Golf Skills - Shot Selection and Your Inner Voice

Golf a simple game. The two-fold purpose of each shot is to get the ball closer to the hole and to leave the ball in a place where it will be easy to hit the next shot closer to the hole. The first one isn't hard to do--you rarely hit the ball backwards. The second one isn't too hard, either, if you keep a calm mind and pay attention.

We spend all our practice time learning how to hit good shots. We want to have a swing that hits the ball straight, a chip that gets the ball close, and a putt that puts the ball in the hole. Nothing wrong with any of that.

The trouble, is, none of that is golf. Golf is getting the ball in the hole in as few strokes as possible. Golf isn't about making good shots, it's about making the right shots. While you won't score well if you make bad shots, good shots won't help you score well if they're the wrong shots. Again, it's not how well you hit the ball, but can you get it in the hole?

So you're standing on the tee looking down the fairway. Since you're a player, you haven't pulled your driver just because that's the club people are supposed to tee off with. You look down the fairway with your calm mind, see where you want to hit the ball, and put your hand on the club that you are confident can get you there.

The club you hold should maintain, even bolster your confidence. If the club you're holding makes your inner voice say, "I'm not too sure about this," listen! Get a different club, choose a different shot, or both.

The pursuit of par makes us take risks by hitting shots we don't feel confident about. The pros play, driver, 5-iron, so why shouldn't we? Because maybe on this hole there's not enough room around the hazards for you to hit your driver, or the green is too well guarded to hit a 5-iron into it. If you don't have the skills to get out of trouble, why play shots that make you nervous about getting into it?

When you walk from one green to the next tee, you have a wonderful, confident feeling about getting a good score on the next hole. (If you don't, then get it!) Make it your rule maintain that feeling by hitting shots you know you can hit well, with a club you know you can hit well, so that feeling of happy confidence never fades.

Try playing your next round with the goal of hitting each shot full of confidence, where your inner voice is always saying, "Yes!" The result will be that you hit a lot of good shots that do get the ball in the hole, and, because you've banished worry, you'll have a lot more fun.

Bob Jones is dedicated to showing recreational golfers the little things, that anyone can install in their swing and game, that make a big difference in how they play. See more at http://www.bettergolfbook.com. See Bob's blog at http://recgolfer.blogspot.com.

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