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clearing your head of swing thoughts

lilbilly

lilbilly

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So aside from my swing problems which are many, I need to just clear my head. I used to play pretty decent golf and really enjoyed the game. The last several years I have read too much, watched too much and thought about too many swing thoughts. Clearly there was a purpose, which was to get better, but I've got to stop it all. I can't clear my head of all these dang swing thoughts and they are ruining the game for me.

I have an insatiable appetite to play good and strike the ball well, but when I stand over the ball I don't have confidence anymore and my head is flooded with thoughts that I'm not going to hit it well. Throw my thoughts of failure before I swing on top of swing mechanics thoughts, and I'm screwed.

I know some of you others have been there before. What did you do or what can I do to help clear my head and enjoy the game again?
 
Have tou sought out long term lessons? It is next to impossible for most to fix their own swing.

As far as clearing your head. When you stop worrying about score and just play, you wont have too many issues. Golf has to have its place in one's life. You are curing cancer or solving the issues of the world. You are chasing after a little white ball with a deformed stick and having fun. Or at least supposed to be having fun.

Golf will never be perfected and some need to accept their place in golf as a hack. If everyone was good, it would be no fun. But if you want to improve, get lessons and stick with them until such time you no longer need them.
lilbilly said:
So aside from my swing problems which are many, I need to just clear my head. I used to play pretty decent golf and really enjoyed the game. The last several years I have read too much, watched too much and thought about too many swing thoughts. Clearly there was a purpose, which was to get better, but I've got to stop it all. I can't clear my head of all these dang swing thoughts and they are ruining the game for me.

I have an insatiable appetite to play good and strike the ball well, but when I stand over the ball I don't have confidence anymore and my head is flooded with thoughts that I'm not going to hit it well. Throw my thoughts of failure before I swing on top of swing mechanics thoughts, and I'm screwed.

I know some of you others have been there before. What did you do or what can I do to help clear my head and enjoy the game again?
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Great advise Freddie
 
Tadashi70 said:
Have tou sought out long term lessons? It is next to impossible for most to fix their own swing.

As far as clearing your head. When you stop worrying about score and just play, you wont have too many issues. Golf has to have its place in one's life. You are curing cancer or solving the issues of the world. You are chasing after a little white ball with a deformed stick and having fun. Or at least supposed to be having fun.

Golf will never be perfected and some need to accept their place in golf as a hack. If everyone was good, it would be no fun. But if you want to improve, get lessons and stick with them until such time you no longer need them.
Click to expand...

I have resorted to some lessons, albeit they haven't helped a ton yet. I'm thinking of paying for a package of lessons over the winter during my normal off season.

I take offense to the hack comment, lol. I know I'm capable of playing enjoyable golf and posting scores in the 80's and low 90's on a regular basis, I've done so for years now.

I also get that golf is just a game and I need to lighten up, that's what I'm looking for here. I'm not expecting to play pro level golf or even single digit hc type golf, just want to play the golf that I'm capable of. But what I'm getting at here is just how to stop thinking, clear my head and enjoy the game again, because while I crave golf, I don't typically enjoy it once I get out there.
 
lilbilly said:
I have resorted to some lessons, albeit they haven't helped a ton yet. I'm thinking of paying for a package of lessons over the winter during my normal off season.

I take offense to the hack comment, lol. I know I'm capable of playing enjoyable golf and posting scores in the 80's and low 90's on a regular basis, I've done so for years now.

I also get that golf is just a game and I need to lighten up, that's what I'm looking for here. I'm not expecting to play pro level golf or even single digit hc type golf, just want to play the golf that I'm capable of. But what I'm getting at here is just how to stop thinking, clear my head and enjoy the game again, because while I crave golf, I don't typically enjoy it once I get out there.
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Guess I should have put a line between my response to you and my general comment. The highlighted is what I don't think you get. I imagine your thoughts over the ball are filled with swings, drills and failure. This is what plagues most, especially the lack of positive thoughts. I am saying stop thinking about all that stuff and just swing the club, who cares where is goes. Right now, you are not sure where it will go and that bothers you. You think about how to fix it real quick before you swing and then it doesn't happen. This is repeated time and time again.

Now I am making big assumptions based on years of working with people on their swings and course management. This may not be you at all but for arguments sake lets lump you in with all the rest of the golfers that don't play this game at the highest level. Which by the way is more than ok. I can't tell you what to replace the swings thoughts with but replace them. No book or method will help. It comes down to you mentally not caring about the outcome of the next shot and just enjoy all that is around you. The course, the weather, the company, whatever else is going on around you. Your swing is your swing I your swing. It will not magically change unless the effort is put into it. Except that and you will be happier for it. Does that make sense?
 
lilbilly said:
So aside from my swing problems which are many, I need to just clear my head. I used to play pretty decent golf and really enjoyed the game. The last several years I have read too much, watched too much and thought about too many swing thoughts. Clearly there was a purpose, which was to get better, but I've got to stop it all. I can't clear my head of all these dang swing thoughts and they are ruining the game for me.

I have an insatiable appetite to play good and strike the ball well, but when I stand over the ball I don't have confidence anymore and my head is flooded with thoughts that I'm not going to hit it well. Throw my thoughts of failure before I swing on top of swing mechanics thoughts, and I'm screwed.

I know some of you others have been there before. What did you do or what can I do to help clear my head and enjoy the game again?
Click to expand...

I've always felt that it's a progression of time and experience that leads to a clear head, the more you think the more you struggle, at least that's the way it is with me. Freddie's right for the most part, just have some fun and don't give the swing thoughts that much of your attention. You want a vacancy sign in your head rather than a no vacancy sign.
 
Tadashi70 said:
Guess I should have put a line between my response to you and my general comment. The highlighted is what I don't think you get. I imagine your thoughts over the ball are filled with swings, drills and failure. This is what plagues most, especially the lack of positive thoughts. I am saying stop thinking about all that stuff and just swing the club, who cares where is goes. Right now, you are not sure where it will go and that bothers you. You think about how to fix it real quick before you swing and then it doesn't happen. This is repeated time and time again.

Now I am making big assumptions based on years of working with people on their swings and course management. This may not be you at all but for arguments sake lets lump you in with all the rest of the golfers that don't play this game at the highest level. Which by the way is more than ok. I can't tell you what to replace the swings thoughts with but replace them. No book or method will help. It comes down to you mentally not caring about the outcome of the next shot and just enjoy all that is around you. The course, the weather, the company, whatever else is going on around you. Your swing is your swing I your swing. It will not magically change unless the effort is put into it. Except that and you will be happier for it. Does that make sense?
Click to expand...

You are correct, I am certainly not at a high level of golf.

This is what I was getting at with this post - trying to see how some made it out of this hole of negative thoughts and swing thoughts and found a way to just enjoy the game.

The highlighted is exactly where I'm at, and where I NEVER used to be. I used to step up and swing and have confidence to hit any shot - it didn't work all the time and many times blew up in my face but I moved on and never thought differently.
 
lilbilly said:
This is what I was getting at with this post - trying to see how some made it out of this hole of negative thoughts and swing thoughts and found a way to just enjoy the game.
Click to expand...

Just finished a year long total equipment/swing revamp. Tadashi's point of just swinging the club and trusting what you have today is where you need to get. A lot of great instructors stress this point time and time again because its the answer everyone needs.

For "me" to get there I decided I would have the same pre shot routine, and the same pre shot swing thought (for the day) and after those two task were completed I would hit the shot with 100% trust in my swing.

Sounds simple and it is but it took me over 10 rounds and many range sessions of drilling this into my head before I even started doing it 50% of the time. I've managed to break 80 for the first time and have 9 hole rounds sitting in sub 40's these days. Here is a quick list of my pre-shot swing thought order.

Pre-shot routine.

Stand behind ball.
Decide on target.
Decide on shot shape.
Swing the club a couple times feeling the tempo and shape.
Chose intermediate target.
Step up to ball.
Align to target.
<swing thought here (changes from day to day but is normally take back related>
Posture.
Grip.
Relax.
Look at target.
Swing.

I'm never over the ball for more than a couple seconds. I never think about what not to do, only what I'm going to do.
 
Something I started doing this year which helps me clear my head before a shot is to talk through the shot out loud like I'm talking to my caddie, once I decide on the proper shot and commit to it all I need to do is set up to the ball and hit to my target.
 
I have a new life motto, accept my place as a hack. Love it and still have fun. Perfection
 
I find keeping a mental shot clock helps me focus. After i take my address position, i have 5 seconds to hit the ball. I find my one swing thought becomes a harbor that helps me pull the trigger before the buzzer.

Sent from my LG-MS770 using Tapatalk
 
Agree with freddie. I will say that having a solid repeated pre shot routine helps. When its the same everytime there is far less thought involved.
 
Golferbest said:
Agree with freddie. I will say that having a solid repeated pre shot routine helps. When its the same everytime there is far less thought involved.
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Agreed, one of the best things my coach said to me was make a golf swing don't try to hit the ball.
 
ChristopherKee said:
For "me" to get there I decided I would have the same pre shot routine, and the same pre shot swing thought (for the day) and after those two task were completed I would hit the shot with 100% trust in my swing.
Click to expand...
I agree with this. I think it is near impossible to clear all thoughts from our heads so I try to just have one. Usually something as simple as possible like "slow" or "smooth". Pre-shot routine and a single thought like this at least gives me a fighting chance.
 
Like said before: get yourself a routine, stick to it.
During take away and swing I'm only thinking "keep your (right) knee bent", for me it is easy to keep it bent and so it's something I can focus on pretty good and not be too unhappy about :)
 
Trout Bum said:
I've always felt that it's a progression of time and experience that leads to a clear head, the more you think the more you struggle, at least that's the way it is with me. Freddie's right for the most part, just have some fun and don't give the swing thoughts that much of your attention. You want a vacancy sign in your head rather than a no vacancy sign.
Click to expand...

Totally agree Marc. Since I've started hitting better shots more frequently, the idea of bad shots don't even enter my mind. I approach each shot with a single thought. That thought usually being, "pause at the top". Anytime I feel another thought jumping in I will back off the shot. Sometimes I still think I can fight through it. That usually means a bad shot for me though.

I just try to play free and easy and not put too much pressure on myself. I still have problems clearing my head during putting though. When I've worked with my SPI instructor, Jim, I putt lights out because he has me hitting putt after putt in quick succession so I don't have time to think about it. I need to find a way to bring that mentality from practice into my rounds. It's taken a while to get it into my actual swing, so I'm going to remain patient.
 
I've been reading about things related to this quite a bit lately.

I don't think I'll ever be able to turn my brain off, but I have started to try to redirect my focus back to the task at hand if I find myself slipping into swing thoughts or other destructive thougts. I'd rather tell myself to focus back on the target/shot than tell myself "don't think about that" or whatever. Accept that you are going to have thoughts creep in, acknowledge them, then look back at the ball and think about where you want it to go. Might work, might not, but at least you have a little more control over the situation that way.
 
Been working on this over the last several days. I took a few notes to look back on time to time. I'm committing to my grip and set up position, which I know are okay and I've told myself to stop questioning and changing those.

My one thought I'm working on is for my takeaway which is "slow and back down the line." This is just telling myself to obviously go slow, but then not to let the takeaway go too much inside the line. That's my only thought and I just swing.

Clearing any thoughts about hand position and downswing have allowed me to swing more freely.
 
I've recently become a 1 thought guy. I say to myself that no matter what happens, if I do X I'm ok with the song. Working out pretty well of late.

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The only way I can clear thoughts is by stepping up, looking at the target, and swinging immediately. If I get a catch and can't swing immediately I just stand back up, give it a waggle, and do the same thing again..... target and swing immediately.
 
I completely agree with this method of clearing your head. Whenever I stand over the ball too long, the more thoughts enter my head. This especially happens when I'm putting. Do as Speith does- get up to the ball, and hit.

Colt said:
The only way I can clear thoughts is by stepping up, looking at the target, and swinging immediately. If I get a catch and can't swing immediately I just stand back up, give it a waggle, and do the same thing again..... target and swing immediately.
Click to expand...
 
I find that when I have to many pre-swing shot thoughts on the course, my cure is to think less and simply take less practice swings. In most cases I don't even take a practice swing (especially if I'm mad lol). If you limit your swings (practice and actual shots) you have no choice but to have less thoughts about it.
 
Beginning to be able to do this. Was having too many lesson thoughts at the range yesterday and remembered this thread. Nice to see so e of the changes happening without thought. Not totally there, but good to feel some things taking hold.

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