ForeThought

By: Bob Skura on 07/03/09 02:03 PM

Could a couple of bottles of water make the difference between winning and losing? Padraig Harrington said it might have made the difference in his 2008 PGA win at Oakland Hills. He claimed that a slight case of dehydration during the second round affected his co-ordination so he took action that night by drinking up. In that situation water was an issue but what factor will Padraig notice and adjust on the way to his next victory? More importantly do you have the ability to notice as many subtleties as high performers do and, if not, how can you notice more?

Maria Montessori, the world-renowned childhood educator said there are three stages of learning. The first is absorbing information from all the sources around you. The second is connecting those bits of information in every combination possible to see what options they might offer. The last stage is applying the best options to the task at hand. Obviously then, the more information a person can take in the broader the base of information he/she has to work with. And high performers are good at absorbing. That’s why, for example, elite golfers see the breaks on greens so well, or the best place in the fairway to position their ball.

You can refine your ability to notice subtleties too by stepping back and watching yourself play a round of golf - or anytime for that matter. Take time to observe your emotions and how your body responds. Use all five senses and avoid judging your performance. The latter is important because judgment, good or bad, blocks your ability to absorb information.

By observing you’ll start to take in more information. You may notice physical elements, such as variations in soil conditions and their impact on shot-making. Or you may notice your internal responses more acutely and then deal with them more effectively. Ultimately, your refined observations will contribute to better performance just like it did for Padraig Harrington. 

Bob Skura is the author of the award-winning book, How Great Golfers Think – Perfecting Your Mental Game. For more information visit: www.howgreatgolfersthink.com