PARKER'S POINTERS

by Parker Mulford

Mental Practice

We can explore various physical aspects of the game both on and off the course. But perhaps the best opportunity to advance our skills comes from within? This month we will talk about Mental Practice

Mental practice is the cognitive rehearsal of physical activity in the absence of any observable muscular movement. Through mental practice, students can recreate previous experiences from memory and shape them in meaningful ways, or picture new events to prepare themselves for an upcoming physical performance

Jack Nicklaus (1974) claimed that his good shots were 50% mental picture, 40% setup and stance, and 10% swing In an interview, he described his mental practice and imagery process immediately before playing each shot as follows: “I never hit a shot, not even in practice, without having a sharp, in-focus picture of it in my head. It’s like a color movie. First I ‘see’ the ball where I want it to finish, nice and white and sitting up high on the bright green grass. Then the scene quickly changes and I ‘see’ the ball going there: its path, trajectory, and shape, even its behavior on landing. Then there is sort of a fade-out, and the next scene shows me making the kind of swing that will turn the previous images into reality. These home movies are a key to my concentration and to my positive approach to every shot ” This technique is proven in various sports as the fastest way to improve By seeing yourself (internal imagery) performing, you are able to rehearse your swing I do this every day: some folks count sheep to go to sleep, I play golf I never get past the 3rd hole, and zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz When I engage in mental practice, I not only visualize what my body is doing- hitting those technique checkpoints, but I feel what those checkpoints are like within my motor sensory perception.