There's more to scoring well than good ball striking. Ensure your always at your best with some quick tips from golf psychologist Dr Kitrina Douglas.


There's more to scoring well than good ball striking. Ensure your always at your best with some quick tips from golf psychologist Dr Kitrina Douglas.

 

Tip One - Stick to your game plan

Many golfers ruin their scorecards because of poor shot choices during the round. Poor decisions, and shot choices in turn, are often the result of having no game plan, and therefore when faced with a decision where the outcome isn’t certain, a golfer will often talk themselves into thinking, ‘perhaps, this time, it will come off.’ Next year, decide to have a game plan before each round, then stick to it!

 

Tip Two - Why bother?

Improving your play can be a hugely satisfying endeavour and is the type of incentive that many golfers find motivating. However, not achieving your goals in the past can be a disincentive. Therefore, at the beginning of the season don’t just have as a goal lowering your handicap, look at the different parts of your game that would have to improve for you to lower your handicap and have goals for each of these areas individually.

 

Tip Three- Listen To Your Body

Try to become more aware of the pace that you walk, how quickly or slowly you talk and the pace of your breathing, and then try to become more aware of when and where your walking, talking and breathing change, either becoming quicker or slower.