Focus Your Thoughts, Not Simply Your Eyes

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 second for Want Better Golf.

Focus Your Thoughts, Not Simply Your Eyes

We’ve all heard for years, ‘focus on a very specific target’ for each golf shot. The middle of the fairway isn’t good enough. Teaching professionals tell us to select a particular blade of grass, or a target line delineated by a specific tree trunk in the distance, or some other extremely narrow landmark!

Time and time again, we focus our eyes on some bizarrely narrow target and swing away. And time and time again, our ball slices right – for all you right-handed players – into the woods, or hooks left, into the rough. What’s gone wrong?

In an article last week we learned how our thoughts actually shape our golf shots. While the magician uses trickery to bend a spoon, every golfer uses his/her mind to shape each shot! This truly is magic!

The problem lies in communication, or, as is mentioned in the epic film Cool Hand Luke, ‘a failure to communicate!’

It’s not enough to focus our EYES on that very specific, very particular target. We must also focus our thoughts on that very same target! Teaching professionals say focus, and so we focus, with our eyes. That’s not enough. We must also focus our thoughts!

Let’s illustrate with another example. For me, this is a painful example, borrowed from many rounds of golf I’ve played on my home course. The front nine includes a fair share of challenges, but for the most part I generally find myself in good position off the tee and make my way around nicely (for me). I then move on to holes 10 and 11, and the fun begins.

Ten is a long, straight par 5 with OB left and a massive forest to the right. Try as I might, I’ve found it very difficult to focus my thoughts on this hole. I can focus my eyes very specifically on a target in the right-middle portion of the fairway. But my thoughts always seem to include ‘OB’. And often, my ball hooks dead left, out of bounds.

Eventually I limp on to the 11th. And yes, you guessed it, OB right and a world of hurt – trees skirted by sand bunkers and punishing rough – up the left on this mostly straight, long, uphill par 4. Once again I focus my eyes on my target, and try as I might, quite often, once again ‘OB’ creeps into my thoughts. I pull the trigger and watch helplessly as my ball slices into the great beyond, OB.

That’s back to back holes, with a hook left OB on 10 and a slice right OB on 11! Repeatedly! In the middle of an otherwise great round of golf!

It’s not mechanics. It’s my thought patterns. Once again, I’m bending the ball with my thoughts.

We’ll continue to explore this topic in future articles and we’ll suggest some off-course exercises to help. This stuff isn’t easy. Believe me, I know!

For now, just be honest with yourself, and evaluate how well you focus both your eyes and your thoughts on your intended target.

And of course, make it a great day! For yes, you do have the power to do so!