Bending Golf Balls with Your Mind

I've been asked to write a series of articles for Want Better Golf. It's a great blog that all golfers should consider following. The article below is the first for Want Better Golf.


Bending Golf Balls with Your Mind

Have you ever seen a magician bend a spoon with nothing more than the power of his mind? Incredible, wasn’t it?

Actually, no, it wasn’t incredible at all. It was likely just a trick, not magic. But do you know that you can and do accomplish the very same feat with your golf ball! You bend your shots left and right, simply with the power of your mind! And that’s far more magical than the spoon trick.

Yes, I’m treading into the great unknown. I’m exploring the power of the mind. Let me share just one study with you.

This study has been repeated hundreds of times, by many different researchers, using thousands of study volunteers, in many different countries, over many different decades. (And by the way, yes, this is just the tip of the iceberg in this field of research!) This will get technical for just a moment, but trust me; we’ll get back to golf soon!

So picture this. A volunteer is left alone in a small room. There’s a chair in which she’s seated, a small table in front of her, and a computer monitor on the table. The computer monitor is hooked up to a computer in another room. The computer is programmed with a random number generator. Every few seconds a “1” or a “0” will appear on the screen. By definition, because it’s a RANDOM number generator, there will be roughly an equal number of 1’s and 0’s.

The volunteer is then asked to pick a number, either 1 or 0, and to then focus her mind, her thoughts, on that number. Are you ready for the punch line?

If the volunteer focuses on 1, the RANDOM number generator generates more 1’s. If she focuses on 0’s, more 0’s appear. Over and over and over again, this same result appears.

The study volunteers affect the RANDOM number generator, with nothing more than their minds! Kind of makes you think – excuse the pun – doesn’t it. I wonder if my mind affects my golf shots in a similar way.

The answer, of course, is YES!

Have you ever stood on the tee and focused on the danger. You tee up your ball, take your stance, fully aligned right down the middle. Your physical body is set up perfectly. But then you steal a glance at the water along the right. Oh, and there’s all those deep sand bunkers down the left. You think, just for a split second, ‘well, sand is better than water!’ You continue the thought, ‘no water.’ And you swing....

And you watch helplessly as your ball slices or draws directly for the water.

We’ll continue on this subject in the near future. Watch for more posts!

For now though, whether you’re actively playing or in your offseason, maybe think about your thought patterns as you play a typical round. What do you think about? Be honest with yourself. You might be surprised.

Make it a great day! For yes, you do have the power to do so!