As well, Tiger has superior feel in his hands and great eye focus necessary for judging distances of shots. And once he makes that controlled high-speed swing and hits the ball, his tee shots frequently finish in the middle of the fairway and his approach shots near—or in—the hole.
So does Dr. Earl taught Tiger the fundamentals of logical course management; namely, how to get the ball around the course without making unforced mental errors. He also taught Tiger how to be mentally tough—to play his own game and stay on his preplanned success path, instead of letting himself be distracted by the shots, scores, or gamesmanship of other golfers. Tida taught Tiger to be mentally patient and tenacious on the golf course and, most of all, to concentrate intently.
When interviewing Tida on behalf of John Andrisani, even I was surprised to hear that she started taking Tiger to a Buddhist temple when he was young so that he could learn how to enhance his mind-control skills through deep meditation. For starters, you will learn to make the mental side of golf a priority. You will also learn the art of making the mind-body-spirit connection. Additionally, you will learn how to play to your potential, by applying the thinking process to your setup, swing, and shot-making game.
This book will show you how to lower your scores by using your head on the golf course. In fact, xv 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 FOREWORD Andrisani even includes mental buzz phrases to help you solve some classic swing and shot-making problems.
Good luck in your journey, which will involve delving into your mind and exploring the true spirit of the game of golf—mental frontiers that all great golfers throughout history have learned to tap into.
Andrews in Scotland, thousands of instructional books have been written, mostly by professional teachers and tour players but occasionally by amateurs, too—most notably, Bobby Jones.
All but a few of these texts deal only with the physical side of golf: how to set up correctly to the ball, employ a smooth, technically sound backswing, and swing down powerfully through impact into a full finish position. Only a small percentage of golfers play to single-figure handicaps, and fewer still shoot par scores on a regular basis. In answering this question, I think it most appropriate to quote Arnold Haultain, one of the forefathers of mind golf and author of the book The Mystery of Golf, first published in , then reprinted two years later because of its popularity, then once again in for the same reason.
To play golf well a man must play like a machine; but like a machine in which the mentalmotor must be perfect as the muscular mechanism. Precise coordination of hand and eye is necessary; this coordination is directed by nerve currents cerebral and cerebro-spinal conveyed to the muscles.
Unless the supreme and regulatory centers of intelligence, wherein lie embedded the cells from which orders for muscular movement derive, are first, in thorough working order, and, second, intent upon the business at hand, the order conveyed through the delicate muscular fibers of the fingers, hands, wrists, legs, and arms will be ineffectual, and the resulting stroke inaccurate.
Still, because he introduced golfers to the mind-body connection relative to the swing and encouraged others to explore the psychological aspects of golf, his book remains a classic. One such mind explorer was Michael Murphy, whose best-selling book Golf in the Kingdom examines the spiritual side of golf.
Yet, it too offers few specific ways for golfers to improve. Bee Epstein-Shepherd. Miller, in similar fashion, was able to get an elderly man to hit the ball more powerfully and accurately by having him forget about obsessing about the technical points of the swing and instead concentrating on making the swinging club create a loud swish sound in the hitting area.
Epstein-Shepherd, by presenting keys to keen shotmaking visualization and confidence and concentration enhancement, helps golfers appreciate the mental side of golf as a vital link to lasting good play. Still, her intelligent instruction falls short when it comes to relating the mind to the total scope of the game. In the history of golf, there has never been a better swinger and shotmaker than Tiger Woods. Like the forming of a diamond, it took time to develop.
Like the making of a fine wine, it relied on the care of others. As good as Tiger is, he realizes what sports psychologist Dr. However, whereas other parents are happy to see their son or daughter hit solid shots, Earl and Tida Woods were not satisfied and encouraged Tiger to work beyond the shot.
Earl taught Tiger to think about various shot-making options before swinging— the essence of good course management—when taking him out for playing lessons. He also taught him to become mentally tough by forcing him to withstand distractions. Tida taught Tiger the importance of patience, tenacity, and perseverance, both in life and on the golf course, plus the value of meditation.
The secret, as she explained, was not to make the same mistake twice and channel any anger into positive energy to make future shots better. Duran taught Tiger from the age of five until ten. At that point, Anselmo took over and taught Tiger until he was eighteen.
Together, these two teachers helped Tiger hone a top-notch setup, swing, and shot-making game by learning to make mind-body connections and shoot lower scores by using his head to play high-percentage shots.
Furthermore, my information is based on my own expertise as a former golf instructor and senior instruction editor at Golf magazine. Additionally, I rely on information from other top golf instructors, sports psychologists, and respected golf journalists.
Enjoy the mind trip. In turn, these mind coaches pass along their secrets to golfers through such vehicles as the Golf Channel and Golf magazine. Consequently, more and more country club players are beginning to realize the vital role the mind plays in promoting a technically sound golf swing, powerfully hit drives, strategically placed approach shots, pinpoint pitches, accurate chips, on-target bunker shots, and on-line putts.
Bob Rotella, work regularly with big-name pros and prove day in and day out that golf is 99 percent mental. What goes on between the ears during an eighteen-hole round has a big influence on how we deal with course situations and direct the golf ball toward the hole.
Mind control is the only true shortcut to playing to your potential. Additionally, Tiger was positively influenced by the examples of golfing legends who during their heyday used their minds to make their bodies swing the club correctly and hit excellent golf shots consistently.
Earl was smart to leave Tiger strapped in his high chair rather than letting him hold a golf club right away and develop bad swing habits because he did not have a clue about how to swing. Tiger seemingly felt each and every action via visual transmission—especially the club-to-ball hit as he looked down from his perched position.
This kind of training, which centered on the student mentally rehearsing the physical actions involved in the swing, is very similar to what Olympic sharpshooters do before a competition.
They work on dry-run shooting, making believe they are holding a gun, looking through a scope, getting the target in the crosshairs, and finally pulling the trigger. That way, when it actually comes time to hold the rifle and shoot at a target during competition, they feel more confident and usually perform 11 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 THINK LIKE TIGER the physical action to near perfection. Which is exactly what Tiger did, when, at ten months old, he jumped down from his high chair and started swinging like his father.
Still, you can have the best swinging action in the world, but if your body and club are not aligned correctly at address and you fail to visualize a good shot in your mind before you swing, the ball is far less likely to fly toward its intended target.
Throughout his amateur career and now, as a pro, he takes great care when preparing to play a shot. When first standing behind the ball, then jockeying his feet and body into the correct setup position, then next setting the club down on the grass behind the ball, he stares at the target intently.
A good setup means a square setup, and you arrive in this basic starting position by setting the clubface down perpendicular to the ball and target and setting your body parallel to an imaginary target line. The target line extends from the ball to the target. The setup, to a large degree, determines the type of swing you make.
Eyeing the target takes your mind off swinging at the ball and allows you to concentrate on swinging the club through it. Tiger was fortunate to be the son of low-handicap player who paid such close attention to the setup. He also showed Tiger how to position the hands parallel to each other with the back of the left hand square to the clubface , flex the knees a little, bend forward slightly from the waist, and relax the arms.
Additionally, he showed Tiger the basic movements of the swing, most notably the parallel position of the backswing clubshaft parallel to the target line at the top , and a balanced finish position. Whenever possible, Earl used mental imagery to help convey the most important physical elements of the swing. For example, when showing Tiger how the shoulders and hips should turn clockwise on the backswing then counterclockwise on the downswing, he told him to imagine a door opening and closing.
This one-on-one instruction allowed Tiger to store a wealth of golf knowledge in his brain. According to his past and present coaches, he still draws on that data bank today, proving that the basics of the setup and swing are evergreen. Up until the time Tiger turned four, his father covered a lot of ground as his sole teacher. In addition to teaching Tiger the basics of the preshot routine, namely eyeing the target, the elements of the setup, and the most important points of the swing, Earl instructed him on the total game, all the time making a mental connection.
For example, when teaching Tiger how to pitch the ball, he stressed the importance of concentrating on the conditions of lie, pin position, firmness of the green, wind, and the position of hazards, to help him determine whether to hit a high, floating pitch shot or a low, knockdown pitch.
He also wanted Tiger to note mentally how far he hit the ball in the air with different-length, different-speed swings. When chipping, Tiger was taught to focus on a landing spot on the edge of the green and hone in on the ball and target to get a feel for distance.
When hitting bunker shots, Earl instructed Tiger to zero in on a spot about three inches behind the ball and concentrate on contacting that spot with the club at impact.
When putting, Earl wanted Tiger to imagine the ball falling into the hole before he employed a stroke. As soon as Tiger first hit the links of the Navy Golf Course at age two, his father explained to him that swinging well and hitting solid shots was one thing and scoring was another.
To score well, you have to play with your head and not your heart. Being a good golfer himself, Earl enlightened Tiger, spelling out the differences between these strategies. A green-light situation means the percentages are in your favor and you can go on the attack, knowing the risk is worth the reward. A yellow-light situation means just what it means on the road: Proceed with caution. A red-light situation simply calls for you to stop what you are doing, or intending to do, and regroup.
Put the three-wood back in your bag, take out an iron, then hit a layup shot short of the water. You can always pitch the ball close and make the putt for a hard-earned par. In educating Tiger, Earl taught him to start thinking about his next shot practically the split second he hit the ball. However, to be superconfident, like Tiger, you have to know how to manage your golf game in other course situations. This is especially true if the hole is very narrow. Tiger and other intelligent players also often play a leftto-right fade or right-to-left draw off the tee.
They hit either of these type shots to work the ball away from lurking hazards and back to the center of the fairway or to effectively shorten the hole by turning the ball around the corner of the dogleg.
Players who choose to draw the ball smartly tee up on the left side of the tee box and hit away from trouble, while those who prefer to hit a fade tee up on the right side.
On par-three holes, you must also think before you act, as Tiger does. Before you pick a club, be sure to calculate the correct yardage to the hole, and determine the strength and direction of the wind. Pros and low-handicap golfers play a stronger club for every ten miles per hour of headwind i. Experienced players also take into consideration any slopes that could affect the way the ball bounces and rolls once it lands.
The last thing you want to happen is to hit a seven iron, say one hundred and fifty yards, and have the ball hit a downhill slope in front of the hole, then bounce over the green. Good course managers also realize the importance of 17 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 THINK LIKE TIGER not being influenced by the clubs used by fellow medal-play competitors, match-play opponents, or playing partners in a weekend Nassau game.
Many high-handicap players make the mistake of using a medium iron on a relatively long par-three hole just because another player in their foursome did, when they know a long iron or a utility wood is the right play.
Choose the club that will allow you to reach the hole, while making a smooth swing. Taking less club, for fear of embarrassment, or due to a big ego, is anything but a smart strategy. In hitting any length approach shot, you should also use your head. Tiger is so savvy that he figures out what side of the green is best to miss on should the shot not come off, and this affects the type of shot he initially hits.
If not, he can still save par with a chip and a putt. When playing a short- to medium-length putt that breaks only slightly, concentrate on making a firmer stroke, so in essence you take the break out, and bang the ball into an imaginary miniature target in the back of the cup.
You should also imagine a two-foot circle around the hole, then lag the ball up into your round target area to ensure a two putt, rather than charge the cup and risk three putting. This mental trick, taught to Tiger by his father, will help alleviate anxiety when you are competing and help you manage your game better in a pressurefilled match. On breaking putts, an intelligent strategy is to point the logo, printed on the ball, in the direction you want the ball to first start rolling, before it curves or breaks.
Making this part of your putting routine will make you more confident about holing out. Then, a moment later, he would correct Tiger on the spot while the course error was fresh in his mind. It was this type of early training that helped Tiger minimize mental errors on the golf course, such as not taking enough time to concentrate 19 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 THINK LIKE TIGER and read a lie properly, and selecting the wrong club as a result.
These type of golfers representing the ugly side of golf believe that gamesmanship is part of the game and like to win at all costs. Therefore, you must be prepared. He told Tiger not to hit the ball in the water as Tiger was readying himself to swing. He dropped a bag of clubs down on the ground when Tiger was entering the impact zone. Earl also had Tiger compete against older players to try to intimidate him, and start over if he missed one of four practice putts from around the hole.
This type of boot-camp training by the former Green Beret lieutenant colonel made Tiger concentrate so intently that by age four nothing bothered him. Therefore, he seemed the perfect candidate to teach Tiger more advanced aspects of the swing and accelerate the learning process that was already moving at record pace. Duran encouraged Tiger to play Heartwell, knowing that Tiger would shoot low scores on this short, par-three golf course and build confidence.
On the longer courses, Duran gave each hole a TigerPar, for example, changing a long par-four hole into a par six, to further help Tiger play more confidently.
During their rounds together, Duran advised Tiger to concentrate on playing one shot at a time and not worry about any previous bad shots or a difficult shot he would inevitably have to play later in the round. He also taught him to use his brain when selecting a club—for example, to play a stronger golf club when hitting an approach shot or tee shot on a par three to an elevated green, and one less club when playing to a green below sea level.
However, under Duran, Tiger grew even stronger mentally, and this skill allowed him to become a better swinger and scorer. Anselmo taught Tiger there for about a year. He then changed bases, moving to Meadowlark Golf Course in Huntington Beach, California, where he continued instructing the talented youngster.
Like Duran, Anselmo had a superb reputation as an instructor, particularly of junior golfers. Reflecting on being asked to help Tiger improve, Anselmo admits to feeling a little like a house painter being asked to redo the ceiling frescoes of the Sistine Chapel or a casual hiker being asked to lead a Mount Everest expedition.
It was not long before Anselmo began relying on instructional phrases that were very much like Yogi Berraisms, because they made Tiger think deeply. So he and Tiger would play together at Meadowlark or the nearby Navy Golf Course, at which time Tiger would be taught the importance of staying on an even keel no matter how he played. Anselmo told Tiger that it was best not to overreact to a bad shot or get superexcited about a good shot—the reason being that drastic emotional swings negatively affect your concentration and thus hinder the way you will play your upcoming shot.
If you overreact to a bad shot and hold on to that mental baggage, chances are you will make a faulty swing and hit a bad shot next. If you overreact to a good shot, the tendency is to become lackadaisical on the next shot and hit the ball off-line.
To get Tiger out of the habit of swinging on a flat plane, as if he were in a giant teacup, and to swing on a more upright arc, he told Tiger to imagine swinging in a giant water glass. To get Tiger to swing powerfully through impact in an uninhibited fashion, he instructed Tiger to look through the ball, from back to front, and down the target line rather than down at the ball.
To help Tiger take his mind off a water hazard fronting the green when playing short iron shots, he instructed him to imagine a colorful flag blowing at the very top of the flagstick and aim for it.
To make sure Tiger got the ball to the hole on slow greens or on uphill putts, he told him to pretend he was hitting to a second hole a few feet behind the real one. Anselmo also helped Tiger improve his setup and swing by showing him old photographs of Sam Snead. Anselmo believes Snead to be the all-time best swinger technically.
This kind of unique training helped Tiger evolve more quickly into a superswinger and thus become more confident. Although Anselmo was pro-Snead, he also encouraged Tiger to study former great players who used their imaginations to enhance their games—legends such as Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, and Seve Ballesteros.
Studying the thinking processes of legendary pros was part of the learning process. Moreover, this education reinforced what Tiger had learned about the relationship between the mind and golf and also taught him new ways to use his head on the 25 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 THINK LIKE TIGER course. These same words of wisdom, when applied to your own game will help you improve at an accelerated rate. Concentrate on only one swing thought, while keeping another in reserve, to help you feel more mentally secure.
Recall a good shot played previously from a similar lie or similar pressure situation to make you more relaxed and confident. Stay on an even keel mentally throughout the round, no matter whether you score birdie, par, or bogey on a particular hole. After a car crash in caused him to be bedridden, he retreated into a shell and figured out a way to hit a supercontrolled power fade shot instead of a hook that plagued him.
One of his secrets was imagining a pane of glass, inclining upward from the ball through the shoulders, and keeping the arms and club below the glass in all stages of the backswing. This mental image allowed him to swing on not quite so flat a plane and made it easier for him to hit a left-to-right controlled shot. Hogan also depended on the feel in his hands to help him arrive at impact with the clubface slightly open at impact, an important technical link to hitting the fade; however, the way he enhanced his feel proves this eccentric character was always thinking.
Hogan discovered that the great pianists drink ginger ale before a performance. Because of its effects on the kidneys, the ginger in the ale apparently prevents the hands from feeling fat and puffy. Hogan claimed that because this favorite drink of his allowed him to have more feel in his fingers, he was able to work the clubface into a slightly open impact position more easily and to hit controlled fade shots consistently.
From the time of his crash onward, Hogan became such a deep thinker on the course and concentrated so hard that he was oblivious to what scores his fellow players were shooting. Hogan, nicknamed the Iceman and the Hawk due to his quiet on-course demeanor and intense stare, never took his eyes off the fairway on tee shots and the flagstick on approach shots.
Golf experts have accused Tiger of being cold and Hoganlike when competing in a major championship. All of which means you are going to generate maximum club-head speed on drives. So it was especially important for Nicklaus to drive the ball in the fairway.
But it was even more vital, on approach shots, that he pick the right club and swing at the precise speed to propel the ball to an area of the green that was level or else the ball was likely to roll off the sloping surface. Because of this strict shot-making criterion, Nicklaus was forced to get the yardage exactly right, focus hard on the target, concentrate on making sure his body and the club were aligned correctly, and take the time to patiently visualize a perfectly played shot.
When working on the book Natural Golf with Ballesteros, I had the opportunity to play with him and witness for myself the value of intense mental focus. I could see just by the way he focused his eyes on the ball first, then the target second, that his imagination was running wild. Watching him, I just knew that he was going to hit a solid, creative shot and the ball was going to land close to the hole.
In conversations with this great champion, I also gained insight into the inner workings of his golfing brain. Ballesteros explained to me that he played in a bubble of intense concentration, a place where he tempered his will, gathered his thoughts, and planned strategies and shots with no outside interference.
During our talks, Ballesteros admitted entering the bubble as early as three weeks prior to the start of a major. Like clockwork, a cloud came over him and grew even denser as the championship dates grew closer.
When in this state of mind, he became so busy shoring himself up mentally to play winning golf that he told me people seemed to be talking to him through a pane of glass. By the time the tournament commenced, he was so deeply immersed in his game plan and play that he was virtually oblivious to outside sights and sounds. He was in such a solitary world that he often did not hear the gallery applauding or the clubs of his playing partners rattling when the caddy moved the bag holding them.
According to Seve, as he is still known to golfers around the world, since he was a boy learning the game with one club, a three iron, he felt most comfortable in this bubble. In fact, one-club practice is what taught him to concentrate so intently that he entered the bubble. One-club practice is also what taught him to use his imagination while in the bubble state and learn to hit a variety of shots by doing such things as opening or closing the clubface, gripping the club more firmly or lightly, and choking up or down on the club.
As good a short-game player as Ballesteros is, he told me he could be better had he learned with a seven-iron instead of a three iron. Ballesteros explained to me that the seven iron is the ideal club for ingraining good technique and a fine sense of touch. This is one chief reason why Tiger is so superconfident and imaginative when playing short pitch-and-chip shots from around the green.
Developing this skill obviously had something to do with Anselmo, when you consider that during the time he taught Tiger, Tiger won numerous championships. Junior Amateur. Jay Brunza. Tida worked quietly behind the scenes with her son, while Brunza kept tabs on what Anselmo was teaching, so that he could help Tiger use his mental skills to understand a specific swing movement and concentrate on grooving it.
Each one of these low-profile individuals deserves credit for helping Tiger learn to enter the zone, a magical place where he concentrates one-pointedly. Oh, I knew Tiger was blessed with talent, through good genes. You now know as much as I do about all that previous history. Join me in unraveling the true mystery of how Tiger heightened his mental awareness, toned his body into tip-top shape, and took his game to such a sophisticated level that his superior play seems spiritual in nature, and losing never enters his mental equation.
The other 10 percent is mental. Remember: Earl is a former Green Beret with a never-say-die attitude, so he was not going to let anything stand in his way. Being an action man, however, Earl took things into his own hands when it came to helping Tiger evolve into a human golfing machine. I did some sports psychology with athletes at the U.
I was suddenly curious, very curious indeed. Questions flashed through my brain. What methods did Brunza use to induce midshipmen to focus? Did Brunza use the same techniques on Tiger? At the time the article in USA Weekend was published, I was working at Golf magazine, and my job as senior editor of instruction was to conjure up ideas for articles that would help golfer-readers improve their game.
Peper poohpoohed the idea, however, even though Tiger had just become both the medalist low scorer in the qualifying round and match-play winner of the U.
He believed there was too little to go on. Besides, he felt strongly that sports psychologists all say the same things and use a lot more words than they have to. Consequently, as far as investigating my hunch further was concerned, I was stopped in my tracks. Still, I thought that in my spare time I would pursue what I considered a lead.
I got sidetracked, however, writing other articles and golf instructional books. In this excellently written book, the author, Tim Rosaforte, comes right out and says what I had sensed five years earlier: Dr.
Jay Brunza had hypnotized Tiger. Questions began popping into my head. Even though I knew Rosaforte as an excellent writer with an eye for news, were the statements and colorful anecdotes about hypnosis mentioned in his book true?
And, if so, was it fair for Tiger to coast mentally while other tour pros were forced to deal with demons and play through fear and anxiety? Perplexed, I wanted to get to the truth; however, I realized that getting to the bottom of this story would not be easy, especially since Earl Woods never made any mention of hypnosis in his book Training a Tiger that also came out in I decided to dismiss the idea of a cover-up, concluding that the reason for secrecy had to do simply with the confidentiality factor that encompasses all doctor39 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 THINK LIKE TIGER patient relationships.
Tiger seemed to be floating, I said. He was in such a rhythm that nothing could stop him. Next, I flashed back to the British Open thinking that I had never seen any player look like Tiger, so out of it but so in the game. If you ever watch the video of that championship, particularly the footage of the last day, as I went back and did, you will not believe what you see.
Once having broken the silence, Brunza talked about all the help he had given Tiger and seemed to be upset about being let go suddenly. Junior Amateur and the and U. In total, Brunza caddied for Tiger during thirtynine matches. Together, they won thirty-three.
Regardless of their successful partnership, Brunza told me that during the U. Tiger felt Brunza was more useful as a mental coach, helping him focus. Ironically, Tiger won the U. Amateur that year, but Brunza was let go. But instead I chose to ask Brunza straight out if he had ever hypnotized Tiger.
He said he would get back to me. During the several-month hiatus, between the time I telephoned Brunza and the time he telephoned me, I decided to find out more about hypnosis. Let me share with you the consensus of what I learned from reading books, consulting with experts, and talking to golf pros familiar with the benefits of hypnosis just in case you, like so many 41 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 THINK LIKE TIGER laymen, believe hypnosis to be a voodoolike vehicle for turning people into chickens and pigs and having them make jerks of themselves on stage.
The actual process of hypnosis involves putting a person into a trancelike state and then suggesting how he or she can make positive changes. Jay Brunza or any other trained hypnotist cannot hypnotize someone against his or her will. When being hypnotized, an individual is asked to close his eyes and focus on his body while breathing slowly.
Having said that, when a person becomes hypnotized he is not out of it. He enters a heightened state of awareness that allows him to let go totally, both physically and mentally. Hypnosis is a science, and one you can teach yourself, as I learned from Dr. Jay Brunza when he telephoned me back. You can click yourself back into a hypnotic state, and put into action the positive suggestions made previously by a hypnotist, just by repeating a code word, phrase, number, physical gesture, or recalling an image that was given to 43 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 THINK LIKE TIGER you by the hypnotist.
Brunza did not reveal any code to me. Still, Mike Austin, renowned teaching pro and Guinness Book of World Records holder for the longest drive ever yards , believes Tiger uses one.
When out on the course, following his hypnotic session with Brunza, Oakes said he recalled the white carpet image or indicator Brunza had given him. No fear of hitting the ball off line entered my mind and, as a result, I played great golf. To sink into a trance, simply do the following: 1. Breathe slowly. Let your body relax more with each breath, until it goes limp. Fran Pirozzolo, who is the mind manager of the New York Yankees baseball team and former mentor to heavyweight boxing champion Evander Holyfield.
No wonder Nike pays this guy millions. Not only did Tiger catch him and force a playoff, but he also won that playoff after looking like he was dead a couple of times. Tiger simply dug down deep, shut out all negative thoughts, stayed superpositive, and pulled out the win. When all the fat is boiled off, though, I do not believe, as I once did, that hypnosis is an elixir. One major reason why hypnotism has gotten such a bad rap is that golfers are uninformed.
I guess golfers who have been hypnotized feel that the public will get the wrong idea. Physical fitness is very important to Tiger and should be a priority of yours, because a good body makes for a good mind and spirit.
All these professionals have since learned that a healthful diet and exercise pro48 M I N D , B O D Y, A N D S P I R I T gram are vital links to feeling better about oneself and becoming more confident, swinging the club more fluidly, hitting more solid shots, and thinking more clearly on the course—things Tiger learned long ago.
Teacher John Anselmo made sure of that. Player, a South African professional small in stature, competed at the highest level with the likes of Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. Nicklaus was simply big and strong. He knew then what he knows now: A healthy body and mind developed through regular exercise get the heart pumping and clear out the cobwebs from the brain. To stay healthy, Player stuck to a diet of fish, chicken, pasta, vegetables, and whole-wheat bread and snacked on dried fruits, bananas, nuts, and raisins.
He enhanced his mind by crossing his legs in the classic yoga position and breathing slowly and deeply until he put himself into a relaxed meditative state. As Player discovered, and you will too, yoga is a form of meditation that unites the body, mind, and spirit.
So regular practice will help you think more clearly on the course and thus reduce mental errors that are all-too-familiar score wreckers. A favorite yoga exercise of mine and among practitioners such as Player is the Butterfly Pose. This exercise is used to stretch the body and increase mental energy and can be employed by taking the following steps: STEP 1 : Sit down, ideally on a mat, then bring the soles of your feet together.
STEP 2 : Clasp your feet with your hands and bring them as close to your body as is comfortably possible. STEP 3 : Open your chest by pushing your shoulder blades together. STEP 4 : Drop your head toward your feet, ideally enough to rest it on your hands. STEP 5 : Hold the position for a full thirty seconds as you inhale and exhale. Again, to get the full benefit of this exercise, let your belly expand as you inhale and bring your navel toward your spine as you exhale.
In this psychic shell, picture the ideal golf swing, then carry this image with you to the golf course. His favorite physical exercise was gripping the metal bar of a ten-pound dumbbell like a golf club, then making a swing motion. This exercise strengthens the muscles of the hands, arms, and shoulders that are all so vital to good golf. Player was such a fanatic that he also squeezed a tennis ball when traveling by jet to golf tournaments and did fingertip pushups in his hotel room once he arrived in the area where a competition was being held.
Whatever exercise Player did, he concentrated hard on moving slowly and methodically, knowing from experience that this disciplined routine encouraged him to take the same care when setting up to the ball and preparing to swing. To shorten a long story, Player went on to become one of the all-time great golfers, recognized most for being one of only five men to win all four major championships.
Even later on, in the s, when Greg Norman, Seve Ballesteros, and Nick Faldo proved the dynamic relationship between staying physically fit and being able to clearly focus on the golf course—and win major championships— the fitness bug failed to catch on among tour players. This made no difference to the aforesaid trio.
They had discovered one of the secrets to playing well and were laughing all the way to the bank, winning seventeen major championships among them. The main physical benefit of this exercise is that it helps you strengthen and tighten the abdomen. That can be a huge advantage, particularly to older players who have, for one reason or another, developed a beer belly that forces them to swing the club on an outside-inside path instead of an inside-inside one.
The other benefit of the medicine ball exercise is developing a strong sense of mental focus. Norman told me that using his torso rather than his hands and arms to control the motion forced him to concentrate more intently on and off the golf course.
Ballesteros loved to ride a bicycle for miles through the Spanish countryside, because it gave him a good workout 53 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 THINK LIKE TIGER and allowed him to escape into a peaceful world of mental solitude.
To match the most ideal swing positions consistently and hit the ball powerfully, you must be physically fit. Like Faldo, Tiger works hard to stay fit. He always left a session feeling energized both physically and mentally, then took that supercharged body-mind attitude to the links. More Books by John Andrisani. The Plane Truth for Golfers.
The Tiger Woods Way. The Nicklaus Way. Tiger's New Swing. Hogan on the Green. MATT: Uh pausing to consider this but maybe more like a tiger Skip to content.
Think Like Tiger. Think Like a Tiger. Author : Clemson University. The Harlequin. Author : Laurell K. Engaging Ethnographic Peace Research. Think Like a Champion.
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