Mental tricks can greatly improve anyone’s game as everyone knows. It’s easy to defeat oneself if one does not prepare mentally. Recently I came across this observation that is well worth noting.

It was posted on http://miramichileader.canadaeast.com/article/326791

“You want to be a good golfer. So do you have an arena in which you can win and another where you can test your skills? There are club matches, one-day invitations, regional, provincial and national events. Are you participating at a level in which you can win? If the answer is no you need to gear back and enhance your resume before moving forward.

On the other hand, some people play comfortably with only two or three buddies year after year never testing their abilities at a higher level. They are pulling a Michelle Wie in reverse. If this describes your golf activity you could learn more from a bit of competition than from a week of hitting balls on the range. Occasional higher competition will stretch your abilities and keep you moving steadily forward.”

Michelle Wie never won on the LPGA Tour and was trying to break into the men’s tour. The point of enacting realistic goals is pivotal in moving forward. It’s good to test yourself against the competition, but it’s equally important to gain seasoning before you move up in class.

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Hopefully, this will make you chuckle a bit (even if you have heard it before):

The caddy smirked, "Even if you jumped in I think don't you'd have anything to worry about. There's no way you could keep your head down that long."

Thanks for reading!

The way you speak and your inner dialog will have a direct effect on your golf game. If you say, "I hope I'll make this putt" or "I hope my golf game improves" nothing is going to change. Change comes from doing. You got to get out there and practice.    You've heard it said, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall? The answer lies in practice, practice, and practice."

Jack Nicklaus said, "Confidence is the golfer's greatest weapon." Meg Mallon, Women's Open champion said: "It's confidence, confidence, confidence, confidence."

One can not succeed at being pretty good or the very best unless they practice. Lee Trevino said if you practice enough and get tremendous amount of confidence, and that's where confidence comes from.  

A good game comes from practice.  If you practice, you have confidence. You have confidence because you've practiced.  Not only will you withstand pressure situations; you'll have a greater perspective on the game.

"Golf is 90% Mental" - Jack Nicklaus
Some 20-years ago, an obscure doctoral study elaborated on the characteristics of good vs. champion golfers.

These are the 8 characteristics of champion golfers:
1. Focus and Concentration.
2. Abstract thinking.
3. Emotional Stability.
4. Dominance.
5. Tough-mindedness.
6. Confidence.
7. Self-sufficient.
8. Balanced state (not tense but not completely relaxed either).

Now, no one has a handle on all these characteristics, but we can work on many of them. For instance, no one can make you feel inferior with your consent; how you see yourself is the way you'll wind up.

The aim is self-development. Each time you challenge and gain traction you'll diminish the fear a little bit. You'll never eradicate the fear of losing. I think it's part of the way we're put together as humans; a healthy "pay attention counselor" signpost along the way. The point is, by challenging our fear we diminish it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than challenging it. The fearful get caught by lost opportunities as often as the bold gain new opportunities.

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