The Pre Shot Routine

For those of you who remember what it was like to first drive a car, will recall the awkward memory of trying to change gears and work the clutch simultaneously, alongside this remembering to always check your mirrors, indicate, steer, check for hazards and somehow manage to not crash into anything. I promise it gets easier, for those of you about to embark on learning to drive! Thankfully as we know, over time these essential manoeuvers that allow us to drive safely, become second nature. It would be fairly typical for people to finish driving with virtually no recollection of actually performing any of these manoeuvers. This is due to our subconcious routines, if every time you were in your car you decided to change your grip on the steering wheel, or your posture when seated, the process of driving would become much more concious than subconscious, so why do we do this with our golf games!

Mental Consistency

Virtually every golfer I have the pleasure of working with is striving for more concistency, the ability to repeatedly perform the same physical swing time and time again, now surely it makes sense that if you want to be physically consistent, it makes sense to be mentally consistent. Unfortunately most golfers are thinking about keeping their left arm straight for the first three holes, but once that doesnt work quickly fall into the trap of searching for another magic swing thought. The purpose of a pre shot routine goes beyond making sure you have the same number of practice swings every time, you want to build a consistent mental and physical routine that stays consistent from the very first shot to the last putt on the 18th green.

Below is a 4 step process to assist golfers in reaching a much more subconcious state on the course, please remember that this is a guide and that players should feel free to add and adjust in order to suit their games, through building a consistent mental and physical routine, players will come much closer to achieving consistency and reaching their potential.

Step 1 - Ask the right question

Our brain works in images, when we have thoughts they are not laid out in words, like the opening star wars credits, but rather in images. The questions we ask ourselves will have a huge impact on the images we conjure up, one of the best questions you can ask yourself before a shot would be “What would a good shot look like from here?”

This simple question will make your brain light up like a firework with clear images as to what a good shot would actually look like, focusing your mind on what you want to achieve rather than the opposite.

Step 2 - Check the facts

As golfers it is important to gather as much factual information as possible before hitting the shot, it would be advisable to check factors such as the lie of the ball, the wind, the yardage, any potential hazards etc. This will assist you in making a calculated decision rather than the hit and hope method!

Remember the saying of “aim small miss small” this remains true here, just aiming for the fairway isnt specific enough, so make sure you are dialed in with a specific area where you want that ball to finish.

Step 3 - Get in the feel

Now is the opportunity to let those thoughts go, you should at this point have a clear image of what you want to happen, and have assessed all of the variables that you feel are relevant, so go ahead and make some practice swings and build an awarness of how the movement feels, if it feels good go with it.

If you have some doubts, feel free to do some more practice swings until you feel confident in the movement, keep in mind that no one is a fan of slow play, before you start adding ten practice swings per shot, think quality not quantity!

Step 4 - Full Commitment

Now is the time to hit the shot, the fun part about this is that you have already done the hard bit of working out what shot to hit, so there is no need to be thinking about the universe during your swing. Commit to making a confident swing and trust your technique, you have done all you can at this point to hit a good shot so stay commited!