Mental Performance

Mentally speaking

The number one fault that golfers of all levels suffer from is tension on both physical and mental levels. Another word for mental tension is anxiety.


When the body and mind are wracked with tension/ anxiety, they can not function as they have evolved to do - natural movement and thought, not restricted, slow and awkward.


Understanding what creates mental tension/ anxiety is key to finding how to cope with it.

How the human mind works

300,000 years ago Homo Sapiens appeared and their brains developed one primary setting - survival. The act of survival was broken down into two areas - protect and pursue, with the onus heavily on protect.


As a result of 300,000 development, the human brain has become extremely efficient at its primary role of survival. Any sign of a threat and the brain kicking into survival mode, fight, flight or freeze.


The brain signals for adrenaline and cortisol, flooding your system with energy, increasing heart rate and breathing, sending blood to muscles for action, dilating pupils for better vision, and shutting down non-essential functions like digestion, preparing you to confront, flee, or freeze from the perceived danger. Blood is diverted from the rational prefrontal cortex, making it harder to think clearly and focus. All fantastic if you are running for your life, but not necessarily ideal in the modern day.


While a small amount of adrenaline and cortisol is beneficial for survival, however over exposure is extremely damaging causing mental health issues like stress, irritability, anxiety, depression, poor concentration and memory problems . Physically, over exposure cause headaches, muscle tension, fatigue, high blood pressure and increased heart rate. 

Mind Full or Mindful

Everyday life has changed dramatically in the past forty years with the advent of the internet, mobile phones and social media. People are available 24/7 and are being subjected to a constant barrage of information and relentless demands on their attention. This is when our hardwired instinct for survival kicks in, seeing all these demands on our attention as threats and activates its basic fight/ flight/ freeze protocols.

This change of lifestyle has lead to increased brain activity, elevated levels of stress and burnout. Recent studies show that as a result of this increased stimulation, the brain activity of the average person today is that of a schizophrenic in the 1950s.

Instead of having a 'mind full', on the verge of exploding, the introduction of mindfulness practices will help to delivery some much needed calm, clarity and wellbeing, placing people in an ideal position to perform to their potential.

Find the answer

the way forward

Understanding and utilising these concepts and practices will transform your performance both on and off the course

  • Mindfulness
  • Gratitude
  • Acceptance
  • Intention
  • Attention
  • Attitude
  • Stable confidence
  • Emotional control
  • Self worth, identity
  • Master/victim consciousness
  • Utilising your breath
  • Power of journaling
  • Best 3 shot record
  • OK is OK
  • Pre and post shot practices
  • Course management
  • Thinking zone, Playing zone
  • Green vs Red mindset
  • Tournament preparation
  • Effective practice