Why only the correct practice makes perfect

A COUPLE of years ago I was invited by the Australian PGA to do a series of talks across the country about mental skills training in golf. I arrived in Perth to begin a tour that stretched all across the land taking in Adelaide, Melbourne, Tasmania, Sydney and finally finishing up in Brisbane.

The timing of the trip could not have been better as it was during that period that the England cricket team snatched back the Ashes from the Aussies in such dramatic style after a wait that lasted nearly 20 years.

Unfortunately since then my Australian colleagues have more than had their money’s worth of bragging rights with the subsequent 5-0 drubbing last winter! Whether it’s cricket or rugby, golf or athletics, one thing that is absolutely for certain is that they LOVE their sport over in Australia.

As opposed to an element of our youngsters who ‘play’ sport moving a joystick on a computer screen, the Aussies just want to do and play and be involved. They have not fallen into the ridiculous notion that having sporting competition at an early age is bad for a child.

They recognise that life IS competition and sport is an excellent way to train yourself to deal with the inevitable setbacks and hard knocks that life deals out to us all. On the golfing front I heard a wonderful story over there about how the legendary Sir Donald Bradman used to practice his batting in his youth by bouncing a GOLF BALL off a wall and hitting it back using only a cricket STUMP!

How much easier would batting have seemed when he went out to play with a full-size bat and a much bigger ball?

Michael Jordan (pictured below playing in a Pro-Am with Tiger) often said that the rule in basketball was to ‘make practice MORE difficult than the game itself’ so that when he went out onto the basketball court he was prepared for any eventuality.

One of the primary issues that I have faced working with players of all abilities over the years is the concern that they practise so well on the range only to play so badly on the course. Well, I would go as far as to say that the majority of people who are practicing golf are completely wasting their time, because the way that we practice golf is many times easier than the game itself.

We stand on a wide-open field (range) with a bucket of balls hitting a number of five irons from a perfect lie. This bears as much resemblance to golf as ice hockey does to badminton. The golden rule I have mentioned before applies: If what you are doing is giving you what you want and you are steadily improving then you must keep doing it.

However if you have gone a certain number of years and not improved then more of the same stuff is not going to make you play better. Have a fresh look at the way you practice and ask yourself if you making practice more difficult than the game in the way that Bradman and Jordan did.

Human beings grow when they are given tasks and objectives. Standing on a range beating hundreds of balls is neither task driven nor objective.

Here are some ideas about practice that you could commit to. Be very careful though because they do work!

1) Play the WORST BALL on a regular basis over nine holes. Two balls each hole and you have to keep playing the worst shot until you get the ball into the hole
2) Practice putting to a small hole or even a tee peg. You will literally be ‘shaping your perceptions’ so that the hole will appear larger
3) Play PAR 18 around the chipping green. One ball, nine different locations. What score do you shoot?
4) Practice with a partner and have him call a shot out on the range, high draw, low punch etc. How good are you?
5) Hit 20 pitches from different locations, how many are inside six feet?

Dr Karl Morris has a range of products that have been used and tested by some of the best players in the world. Visit www.golf-brain.com for further details.