How to turn nerves from a negative to a positive

I was recently asked by a student: “How do I get rid of nerves on the golf course?”
This is a common reason why golfers think they do not perform to their true potential. Golfers tend to think that if they could play every shot as if it were in practice, they would see a huge improvement in their scores.

This just simply isn’t true. The first and most important thing to understand here is that this energy, which we perceive to be negative, can be harnessed into more a positive force more powerful that you can ever imagine.

Whether it be fear of poor play in front of playing partners, not playing to your own expectations or not playing well in that big competition, there are several reasons which give you that emotion we call “nerves”. You get nervous because what you are doing means a lot to you and you are greatly concerned by what might happen in the future. This in itself could be considered a positive. But we immediately think nerves are bad because we are used to associating them with fear and doubt, and then ultimately not playing to our potential.

If we can start putting a positive association with those feelings, we will no longer fear them but play better as a result.

The first thing to realize is that you will never “get rid of nerves”, you will just learn how to use them to become a better player. The best players in the world actually welcome nerves, as it increases their intensity and focus. It lets them know they are in contention and in a mental state that makes them capable of playing their best. Experience with managing this emotion and turning it into a positive will allow you to start realizing your potential as a golfer.

None of us know exactly what we are capable of doing or becoming in this world. But what we can say for sure, is that if we never leave our “comfort zone” we will never find out just how good we can be.

When we are out of our comfort zone we are in the realm of the unknown and this feeling of being frightened (or nervous) tells us this. Nerves tell us we are about to break into new possibilities and reach new scoring levels. You have to embrace it and realize this is the state you will be in when you break your best score or win that competition.

Think about this the next time you experience nervous feelings.

Being as prepared as you can be for each shot will increase your confidence and reduce negative interferences such as doubt and fear. But the feelings of nerves will give you that level of focus and awareness that you can never feel when you are practicing. Your senses are far more powerful.

A well practiced and disciplined shot routine is a great way to take you into the zone and keep you in the present moment. For me it’s a huge part of a good mental game and playing your best golf. If we can focus on the steps of our routine instead of our fears, we will feel more confident and make a better execution. You can even introduce specific breathing methods to relax you if you find this helps. Making it a habit to be focused on a positive intention for the shot instead of thinking about negative possibilities, or the past or future, is the key to getting better. In addition, our practice of golf as a more visual and feel based game instead of a technical one, will gradually reduce our tendency to think about our swing mechanics which is another major cause of doubt on the golf course. As Bob Rotella tells us “Confidence is playing with your eyes”.

Change your perspective of nerves from a negative to a positve and you will get better playing with them. Think about nerves, not as something that will hold you back in the future, but as something that will give you positive energy in the present. You are only feeling nervous because you are not in your comfort zone which is exactly what we need to break out of in order to get better.

Learning the power of training your mind for better golf is, without a doubt, the easiest and most effective way to improve. If you would like a concise, yet detailed guide to learning the mental game, one that you can listen to on the way to the course or before any practice session, you should buy the Golf State of Mind CD, which has helped thousands of golfers improve easily and quickly.

With a 60 day money back guarantee, can you afford to miss out and continue to waste more time practising in the wrong way?

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At 7674 yds, Hazeltine National Golf Club is the longest course in major championship history, but the winner of this week’s 91st PGA Championship will have won the mental game just as much as the physical. But how do we learn to cope with the pressure of the stretch of a major championship?

One of the most respected golf psychologists and mental coach to Lucas Glover and Stewart Cink (yes, the past two major winners), Dr. Morris Pickens, recently said to CNN: “It doesn’t just happen, you have to develop the mental game off the golf course.” The best players in the world are continually working on this.

Ultimately, success in such high pressure situations such as a major championship golf comes down to having the ability to be “emotionally detached” from the outcome of the situation. This means that you are free from riding the emotional roller-coaster that golf can sometimes become, and instead you are able to quickly let go of bad (and good) shots and stay in the present moment.

This is what Tiger does best. He is able to remain aggressive whatever the situation. His goals are obviously very high, but his game is not affected as much by poorly hit shots or equally the future effect of his good shots. He doesn’t need his “A” game to score well, whereas most golfers do.

It is well known that Tiger Woods was learning the mental game at a very young age. Tiger was introduced to Dr Jay Brunza by his father Earl, and he was taught skills to become emotionally detached in pressure situations.

We are more likely to achieve our goals if we can learn to be unaffected if we do not reach them. This does not mean you are indifferent and apathetic to your own success, it’s quite the opposite. Emotional detachment frees you from the past and future and lets you focus on the “here and now”. If we are thinking about the consequence of playing a shot either well or badly, we are not going to execute as best we can. You have to become non-judgemental to both good and bad shots in order to do this.

If you allow yourself to be affected by the outcome of your shots, you are setting yourself up for failure. You have to have a clear goal and a positive intention for the shot, but you have to accept the outcome quickly. As you will know from my previous blogs, good golf is played in the subconscious. Use your shot routine and visualization and feel exercises to become fully absorbed in a positive intention for the golf shot, not the consequence of whether it is executed well or poorly.

Whether it be golf or anything in life, we will perform better if we do not let our emotions get in the way. In the case of finishing off a major championship win, this week’s winner will have to use everything he has to stay focused on the present and remain unaffected by the emotions of potential victory or failure.

If we are given the structure, we can all improve our golf by learning mental game techniques. My audio session, the Golf State of Mind will give you a well structured program to help you achieve this.

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