No one said it would be easy! What does it take to make it to the top of the tree? Of course PTGC’s specialty is in golf, but it really doesn’t matter the same qualities run through every walk of life. There are many characteristics and abilities you need but today I want to talk about mental toughness.

It doesn’t matter whom you are, how much ability you have or to the outside world how easy you seem to find success in your chosen path, there will be some tough times. In golfing terms the easiest way to say this is – “sometimes it just feels like you were born to have a golf club in your hand, like it is part of you”, “yet other times it feels the most alien thing and you might as well have a banjo in your hands”.

The fact that you feel this is not the problem, the real issue is how you deal with it. Will you let it beat you up and eat away? Or will you find a way to let the negative energy dissipate, leaving your senses open to find the feelings that create the good shots.

Most people, especially golfers are perfectionists in holding onto negative emotions, letting the frustration build, turning into anger, which creates an anchor for the bad feeling. Yet when we find the good ones we don’t reward ourselves with good feelings and emotions to anchor that feeling we lambast ourselves for not doing it more often.

The one thing I know to be true (other than at some point we all have to die). Is that it will be a bumpy path, there will be good times and there will 100% be hard times that test us. The ones who make it to the top are the ones whom enjoy the good times and make them roll as long as possible, then tough out the hard times and find ways to get through them in the shortest possible time scale.

If you are having a tough time right now, just know that others have gone down this route and come out the other side, it can be done. In the current game the likes of Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Justin Rose, Michelle Wie and many many more have all got great stories of how they have faced adversity and came back stronger and better for the experience. The key is what you learn from it and what you learn about yourself, not what the problem is.

So the question is do you have the character to take whatever golf (or life) has to throw at you and find a way to get through, learning something to make you stronger for the future?

As I prepare to finish working with the students here in Perth and head back to Thailand, I decided that this weeks blog on games and challenges would be more of a report on the advantages these sessions have on your game and the encouragement they give to your game.

We have run the short game challenge for 3 consecutive weeks now and the results make very interesting reading.

NB. If you are not familiar with the short game challenge or the scoring systems please refer to my blog posted on 15th February: http://www.protourgolfcollege-thailand.com/2/post/2012/02/train-your-golf-with-games-and-challenges-part-2.html)

The first thing I notice looking at the figures is a massive improvement in shots that scored points. In the first week only 46% of all shots hits resulted in points, this improved to 63% for week two and 57% in week 3, that’s going to make a difference in your scores for sure.

The next area I looked at is shots within the ‘kill zone’ – inside 2 meters – and where we really want to be getting it to significantly increase our chances of making the putt:

• Week one – 36% of shots in the kill zone
• Week two – 46% of shots in the kill zone
• Week three – 54% of shots in the kill zone

I think these figures speak for themselves, but more than that they are providing facts to the students, real evidence that their short games are improving, not just feeling or hopes and it is these facts that build confidence and that is the one word we hear from all the best golfers when they play well and win.

Beyond the generalisations we can also delve deeper into particular areas as we rate each shot, for instance only 11% of the points were scored from bunkers, in week two that raised to 18% before stabilising to 15% in week three (there are 5 shots so 20% would be the standard of all shots being equal). Good improvements but still some work to go!

Of course there is much to be taken from this data, I have shown how the figures relate to the group but they can also be used on an individual basis. They will show each student where they need to work on developing their game and provide motivation as they see themselves improve.

This is just a snap shot of the figures available the point is not to go through everything in this blog but to emphasis the point of how you should be training if you are serious about improving your golf game…the figures speak for themselves. One final point is that when you test like this especially as a group with your peers you are adding pressure and creating real game situations, so not only does it give you feedback but provides all round great training.

If you are not yet using testing and recording to train you are falling behind…what are you waiting for?

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In a follow up to Thursday is tournament dat at PTGC, I decided it was a good idea to, jump over the ropes for the next trip to Kennedy Bay Links and join in to see exactly what the students are experiencing.

Firstly I have to say I got lucky on a day of what can only be desribed as light winds at best, as being on the Indian Ocean the wind can really howl around the the bay links. We all lined up on the practice tee (well I was laid down stretching as you can see) as we prepared and learnt our pairings for the day. I was going out in the final group!!

The gaunlet was laid down and we all set out. I am pleased to announce that some of the buzz of playing and really wanting to post a score came back on the first tee, maybe it was the thought of David and Lawrie’s watchful eye or just my sense of competition but I got straight into my focus routine and a nice solid start was made.

I will spre you a blow by blow account, other than to report that overall I was pleased with the way I played, even if the scoring is a few more than I would have hoped for…

But what did I learn? Well the first thing was the importance of the rhythm a round of golf must take in order to score well, this is something you can only train by playing and playing in an atmosphere as close to tournament golf as possible, this was the main reason for me not post a score I would have liked. If you feel that a good round is littered with random bogeys from nowhere, you want to focus on the rhythm you get into during the round. It is all about creating patterns and routines that just flow; if you are erratic in your patterns you will be erratic in your play and scoring.

The next thing was making sure your short game is sharp and that all shots are well practiced. If you don’t have your short game at its sharpest you will struggle right through your game. Where you want to be is standing over the shot with the imagination and feeling of how you will feel when you hit a great shot, but too many times we stand over the ball and the only energy we experience is what a bad shot might feel like. Two questions for you here either what do I want to do, or what does a good shot loo like here.

Overall I had a great day, I loved being back out there playing and I know the rest of the PTGC students had a great day again, the training the rest of the week leads to a keen expectancy for Thursday’s and this is what we all train for to play golf. So make sure you are regularly playing an doing it as often as possible with meaning.

The world of sport in the 21st century is a very different place for a young aspiring competitor, the notion of talnated young men and women simply fullfilling a gift given at birth can no longer hold water. The simple reason for this is money! But why has money made the world of sport and specifically golf such a different place for the young aspiring golfer?

A major reasons is the depth of competition and whilst we may look in awe as a few make millions of dollars, there are literally thousands upon thouands of want to be tour pro’s struggling to get from day to day.

When I first started coaching and training golfers 5 years ago, I was amazed by some of the junior golfers who could regularly shot around and even under par by the time they were 10. My instinct was to compare to my junior days – we weren’t even allowed to start playing until we were 12!  But as I looked a little wider and deeper I soon realised this wasn’t so rare.

Spring forward 6-8 years in a junior’s developemnt and look at the level of players between 16-18; you will see just how deep the pool is. Thousand’s of young aspiring player’s all dreaming of the big time, usually backed by anxious families hoping for the next Tiger Woods or Anikka Sorenstam. The harsh reality is most will be struggling to eak a living on a mini tour or regional circuit, if they haven’t just walked away from the game altogether.

With no disrepect to any of the golfers or smaller tours out there, any young golfer who dreams of being a tournament professional wants to be playing on either the PGA or European Tour, so what are the numbers? At the end of the year no more than 250 players can earn enough money to retain their place for the following year. Now think of thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands of current professional’s and aspiring youngsters coming through. You see it will take something special to be one of those 250 players; of course the real spoils in golf only come to those in the world’s top 50.

So times have changed, it is a much more competitive golf world we find ourselves in today but the methods most players and their families are using haven’t changed. Sure parents are spending a small fortune on lessons and travelling around the country, even the world. 16-18 year olds are spending day and night at the range or the golf course practicing technical skills taught by their coach or other representitive but they are doing pretty much the same stuff as all the other thousand’s of hopefulls – and therefore that is all they have, hope!

The problem with this kind of mentality is that it is just potluck, maybe you will be lucky enough to have a good tournament when you need it. The honest truth, it is a bit like wanting to become a millionaire and your plan to achieve this goal is to buy $10 of lottery tickets once a week!

The odds can be shortened though. If you are prepared to be a little different, if you are prepared to go that extra mile the rest aren’t, now you can have a better chance of being in that 250 every year that keep their playing rights.

By the extra mile I don’t just mean you have to work harder, you will, but work smarter, understand where you want to get to and what it takes to get there. Work with intensity, always be engaged in what you are doing and always give every last shot 100%, whether that be in learning a new movement, being able to excute a shot when you want to or coming down the last in your big tournament

As a coach, I constantly strive to learn more about what it takes to assist golfers who want to improve but unless a golfer is willing to give 100% of themeslves to the process there is little I can do.

So the question is 
WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO TO BE DIFFERENT AND STAND OUT FROM THE CROWD? 

FIND YOUR DIFFERENCE THAT TAKES YOU FURTHER AND AMKE IT HAPPEN, NO MATTER WHAT OTHERS TELL YOU!

In part 1 of this series I mentioned how I used to train with the other juniors, this was a key to my quick improvement especially as I was fortunate enough to have such a great group of older boys who encouraged us to join in….Maybe they just wanted to win our golf balls which we used to play for! I jest! But the main thing was the competitive edge it brought and being under pressure, competing with golfers of a higher standard is the only way you can train your game because that is what happens out there on the course.

Today’s challenge can be played on your own or spice can be added as a group.




Australian Rules Golf Challenge: (developed by John Crampton)
For the none Aussies amongst the readers, the first thing I must do is explain what may seem to many as the weird and wonderful game of Australian Rules Football, or more importantly the goal posts.

At the either end of the oval field are two sets of goal posts two larger ones similar to the posts on a rugby field (without the crossbar) flanked by two shorter ones. To score players have to get the ball between the posts, however you score more points if your get the ball through the centre posts (6) as opposed to the outer posts (1).

So how has this been developed into a training challenge for golf? Today we used posts at 140 meters (155 yards) placing bollards at this distance; the two centre bollards were 8 meters (10 yards) apart whilst the two flanking posts were a further 2 meters away. You can vary the distance and the width of the posts, i.e. for driver place at 250 yards with a gap of 20 meters and 5 meters. The scoring is as follows:

• Get through the centre posts and is worth 10 points
  
• Get through the side posts and is worth 5 points
  
• Fail to get through either posts and you score -20!

NB. The ball must go through the posts, if it comes up short that is -20; there is no penalty for being to long.

The best way to create the pressure of golf is to play a knockout system. To do this you will need multiple of fours, if you don’t have a multiple of four you will need an eliminator round. Today we started with 10, so the first round was just for individual score; students worked in pairs hitting alternate shots with 10 balls each. The best 4 scores qualified for the semi-final – the other 6 went to work on their focus and mental pre-shot routine.

Now we were down to 4 players were pitted together head to head. 10 balls each taking alternate shots player with the highest score progressed to the final, where the challenge was repeated. To increase pressure in the final the other 8 players were brought around to watch with a scoreboard running.

See our video to see how the game progresses

Alternative games:
You can use this challenge in other ways. Another way to re create both pressure and focus when fatigue hits is to add a run in between shots.

To do this the number of students can be random (or you could play the head to head game above). All players must start by running from the ball to a set point and back, before completing their full preparation and pre-shot routine, hitting the shot and recording the result before dropping their club and doing the run again.

This is done for all 10 balls with the scoring being the same.

What are the benefits of the running?
Running raises the heart rate; when you are nervous how does that translate in physical terms? A raised heart rate and using exertive exercise is one of the few ways you can recreate this in practice. It also allows you to learn how to control and lower your heart rate, the final benefit is dealing with fatigue and the effects physical fatigue has on your ability to place your attention and focus where you want it.

See our video and watch the running!

So be creative, get a few friends together and make your training really count.

If you have made it to Pro Tour Golf College you must be doing something right, your technique must work to have got you to this level. At this stage wholesale changes to the fundamentals of your swing are not wise, it is a big risk for something you know works.

That said there is always room for improvement, just small amendments to your current technique to improve the ball flight, reduce the bad shot and get you to the ball flight you want to see.

The Pro Tour Golf College model allows time for these changes to be made and there is a structure to how they are made – you still have to do your numbers.

Everyday there is a time and amount of shots allotted to every skill area as a player starts at the beginning of a ten week semester we are identifying those areas through analysis and correcting them to see the improvements. So now in week two or three is the time to use the allotted time to work your numbers on changes.

To do this we give simple drills – as said there is no need for wholesale changes to your fundamentals – drills that use simple equipment that can be found anywhere and cheaply, there really is little need for expensive training aids most of the time.

One of the student’s demonstrates his drill here, Ian has the feeling that he comes over the top of plane into the ball, we simply put the bottle beside the ball so he can see (Facts) that he in fact doesn’t. The bottle provides little more than support that his swing is actually doing what he wants it to do. With that in place he was free to assess the 3 key areas that he needs to be aware of in every shot:

• Quality of impact – or centeredness of strike
  
• Balls starting line
  
• Balls curvature
  

Last week I introduced the idea of using games and challenges as a way of improving your golf game and do the only important thing LOWER YOUR SCORES!