If children are able to play this game after a relatively short time, without having the rational thoughts behind it, then the adults could do so as well. Just by experimenting and finding out with which movement of the club the ball can be hit, you are already in the required playing mode where intuition will flow.
These flowing movements with so much simplicity and elegance we admire when watching professionals playing golf, who have left this deep analytical stage behind, if they ever have been in it? When asked how they would describe the feeling of these movements we could hear comments like: "The movement feels like oil or soft butter." - "I don't feel any resistance and it goes down like old red wine." - " It is just a soft feeling and it even feels like a different power is moving me, all is so effortless ".
I have accompanied kids along the path to playing professional golf, and even from a distance I can recognize their movement patterns which still show basics they had as kids just starting the game.
For that reason golf is a very individual game like walking, talking and other movements. We also could say that any movement is a reflection of our physical abilities, character and way of thinking.
In this book you will find recipes for how to find the flowing movements more often and in which state of mind you will behave more often with intuition.
We all know by simply changing the situation of playing in front of spectators or not, will alter the player’s behavior. We will talk about these kinds of situations, create the self-awareness and give suggestions as to how best to deal with them.
I assume that by uploading this information, you would like to improve your game! This is of course also my intention. Through lots of tests on both myself and my pupils I would like to show you some guidelines and ideas which will help you to become tuned in to the right mental attitude so that intuitive golf becomes possible and the flow of the movements will be felt more often. What you need now is a little patience and repetitive reading because the change of attitude also needs practice like the technical part of the game. Just remember: "The path is our aim".
Intuition or Rationalism?
"What could be more important than knowledge?" asked the intellect. "Feeling and intuition," answered the soul.
The word intuition originates from the Latin language and means: immediate knowledge without reflection. Ratio or rationalism is also a Latin term and means the opposite to intuition: logic thinking with an analytical brain.
In layman’s terms, intuition is known mostly as acting from the stomach (a gut reaction) and rationalism as the analytical head work.
The one does not need to exclude the other, although the rational way of thinking often considers the pro and contra of any action.
Intuition is however an impulsive inspiration, which shoots into the brain without any conscious calculations. For a given task, and very often in golf, most often the first thought is the correct one and should be adhered to.
You walk towards your ball and your first thought is: “This one I play left just in front of the green, because all along the right side is water with which the ball should not come into contact. Your opponent's ball is however further from the hole than yours and therefore he has to play first and he hits it in the middle on the green. Although your intuitive voice have already decided that the correct action for you would be to play the ball left side in front of the green, now you start having second thoughts: "My opponent could now hole the next shot, then I would lose the hole, if I need another three shots. Perhaps I should change my mind and attack by hitting over the water directly towards the hole. Although then again I normally fail this shot and land the ball in the water. But in this case, if I don’t try I’ll never win." To attack the hole was the solution but the little ripples on the water tell you the ball has disappeared for ever. "If only I had listened to my first intuitive thought, I would still have a chance to win or halve the game."
A one meter putt will decide the game. If you hit it in the hole you are the champion. A very simple shot and you know what to do. "Walk to the ball, have one look and hit it straight in," is the first intuitive thought. You are willing to follow this thought but while standing in front of the ball, the thought of needing to swing the club absolutely straight back so that the ball can roll into the hole is shooting through your brain. The thought and action is now occupied with the back-swing and by forgetting to follow through, you leave the putt on the line short. How could that happen? Such an easy putt I could have knock in by just walking past. Once again the conscious and overly controlled behavior (rationalism) has handicapped the flow of a very, very simple movement (intuitive action).
You are playing in a very slow game and arrive at a par three hole. Already the first glance is telling you that for that particular hole position you need a five iron. Only yesterday you have shown yourself that your ball with the same hole position nearly went in the hole. The flight in front is still on the green and therefore you need to wait. You look more and more anxious towards the green and become pretty nervous. Suddenly new thoughts shoot through your brain: "Today I hit the ball further than yesterday . . . a little wind is in our face . . . all players on the green have been long with their tee-shots". The players in front have finished the hole and now you can go for it. After all pro and con's your decision is a six iron. The shot is short, ends in the bunker in front of the hole and the famous: "I rather should have listened to my first thought , rather than …”
Surely you have already experienced what you knew before hitting, that the shot was going to be successful. Sometimes you know already before hitting that even that long putt will disappear in the hole. You walk to the ball and execute immediately with success.
"Logic serves the proof, intuition is a discovery with mostly a nice surprise." Henri Poincaré
More often than not, rational thoughts fail to beat intuitive thoughts. With the intuitive "sixth sense" or “flash” thought, we seem to collect the required information faster than through the analytical path.
Our ability is much greater than we are led to believe, as long as energy flows through all our senses without being blocked by the detailed analytical selection of information. Sometimes we become so analytical that after gathering all the information, we address the ball and all of a sudden we stop our action because we are afraid that we have forgotten something. Each analytical step means a further resistance in the energy flow. We could compare it with an electric circuit which is interrupted by a dimmer. The stronger the resistance the less electricity will flow until no light will shine.
Walk to a defined point but now think which foot and arm needs perform each movement. You will look like a walking robot where little flowing elegance and rhythm can be seen.
Intuitive behavior can be seen even more obviously when someone throws golf balls towards me on short and longer distances in quick sequence. Mostly I can catch the balls and when I asked the thrower what he thought while throwing the answer is usually:" I just looked at you and threw". However, if I ask the thrower to concentrate on the arm movement while throwing, the balls very seldom arrive at the required destination. Once again it seems that we are able to finely coordinate movements by looking and executing the action immediately.
Sports scientific tests have shown successful research results in which similar movements from the day to day repertoire or visual images are used as a transfer to learn or correct false movements. Such images you will find at the end. With these images you will best experience the flow of successful golf.
So by trusting the first intuitive thought mostly works well. Therefore we suggest, just listen to your inner voice and you will be okay.
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