Golf Flow

the field, winning my final match 8 & 7, the largest winning margin in the history of that tournament. If memory serves me correctly, I was approximately 42 under par through 92 holes that week. Such is the power of the flow state.
    My experience of flow is similar to what you’ll read in this book: I feel confident, relaxed, and patient. I’m aware of my surroundings but acutely focused on each shot, and my rhythm and tempo are in harmony with my mindset and mechanics. In addition to being completely engrossed in the
process of playing
, my thinking is crisp, and I get so in tune with my targets that there is none of the mental interference that often accompanies competitive golf. I see the ball in relation to my target and instantly say, “This feels like a fade” or “That’s a 5-iron.” While this is happening, somewhere in my mind I’m also effortlessly registering my environment—dampness in the air, ground angle, breeze, yardage. It is like the old adage: I see it, feel it, react, and execute the shot . . . while running at 100 percent self-belief.
    Many people think that I was a very technical golfer, but I don’t really see it that way. While I definitely worked hard at my golf swing, when I was playing my best golf my process was simple and consistent with what Gio teaches in this book. I was more into target than technique and was fully immersed in my processes. Even today when amateurs ask me for tips, I default to the mental side of the game. They may ask “How do I chip?” and I will respond, “Never mind the technique. Can you land the ball there, on that spot? Can you see it running to the hole, can you see it go in?” If they say yes, I tell them, “Go ahead and do that.” Great golf leads with the mind. Every golfer can choose to think of what to do or what not to do; if you can visualize what you want to do, then you can play well.
    While reading Gio’s book, I found myself recognizing many of the keys to my own success: the emphasis on rhythm and tempo, and the importance of studying success. For example, when I was a lad of15, I drove over to Troon for the 1973 British Open. I was there to study Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Arnold Palmer, Tony Jacklin, Johnny Miller, and Tom Weiskopf. Afterward I would come back home and play against the greats in my mind. I’d play 3 balls—one of my own, and two belonging to these acclaimed golfers. The benefits that came from these imaginative days were immeasurable. While I didn’t yet have full
self-belief
, I knew Jack Nicklaus would hit a booming drive and that Johnny Miller would flush his irons, so while pretending to be them, I developed their habit of being fearless, free, and confident.
    Gio also talks about the importance of finding a target on every shot as being essential to flow. When I was growing up in England, my whole practice ground was a single golf hole of about 150 yards, with nothing more than a green, a bunker, and a flag. In retrospect, this minimalist setup was a blessing, because it forced me to craft my mind to hit balls over a bunker, to a target, every time.
    In this book you’ll read about the strategies that many of the game’s top players use to generate flow and play their best golf. You’ll be learning the skills Gio’s clients have used to amass over 50 professional wins. You’ll be joining the legion of golfers who are all seeking that perfect state of mind known as flow.
    Sir Nick Faldo

Acknowledgments
    As William James said, “It is your friends who make your world.” This is certainly true for me, and if I have had any good fortune in life, it is that early on I stumbled upon friends who would remain my companions throughout my life. This book in many ways is largely the result of endless conversations with these autotelic personalities that took place in coffee shops, on airplanes and boats, in hotels and living rooms and libraries, and wherever else we’d collectively pick up the conversations that seem like one big, long talk around a campfire.
    Therefore, I’d first like to thank Professor Jack McDowell, Brian Kaineg, Brian Froehling, Dino Doyle, Joe Sora, Ty Underwood, Adam Sehnert, Cory Nichols, Brian Nehr, Andrew Williams, Ben Heron, Rich Shalkop, John Bartell, Kevin Thomas, Greg Pascale, Charlie Sternberg, Jeremy Moore, Walt Rivenbark, Jen and Scott Hayward, Jocelyn and Jason Nettles; the Houle family: Mary, Dave, Ben, Katie, and Joanna; the Lynn family: John, Beth, Tessa, John