Can You Really Have A Mistake-Free Round of #Golf?

Navigating a golf course using the five-and-a-half inch space between your ears is quite a task, even for professional golfers. Golf is a game of recovery. Can this game be played mistake-free?

Golf for Beginners, with the help of Robert K. Winters, PhD and his new book "Mistake-Free Golf - First Aid for Your Golfing Brain" hope that, by identifying consistent mental errors, they can be corrected leading to a better state of mind and less frustration. Will you suddenly drop your handicap to +1 and score a 59 in every round? Highly unlikely but what might happen is that you will learn from your mistakes, "treat the afflictions" and move forward.

A world renowned sports psychologist, Dr. Winters offers readers a look at the negatives which plague players on the golf course, on the driving range, putting green and even in real life from lack of commitment to lack of execution.

Mike Hulbert, PGA Tour and Champions Tour professional states in the book, "My greatest mistake is to start thinking too much into the future...I just can't make the mistake of not staying in the moment." This is true for anyone, not just a golfer, in order to stay committed to any task yet it is so difficult to do!

Here are a few Tips Which Players Should Be Aware of in order to have a better round of golf:

1. Don't Replay the Past - Stay in the Moment. "This is a new moment, this is not the past. Let go of your past and focus on the shot for what it is, not for what it means to you in personal recognition."

2. Who's Watching Me? Feeling uncomfortable? Sometimes, when I get set up on the tee box to take my shot, I feel that I have an audience and "all eyes are upon me." No hurries, no worries - don't be anxious and don't worry about what others think of you. Chances are their eyes are on you but their minds are on their next shot.

Question Mark Shape Donald Trump Golf Course Aerial Balmedie Aaron Sneddon

As the great Sam Snead said, "Forget your opponents; always play against par."

3. Let go of Huge Expectations. The example that Dr. Winters offers in his book is of golfer Michelle Wie and her unrealistic perfectionism was stopping her from success. "I probably placed too much emphasis on results and score." Instead of thinking score, think about executing each shot the way you want to and let the score take care of itself!

There are many more tips in "Mistake-Free Golf", many of which you will agree with as you read the book but it is good to have this refresher on your shelf to remember that golf is a game of dealing with disappointments, fear and commitment. In some ways, this book is a manual about life.

Golf is not just an exercise; it's an adventure, a romance... a Shakespeare play in which disaster and comedy are intertwined. ~Harold Segall

If you wish to hide your character, do not play golf. ~Percey Boomer

Voice your opinion on Twitter @Golf4Beginners, on our Golf for Beginners blog and on our Facebook page.

Michelle Wie "Dancing with the Stars" at the Samsung, hybrid tip and an email asks lefty or righty?

Click here to listen.

Will Michelle Wie accept an invitation to the Samsung World Championship in October, "Dancing with the Stars" of the LPGA's finest?

The PGA Tour's John Deere Classic is also awaiting a response from Wie, B.J. Wie that is, to confirm her status in yet another PGA Tour event. In the interim, swing coach David Leadbetter is probably wishing that he hadn't mentioned Wie's possibility to "commit herself" to the women's tour.

She has the right stuff and everyone, including Golf for Beginners, wish that she would take the step from competitor to winner. We offer Wie a mental game tip from Dr. Robert K. Winters, a sports psychologist whose tip we found on the David Leadbetter website.

We follow up with a discussion of the hybrid, how efficient it is compared to long irons and how to use ball position and proper setup to maximize each shot you take with it. You may never use a three-iron again!

Finally, a beginner asks what golf clubs she should purchase, left or right-handed?

Continue sending your golf questions and comments to golfforbeginners@aol.com.

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"Shiny Tech" courtesy of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)"

This podcast is supported by Pioneer Golf and Florida Golf Travel.

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