Foundational Golf Principles for Long-Term Improvement

• Posted on Grant
• in Golf Fundamentals, Practice
• on December 23, 2013
• Comments Off on Foundational Golf Principles for Long-Term Improvement

Do you know why some people keep getting better and better at golf while others don’t? I believe that all golfers who keep improving have one thing in common: A solid foundation of mental principles.

Here are my foundational golf principles for long-term improvement:

1. Understand that every thought counts: You are either instilling good or bad mental habits on every single shot.

My goal is to always Plan, Commit to, and Evaluate every shot I hit. My mental process is always the same on every shot. (To read more about my mental process, click here.)

It doesn’t matter if I’m all by myself on the practice tee, leading a tournament by 10 shots or losing by 10 shots: I will not hit a shot without going through my mental process.

2. Set an attainable goal for every practice shot: Most people just go to the practice tee with the intent to hit perfect golf shots. I go to the practice tee with the intent to train my body to perform perfect fundamentals.

I like to use a practice card (pictured below) and group fundamentals into two categories: Set-up keys and swing fundamentals.

Set-up keys happen before you swing, and swing fundamentals happen while you swing.

I perfect my fundamentals by practicing one swing fundamental per ball, and two swing fundamentals per practice session. I like to hit three balls in a row while consciously thinking about fundamental #1. Then I switch to Fundamental #2 and hit three more balls. Then repeat this process 10 times for a total of 60 balls. Also, I cycle through several different clubs while performing this practice routine.

I like to use a practice card to organize my practice. See picture below for an example of a practice card from one of my practice sessions:

Click on the picture above to print a blank practice card to use during your practice.

On every practice shot I am:

1. Planning how the swing fundamental will look and feel in my mind before I hit the shot.

2. Setting up to the ball correctly and committing to the swing fundamental while I hit the ball.

3. Evaluating if I accomplished the swing fundamental after I hit the shot.

Do you have foundational principles for your practice time? If you don’t, click here to print off a practice card and stick it in your golf bag. I guarantee this foundation will make you a better golfer!

GB