Positive Golf Kudos

This week, I am inspired to give Positive Golf Kudos to my cousin Carol Semple Thompson. On Monday, November 10, Carol is going to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in the Lifetime Achievement Category. I am truly bursting with pride at this recognition, not only because she is my cousin but because she is such an exceptional example of a supreme golfer and a fine human being. She truly shines both on and off the course. Her accomplishments are many and include competing in 109 USGA events (winning seven of them), qualifying for 32 U.S. Women's Opens, winning two Mid-Am titles, winning four Senior Amateur titles in a row, competing on a record 12 Curtis Cup squads, and becoming one of only 11 women to win both the U.S. Women's Amateur and British Ladie's Open Amateur. Most recently, she captained her second consecutive Curtis Cup team to victory over Great Britain and Ireland in May 2008 at the Old Course at St. Andrews. Off the course, Carol has served as a member of the Executive Committee of the USGA and was the recipient of the 2003 Bob Jones Award, which is the highest honor given by the USGA in recognition of distinguished sportsmanship in golf.

Whether Carol is on the practice range or in the midst of a competition, she truly embodies the qualities of a Positive Golfer. She has long been a believer and practitioner of positive mental golf, regularly using the skills of relaxation, visualization, and positive expectation. Her focus is superb, her senses of feel and awareness are fine-tuned, and her tempo is smooth and consistent - there is no forced trying and over-effort in her swing. She exhibits a great respect for herself and other players, and it is a true joy to play a round with her. Many people, myself included, are inspired with a renewed can-do attitude after such a round.

Monday, November 10 is a great day for the game of golf and the principles of Positive Golf that we strive to practice and pass along, which are expressed so greatly by my cousin Carol Semple Thompson. I encourage you to watch the Induction Ceremony live on the Golf Channel from 9:00 to 11:00 PM on that date. Carol will be inducted at that time, along with other inductees in the class of 2008, including Bob Charles, Pete Dye, Herbert Warren Wind, Craig Wood, and Denny Shute. It's quite a group, and quite an opportunity to honor them and honor all aspects of the game. CLICK HERE for more details.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

What Is the "Secret" to More Distance?

With the writing and publication of my new e-book, Goodbye Hit, Hello Swing, Part III, "Swing Power," The Stress-Free Solution for More Distance, I have been really tuned in to ideas and practices related to speed, acceleration, and distance. The concept of "gradual acceleration," which is at the heart of speed and distance, can be a hard one to explain and understand. But believe me, it makes a tremendous difference (as opposed to trying to produce speed with a sudden burst or jolt). Here is a good metaphor I recently came across in the interesting little book called "Golffirmations" by Hugh O'Neill. Keep this idea in mind the next time you go to the practice range or the course. And for more guidance, check out my book by CLICKING HERE.

Try working this automotive metaphor into your golf consciousness, and it can help you start the downswing with ease. This idea is courtesy of Mickey Wright, who won 82 times on the LPGA tour, including an astonishing 50 victories over 5 years:

You can't take a car from a dead stop and put it immediately up to 70 miles per hour. No matter how powerful your engine, you must have a gradual acceleration of speed. So it is in a golf swing.

So, the "secret" is the concept of "gradual." Plant this idea in your mind and work with it in your physical game and watch what develops...

Here's to a great swing!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

What Is Interfering With Your Swing?

Is improving your swing at the top of your "golf improvement list?" Did you spend a lot of time and effort this summer trying to improve your swing and are still hoping that will happen? It's likely there are some things "getting in the way" of your optimum swing that you didn't realize...

Recently, I published a post about "What Are You Holding On To That Is Holding Back Your Game," with the main point being that it is a common mental practice (although not usually realized by the individuals) for golfers to hang on to bad shots, bad golf moments, and general negativity which has the unfortunate consequences of weighing you down, holding you back, and leading to less-than-positive golf experiences. All of those "could haves," "should haves," and "if onlys" literally take away from mental energy that could otherwise be put to good use on constructive thoughts that will help your game. There is a lot of mental energy you can be putting to good use!

In the same way, there are a lot of things we do, both mentally and physically, that interferes with our swing. It is a fact that the natural motion and path of the swing is literally "at our fingertips" and is ready to repeat itself smoothly, easily, and effortlessly, but all too often we disrupt the ideal motion by what we think and do. I understand this because I have experienced it myself first-hand. Fortunately, I was able to get to the heart of the problem and figure out what I was thinking and doing to interfere with the ideal, natural swing. The results were so outstanding - including more power and distance - that I wrote a book about it which was just published called GOODBYE HIT, HELLO SWING, PART III - "Swing Power," The Stress-Free Solution for More Distance. The ideas, insight, and drills in the book are practical, do-able, and effective. For starters, here are ten common mental and physical game tendencies (we are usually doing without our realization) that interfere with the natural swing motion, causing errant shots and other problems, even when we think we are doing "all the right things." Read over the list and see if any of these practices are familiar to you. This could be the "clue" you need to "get over the hump" and really make a difference in your swing improvement. Feel free to add a comment about your own experiences with recognizing and "stopping the interference" and enjoying the freedom and satisfaction of the flow of your natural swing motion.

Common Mental and Physical Tendencies That Interfere With The Natural Swing Motion:

1. The mistaken mental belief that you need to use more physical "doing" to achieve more distance.
2. The resulting physical practice of attempting to gain more speed and more distance by using more effort.
3. The physical techniques of trying to "power it out there," "muscle" the shots with your upper body, or "goose it" early on in the downward motion.
4. The physical techniques of deliberately attempting to force more speed toward the ball or trying to power the clubhead at the ball in order to "hit it far."
5. The mistaken mental belief that you are the source of power, or that you have to "create" power.
6. The mistaken mental idea that speed is something that must be produced in a sudden fashion with a sudden " burst" or "jolt."
7. The practice of interfering with the clubhead swinging down on a tilted arc by trying too hard to "make" it happen "right."
8. The practice of trying too hard to groove the "timing" of a perfect release.
9. The practice of focusing so much on effort, trying, and timing that you aren't tuned in to awareness and the feel of the natural swinging action.
10. The practice of not trusting gravity and thus forcing rather than allowing your hands (and arms) to drop by means of the power of gravity (versus your forced "effort).

Rather than continuing to think and practice the effort-oriented approach to trying and trying to power it out there, open up to the idea that these are the mental and physical tendencies you need to address to achieve real swing improvement and more positive golf experiences. Remember - trying harder often means interfering more and actually achieving less (distance).

Here's to a stress-free approach!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

Top 5 Ways The Olympics Have Helped My Golf Game

Like so many people, I have enjoyed watching the Olympic Games for the past 17 days. I have enjoyed viewing them for many reasons, with a primary one being that it helps my golf game. Even though golf is not part of the Olympics at this time, there are still a lot of beneficial things to be learned from a mental and athletic standpoint that can be applied to golf. The ideas and inspiration from athletes in a variety of sports can successfully be applied to golf, and many other aspects of life for that matter. Here are the top five ideas that stood out for me in the past couple of weeks and served as valuable reminders and motivators for my mental golf mindset and golf improvement activities:

1. Look forward, not backward. Let go of misses and mistakes and look forward to positive possibilities and outcomes. Don't dwell on what went wrong because that will hold you back. The past is the past, period.

2. Take responsibility - don't blame. It comes down to you on the course, the court, the track, the pool, or wherever. Blaming mistakes or poor performance on other people or conditions (i.e. heat) does not help anything, because while you are blaming and complaining other competitors are not - they are focusing on things that help their performance instead, and it shows.

3. Don't get affected by limiting ideas about "age." Don't buy into common ideas and beliefs that you can't do certain things once you reach a "certain age." There were several shining examples of athletes past what is traditionally considered "prime competitive age" who blew people out of the water (no pun intended) with their attitudes and performances. These athletes weren't "superhuman," but they each had a super attitude that did not focus on what are "supposed" to be the "limitations" of age (i.e. You're old and stiff and "over-the-hill" past 40.) They really get the idea that "You're as old as you think."

4. Believe that you can do it. Time and again, the athletes who surprised with their performances, did the seemingly "impossible," or just stuck with it and went on to win expressed this can-do attitude in follow-up interviews. They showed us the supreme value of believing in yourself and knowing that, yes, you can do what you put your mind to when you absolutely believe in yourself. This applies just as much to achieving a goal in golf as it does to achieving an Olympics medal.

5. Always strive to improve. Here again, those shining stars on the court, the track, and in the pool make frequent reference to their continual efforts to improve, whether it be their form, their time, or their strength. Their years of preparation, out of the public eye of the Olympics, are filled with days and days of dedication to improvement. And they fully embrace the idea of improvement - watching videos, seeking feedback, building their bodies and their minds. They strive for practice that is positive and productive, not merely repetition. And yes, this approach is just as beneficial for golf improvement for the recreational golfer as it is for the Olympic athlete! Take the open, receptive, and persistent approach to improvement and stick with it!

These are the "Olympic ideas" that have re-charged me and my game. I would like to learn about the ideas that helped others. Feel free to add a comment to the blog...

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

The Path to a Repeatable Swing

Starting in January, I have been making posts about my Positive Golf Improvement Projects for 2008 for both the physical and mental aspects of my game. For the physical game, I have chosen to focus on "increasing the repeatability of my swing by more consistently accessing the feeling of my positive golf swing motion."

Ah yes, the repeatable swing. What a lot of people don't realize is that the successful path to a repeatable golf swing is not just filled with hitting buckets and buckets of balls while trying every mechanical swing tip in the book. It actually starts with letting go of some old beliefs and thoughts about the golf swing, as well as some negative habits and tendencies, all of which block the smooth, natural flow of what really helps lead to a repeatable swing. And what is that? Here are a couple of remarks from the great teacher Fred Shoemaker in his book Extraordinary Golf that will give you a clue: "The ability to experience - to be aware and to feel - is what creates trust"..."You can never really trust your swing if you can't feel it." In the same way that awareness and feeling are essential to building trust, they are also essential to developing a repeatable swing. How? By enabling you to tune in to the instincts, images, and motions that are natural and dependable and essentially "want" to repeat themselves.

A pure, unrestricted swinging motion wants to repeat time after time. You just need to "get out of the way" of this natural, repeating motion by letting go of ideas and actions (like fear, tension, and over-effort) that get in the way.

So, what are some restrictive, inhibiting things that I have practiced to "let go of" on my path to a repeatable swing? Here are a few:

- the misconception I needed to try to hit the ball hard to make it go farther
- self-doubt in my abilities
- fear I would hit another poor shot
- continuing judgement of every aspect of my swing
- pressure on myself to stay "up to date" on trying all of the latest swing tips

Letting go of these things helped to "free up" my mindset to the flow of awareness and feeling and allowed my mind to focus instead on repeatable swing ideas and actions, such as:

- the idea and motion of the "no effort" golf swing
- the feel of the timing and acceleration of the natural swing motion
- allowing the body to take maximum advantage of natural forces that create power and speed

Embracing this approach to developing a repeatable swing has been a powerful and positive experience for me that has led to much success. So much so that at The Heart of Golf we have published two e-books on the subject this year, Goodbye Hit, Hello Swing Parts I and II, with Part III being released in the next month. The path to a repeatable swing, like the path to all golf improvement, is one that I continue to tread, with new ideas, developments, and evolution happening all the time. I look forward to sharing the ideas and experiences that have helped me and welcome hearing about how these ideas have helped others to have more positive, repeatable golf swing experiences. Please share your comments here on the blog!

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

Small Changes Can Make A World of Difference

Two factors contributed greatly to Greg Norman's magnificent showing at last month's British Open. One of them he candidly stated when asked about leading after 54 holes. "Obviously I played well enough to put myself in this position," said Norman. "That comes from a good, safe, happy mind in a lot of ways. I'm very content in my mind..."

Naturally one needs to have the ability (which Norman had), but how we perform with our ability, at any level, is determined by our state of mind, which in turn determines our flow of thoughts. Sometimes we can use a little "reminder" of just how powerful and influential our minds are in our golf game. Norman's performance at Royal Birkdale was a shining example of this fact.

The other interesting factor was the small change Norman made in his set up. Moving closer to the ball wasn't something "new." It was a return to the way he set up in his "heyday." Another good lesson for the rest of us. With all the "swing information" floating around out there, we often tend (knowingly or unknowingly) to move away from things that have worked well in the past, in search of something better. A wiser choice, in many instances, is to return to the fundamentals and reunite with the ideas and feelings which inspired confidence and nice shot making on our "good days."

With a bit of mental effort, almost all of us can recall that, When I drove it well, I used to do this, or During those great putting rounds, I felt a certain way. Well, what are we waiting for? These things used to work, and they still will!

Small changes, even so small as a couple of inches this way or that, can make a world of difference - in our mind. We change the way we feel, and the feeling is directly impressed on our golf game. Keep this in mind when you are starting to think you need to do a "major overhaul" to fix your swing. Remember - small changes can make a world of difference!

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com

What Are You Hanging On To That Is Holding Back Your Game?

Did you know that hanging on to bad shots, bad golf moments, and general negativity is one of the most prevalent mental practices that weighs golfers down, holds them back, and leads to less-than-positive golf experiences? It permeates the entire mental golf psyche and distracts from focus, visualization, and awareness. In fact, all of those "could haves," "should haves," and "if onlys" take away from mental energy that could otherwise be put to good use on constructive thoughts that will help your game.

So what exactly is "hanging on?" It is a mental habit of actively keeping thoughts and memories of past negative actions and experiences in mind by dwelling on them, frequently recalling or "replaying" them, and allowing them to linger and fester and take the place of otherwise helpful thoughts and memories.

And what is it that golfers hang on to in their minds? The specifics vary from person to person, of course, but the common factors include:

Memories and thoughts of ---
- bad shots
- bad rounds
- bad tendencies
- mistakes and "flaws"
- "ruts" you have been or are stuck in

Plus negative mental habits and tendencies such as ---
- Fear
- Anger
- Frustration
- Worry
- Self-Doubt
- Self-Comparison
- Blame
- Dread
- Resentment/Envy
- Misconception that you need to try harder

"Hanging on" is a negative mental habit I have grappled with in the past, and it definitely affected my game. I would get so preoccupied with hanging on to the memory of a missed putt or errant drive that I would lose focus on my current shots and strategy, and then my game would suffer. I have known others who have hung on to bad shots for an entire round and even afterward, and they would keep talking about it. Thinking of your own game, you can probably recall some examples of "hanging on." What is it that you tend to hang on to? Maybe it's the memories of missed putts and poor shots like I did. You'll be doing yourself a favor by taking notice of this tendency, then doing something to curb it or cut it short.

A helpful tip that helped me to reduce my tendency for "hanging on" and is something I continue to practice is:

Consciously focus you attention on remembering the positive and letting go of the negative. Practice filling your "memory bank" with memories of good shots and positive outcomes and not "storing" thoughts of mistakes, problems, and poor shots. Think of it like putting thoughts of the negative moments in the trash. Leave your past in the past!

We'll have more practical tips on curbing this negative mental tendency for "hanging on" in our soon-to-be-released Positive Golf Handbook. Leave a comment on this blog about what you tend to hang on to on the course, and I'll email you some more of these tips.

Here's to great golf!

Rick Semple
Positive Golfer
Co-Founder, TheHeartofGolf.com
http://www.TheHeartofGolf.com