 under on the front going into number 9 with 4 birdies on the card paired with a double and a bogey. But I was swinging well other than a two mistakes that cost me. Striped a drive down the pipe on 9 and holed the dang thing out from 100. Best 9 of my life at 3 under 33.

It was a 10:30 tee time and I was a little late and never did eat anything. Pace of play was decent on the front but steady, so I kept a bit of a rhythm. Went in at the turn for a drink and a snickers bar and the place was crowded. Took 5 mins to get out of there, then proceeded to 10 tee where there was a traffic jam. Prob hadn't hit a shot for 15 minutes. It was a 200 yard tee shot to the layup area which leaves about 150 over water for the 2nd. I took out the 5 iron and laid the sod over it resulting in a 100 yard tee shot. Had to lay up again and made a mockery of the hole. Ended up posting a double.

I kept my composure and tried to keep it going, but my swing just disappeared after that hole. Proceeded to play 10-15 at 8 over. Got it dialed back in on 16 and finished par-birdie-par.

I talked to my Dad after the round as I was pretty bummed about my collapse. He told me that the scratch player he plays with regularly will never go in at the turn when he's having a good round. He just goes on to 10 and proceeds about his business. This got me thinking, did I do myself a disservice taking that break at the turn? The pace slowed down on the back considerably as well and slow play is usually a detriment to my game as well.

My question is for all you guys out there, when you have a great round going, what do you do to keep your focus and stay in rhythm when you run into issues like slow play? What do you do at the turn? Do you have any other tips or anything that I should consider incorporating into my game? Whatever these are, I want to work them into my routine every round so it becomes natural to me, rather than just trying to do it during my potential career round.

At the end of the day, 5 birdies and an eagle resulting in a 76 isn't great. The other side of the coin is if you told me I was going to shoot 76 when I got to the course, I'd have taken it! LOL The plus side is I finally had the putter working great and I solved a putting issue I've been suffering from. I made a lot of putts which was the difference maker, so there's a lot I can build on out of this round, and I'm going to take that confidence that I'm capable of making much more than my typical 1 or 2 birdies a round. I'm going to build on this, but I think I exposed a mental issue I need to address.

Thanks in advance!
 
Ignore golf on your way to the ball. Only focus on the shot you are about to make. It's hard if you know your score and breaking a personal best but I've also heard many pros talk about relaxing and forgetting about golf inbetween shots.
 
greggdrews said:
Ignore golf on your way to the ball. Only focus on the shot you are about to make. It's hard if you know your score and breaking a personal best but I've also heard many pros talk about relaxing and forgetting about golf inbetween shots.
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I like that idea. I havent been able to figure that secret out myself. I cant seem to get away without a stretch of bad hole some where. Even a string of bogeys where a yard here or there would have been the difference between a birdie putt and a chip from a collection area. Today, the chunks greeted me on #13. Was playing well to that point. Just have to keep plugging and learn from the (repeated) failures for the next time, I suppose.
 
Mostly I don't think about it. When I'm in that zone, I just let it flow. I find it much harder to keep focus when I'm struggling.
 
Try not to let it get into my head my best rounds happen when i am not thinking too much just playing
 
Just keep doing what's been working for you all round, and most importantly don't start thinking about the end score. Golf has a nasty habit of turning on you when you just when you think you're on your way to your best round. I keep attacking pins and charging putts at the hole, the minute I throttle back a bit then it all turns to custard.
 
Regardless of how I'm playing, I try not to stop at the turn. It just breaks up the round. I'll throw a granola bar in the bag to eat when I hit 10. That works best for me.

I try to keep my focus on the hole that I'm playing and that's it. Whether I'm playing poorly, well, or average, I try to just focus on the hole in front of me. It's not easy to do, and it's a skill that I've been working on and continue to develop. But, I think it really helps me maintain focus during the round.
 
My turn is walking straight from 9 green to 10 tee without passing go as to not break up the rhythm of the round. My course supplies plenty of water on the course and I always throw a snack or 2 in the bag in case they are needed.
 
You know, you got everything you could have gotten out of that round. And a 33 on the front is solid, no doubt. You took the good with the bad and that is what you have to do.
You say you lost your swing after hole 10. Why not get it back at 11. You didn't accept what happen on 10 and tried to push. This brings about tension and keeps the swing restricted. You have to take the good with the bad.
The wait on 10 or going in didn't ruin your round. It should have helped it. Had you been standing on 10 tee box the entire time there is no telling where your mind would have wandered off too. Lots to learn from this round.
 
Just take it one shot at a time. Sounds easier than it is, but good or bad I try to just focus on the shot at hand. Its far to eqsy for me to get caught up thinking if I dont.
 
I don't know the answer honestly, I just know that when I'm focused and in the zone nothing else matters, not the wind, not the course, not my playing partner, nothing, I'm in a different place all together and it's almost surreal. How I prepare for that is with the shots in my mind on the way to the course, most of the time I won't know the course but I imagine hitting a fade or a draw and having it come off like I'd like it too and for some reason it really puts me in that place, some chilled tunes like Pink Floyd or the solo stuff from Gilmour is great background music to my thoughts, I can revisit it any time in my mind and find peace.
 
We are amateur golfers for a reason. We constantly question why we had a good or bad round and it gets into our head. It's not always a bad thing to think about the bad and learn but I have found that the age old adage "Take it one shot at a time" is the best advice I could give.
 
Taking a break at the turn would ruin me. Look at the short break the guys took at The Players because of the weather. They hacked it around those final couple of holes. When the rhythm of a round is interrupted, I struggle mightily. When I'm playing well, I don't look at the scorecard either. I want to focus on the next shot and the next shot only, not about what I need over the final 5 holes to shoot a PB.
 
Haven't had a great round yet so no advice.
 
greggdrews said:
Ignore golf on your way to the ball. Only focus on the shot you are about to make. It's hard if you know your score and breaking a personal best but I've also heard many pros talk about relaxing and forgetting about golf inbetween shots.
Click to expand...

I like this, for me I take my 3 year old out golfing with me quite a bit, so I have a constant distraction. I always seem to play very well when he is with me. So distractions can be good.

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I try and slow myself down.
 
Plan what club to hit and where to hit it before you get to the course. Having a plan means you have mental pictures of what you want to do. Its a good start.

Pick a clear, easy to see aim point for every shot.

Follow my preshot routines. Good routine must have good pace and rhythm. It should be like "getting down to business", the time to prepare to swing, a time to get your rhythm for the shot.
 
I've found that if I am having a good time with my group, that I tend to focus on how the round is going less, good/bad. If I am playing by myself, those thoughts tend to creep into my head more.
 
When I have a good round, I don't have any thoughts in my head, it's clear and I just focus on my targets and next shots, no swing thoughts, just having a good time and I'm not thinking ahead either.
 
You were obviously hitting the ball well, so it sounds to me like you let everything from the clubhouse at the turn and hole 10 get in your head. Have to take it one shot at a time, which can be difficult.
 
I'm an 18 and trending upward. My head kills me. I know I'm good for at least a 9 on one hole in any round. I know I'll skull more chips/pitches than good ones. See how positively negative I am. My buddies kept telling me they'd take make my 9, and refused to show me the scorecard. Kept me distracted all day, and wouldn't give me my score after 9. At the end of the day, I'd shot an 83 on a tough course, still not my PB ever of 79, but shows what my mind can do to me.

Chips/pitches used to be my strong area, but now after trying every damn fix everyone tells me to do, I'm lost. I have no freakin clue. Hinge wrist, don't hinge, hands forward at impact, just too many thoughts going on. It's all in our minds.

I think I'd like to be able to forget every past shot, focus on what to hit now, no swing thoughts, just let it happen. At my lowest, I was an 11 cap, so take it FWIW.
 
I personally watch other people play golf in between my shots. Whether its the people I'm with or on neighboring holes. I don't start thinking about my next shot until I'm actually driving to my ball.

~Rock
 
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