Fearless Golf: Conquering the Mental Game

difference. We have seen in Chapter 1 how fear physiologically impacts certain elements of the golf swing, how grip pressure gets too tight, and how the mind becomes less efficient at processing the complex series of stimuli that occur under pressure in a round of golf.

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    curtis strange: the power of history

    Prior mastery experiences are the most consistent and immediate source of our confidence. Evidence for the transformational power of mastery experiences shone through my research. Twice U.S. Open champion and seventeen-time Tour winner Curtis Strange spoke insightfully to me about his career and how prior experiences made him confident.

    What I enjoy more than anything else is on the last hole, hitting that shot that I felt like nobody else could hit. And you know you’re going to hit it. That is the fun of it, that before you hit it, you know you are going to pull it off. I remember where it all began: I hit a 1-iron on the last hole of the NCAA when I was a freshman at Wake Forest for us to win the tournament by a shot. I mean, I was so nervous I almost couldn’t walk. But that didn’t matter because even with nerves, I was able to hit the shot. And that shot started everything for me. Something like that is a big deal. It was the biggest thing in my life and I pulled it off. Wake had never won the NCAA with all those great teams they had, this was their chance. I hit it in there eight feet and made the putt. As it turned out, it did a tremendous amount for my confidence because it became the shot I always went back to when I was a pro. Because I was able to do that, I always felt that I was able to hit shots when I needed to.
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    Physiological changes by themselves are not the key factor in how a golfer performs. Recall that fear is inversely related to self-efficacy. The higher the self-efficacy, the less fearful a golfer will be. While the golfer with low self-efficacy has a tendency to interpret these changes as indications of fear, the highly self-efficacious golfer interprets them as signs of being excited and ready to go, often even as a sign of euphoria and mental sharpness.
    There is a misconception that golfers like Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus have found ways to prevent these things from happening. Golfers often call on me to teach them how to prevent these reactions. After all, who wants to experience these nasty things? Regrettably, there is no avoiding fear. There is, however, the ability to cope with fear and minimize its destructive characteristics. While there are ways to quiet the mind and limit the degree of these reactions (for example, there is a difference between nervousness and panic and fear), it is better to learn how to play when these feelings rear their ugly heads. Every professional golfer, including Tiger and Jack, gets these feelings in competition. Recreational golfers know the feelings as well, especially if they are deeply committed to improving their game (as they certainly should be).
    Tiger Woods acknowledges these feelings:

    Truth is we fail more than we succeed. You can’t let those failures get to you, because they will erode your confidence and chip away at your psyche. The reason I’ve avoided those little devils is twofold. First, I refuse to give in to fear, real or imagined. I’m not talking about nervousness. I’m as nervous as the next guy every time I tee it up. Every competitor has a certain degree of anxiety. It goes with the territory. No, I’m referring to being afraid—either consciously or subconsciously—of anything or anyone. In order to be successful in any endeavor, you have to adopt a no-fear attitude.

    The fearless attitude goes a long way in helping regulate how Tiger interprets those feelings, but notice that it does not eliminate the feelings. Perhaps the greatest thing I’ve been able to help golfers understand is that they should stop trying to find ways to not be nervous. Instead, they should find ways to hit great golf shots even when they are nervous. Such a fearless approach to fear proves calming. And as Curtis Strange mentioned earlier, every past moment of success positively influences the mind’s interpretation of the next pressure-filled moment. Tiger provides insight as he remarks both on the power of mastery and the importance, not of sidestepping arousal, but of hitting shots with it:

    I like the feeling of trying my hardest under pressure. It’s so intense sometimes, it’s hard to breathe. It feels like a