What is the last thing you think about before you swing?

[Marcos]

I usually pick out a small twigg or tree in the distance and focus on that.keeps all the bad stuff out of my mind.

[byerxa]

When I am playing well, not much other than swing the club. But when it is going south the mind starts to clutter and I have to work hard to clear the mind. Confidence is so critical! I remember reading about Tiger saying he does not remember the actual hitting of the ball when he makes great shots. Once he has figured out what he wants to do he zones out and simply executes. I have experienced that same thing in an other sport but not yet in golf.

[big mac]

Have you ever hit just an awsome shot? Be it a 300 yard drive staight down the middle of the fairway; a 4 iron 12 inches from the pin 190 yards our or sand shot into the can? You ask yourself "what did I do? and there is no answer. The reason ---you wern't thinking about it! You notice I did not mention putting---"there's too much thinking here" If I make this I save par----o'boy, this is for birdie etc etc. Mental game for sure----wow the power of the mind.

[mberube]

I will agree that thinking target is better than thinking swing thoughts, but if your conscious thought is about a "small target," it is a stress inducer as a small target is very difficult to hit. In the games you mentioned above your focus is on the target because that is where you want the horseshoe or the dart to go. So, in golf why don't you look at the target, (the green)? To me, it's because your target(the green) is not your target. It's the golf ball instead because it is detached from your body unlike the horse shoe or the dart.

For me, I think target as part of my preshot routine and my preshot routine is everything I do BEFORE I put my hands on the club. Putting my hands on the club, taking my stance, waggling if it's done, IS PART OF MY SHOT, and should be done automatically or subconsciously, for optimum performance.

Can you have a conversation with someone while tying your golf shoes? Of course. So how do your shoes get tied if your focus is on the conversation? Simple. It is something you do subconsciously. Therefore, in golf, why can't your mind be focused on something other than golf, and yet still have you hit a perfect shot? It can and will, if you let it. Only when we play truly subconscious golf will we play our best. If we think target, results, swing thoughts, tempo, "nothing," we may do OK, and OK may give the illusion of being our best, but it is NOT.

After the occasional very good round, I always have the same sensation or feeling that
playing well was so incredibly easy and that I could have been even better. Why? My not so scientific conclusion has always been that my mind was NOT on any of the commonly accepted ideas, but on something other than golf. It was like someone else had taken over my body and swung for me.

The problem with probably all of us here, is that we are constantly trying to swing better and our swings are in a constant state of being improved. We take this to the course and play well for couple of early holes and then slowly we go down hill. If we would stop making the adjustments when we play and just allow our subconscious to swing for us, we would likely play better. However, until you have actually played golf like having a conversation while tying your shoes, it's tough to understand the difference.

How do you explain Hockey, baseball, football…..These are all target sports with the same type of movements as golf yet golf is the only sport that you don’t concentrate on the target itself.

To me picking a small target does not mean I will or want to hit that target. That why I pick a spot that is unattainable. It’s just a way to focus out everything else that can screw up my shot. Like I said lots a PGA pros do it.

Your body reacts to what your subconscious sees. Why does a slicer curve the ball more and more to the right? Because they always aim left. When they hit the ball they hit further to the right. Why? Because their subconscious sees all that margin for error. If you make them set-up completely to the right where any fade will result in a lost ball I guaranty you that they pull ball and hit it left.

[byerxa]

I'd argue other sports such as hockey, etc., are similar. You always here that hockey players are thinking too much when they are in a slump. The difference in hockey is the time frame is much quicker. The player makes a choice where they want to shoot then just do it. In golf you have all the time to device what you want to do while in hockey you have very little. But when it comes time to execute it is still a matter of just doing it. The good goal scorers probably don't even think much about where they are going to shoot. Their "instincts" based on what they see the goalie doing, etc., allow them to put the puck where they want without much thought.

[jonf]

Someone may have mentioned it, but it must be said that the majority of golfers do not have a good enough swing to be able to simply zone out (or in) and subconciously make a good swing. Most golfers, golfing completely subconsciously, would still be slicing it and duffing it and hooking it etc.

[Powerdraw]

the only thing i think about when swinging an iron is zero out the shoulders and just think of hands around my right knee and through....with woods and big dog is the same but around my right shoulder wich leads the backswing from ball and through the ball...feels as all right shoulder compared too irons. personnal TGm thoughts in my case.

a imobile head is the goal for both...immobile yes, pivtoting around and axis=definately..naturallly.

my 2 x 0.9567canadian cents almost american....lol

[Kiwi]

"swing easy" which was/is intended to prevent me from grunting and taking a great friggin' whack at the ball. It works... sometimes and I see it evolving into "tempo" for a slow take away,a very slight pause/transition at the top then an acceleration through the ball. My tempo got out of sync yesterday after a 41 on the front nine (good for me) and I started to spray. When I got the tempo back my shots fell closer to the target.

[byerxa]

Someone may have mentioned it, but it must be said that the majority of golfers do not have a good enough swing to be able to simply zone out (or in) and subconciously make a good swing. Most golfers, golfing completely subconsciously, would still be slicing it and duffing it and hooking it etc.

I am currently in that boat. I have read ClearKeys and agree with the concepts. However, one key prerequisite is to have a swing that you want to engrain in the process and currently I have misplaced mine somewhere! (sp editing)

[Skiddlydidly]

The only thing that's helped me so far is focussing intently on the ball, and thinking "slow down".

[MusicMan]

"I wonder what the cart girl is wearing today"

or

"Dont shank it"

one of the two...

[ironmaster15213]

Or if your Tiger it's " Hmmm...O.B. left and water right.......I wonder if Steve put that extra sleeve of golf balls in the bag this morning????"

[Kakarot]

I focus on the ball, "take dead aim"

that way, nothing else creeps into my mind, lol