So what is this golf mind and unconscious golf stuff that I’m always writing and talking about? And how does it actually work? These are questions I occasionally get asked by more sceptical golfers. Thankfully the vast majority of people I talk to either accept my explanations or trust me based on the results they’ve seen other people achieve.

Hypnosis tends to be experienced in many different ways with different [people and what works in one session with a client may not work as well, if at all, the following week. That means that golf psychologists and hypnotherapists have to be flexible in their approach to every client session. It also means that it’s difficult if not impossible to analyse and document hypnosis and hypnotic technique scientifically. For some people that means that hypnosis doesn’t exist and that it’s dangerous because it can’t be explained.

Now I’ve often explained the unconscious mind as the source of our autonomous or instinctive actions. I illustrate this with stories about how difficult it was to consciously learn to drive, tie your shoelaces or a bow or ride a bike and how at some point it just becomes an automatic process that we don’t have to think about.

Before starting on a long car journey, most drivers spend a little time planning their journey. They consider the merits of different routes, taking into consideration factors like road works, whether they prefer to drive on main roads, the impact of rush-hour traffic and many other factors including the weather. Once they start driving, most of these people drive safely while settling down to conscious pursuits like talking to their passengers, working out the personal and business problems in their mind or just daydreaming. Their unconscious mind keeps them safe and follows all the techniques and processes they learned years ago. How often have you drivers been on a long familiar journey and suddenly just seemed to “wake up” thinking, “How did I get here?” It can be quite worrying the first time it happens, but your unconscious mind has protected you along the way.

If a top golfer described a similar experience, we’d be inclined to think they were “in the zone” or, as Tony Jacklin famously referred to it after his major wins in the early 70s, in a “cocoon of concentration.” Years later, Nick Faldo talked about getting into a trance-like state, he called it a “cocoon”, during the week of a major. He went on to describe it as “a state of oblivion where I shut out all the people on and off the course.”

So, like the driver I described earlier consciously plans the journey in advance, the golfer consciously plans his shot taking into account all the information available, including his lie, how he’s playing today, the weather and wind conditions, the distance, the landing area and his chosen target. He completes his conscious preparation and then transitions to his unconscious mind by recalling a similar shot and vividly imagining the experience of hitting by stepping into his stance and trusting his unconscious mind to hit the ball. Put differently, the golfer is “in the zone” or in a “cocoon of concentration”, a trance-like state of oblivion. That sounds good to me!

Andrew Fogg, the Golf Hypnotist, is an enthusiastic golfer, hypnotherapist and NLP Master Practitioner. He is a practicing golf psychologist and author of a soon to be published book The Secrets of Hypnotic Golf and a series of golf hypnosis MP3 programmes.

Visit his website for information on how to get the most success, pleasure and enjoyment from the wonderful game of golf. More specifically, it is about how to improve your golf by working on the 90 percent of the game that is played in the 6 inches between your ears.

Sign up for the free Golf Hypnotist ezine at http://www.golf-hypnotist.com/ and get your free 25- minute Your Own Virtual Caddy golf hypnosis MP3 that goes with this article.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/golf-articles/play-unconscious-golf-in-the-zone-or-in-a-trancelike-cocoon-of-concentration-1086438.html

So who made it to Sunningdale to watch the Senior Open Championship last weekend? I know that one of the latest subscribers to my newsletter did and he tells me that he and his wife really enjoyed it? For me it was well worth the visit, especially as it’s only 10 miles down the road from me the Old Course at Sunningdale is one of my favourite courses in the world – not that the New Course isn’t just as good.

There’s absolutely no doubt that this weekend and so many times before in majors Greg Norman, also known as “The Great White Shark”, has struck the ball brilliantly and enjoyed a great short game, it just seems that he’s missed out on the mental side of the game, especially in the closing holes. As far as I can recall, Greg has never worked with a golf psychologist and sadly it shows at times like these. If he had Tiger’s training and could use golf psychology and self hypnosis at these critical times, just imagine how many majors he would have won by now.

Coming back to the venue, Sir Michael Bonallack, one of the UK’s and possibly the world’s finest amateur golfers of all time and secretary of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews for 15 years, describes Sunningdale very aptly on the welcome page of the club’s website:

“All that one would hope to find in the ideal golf club is in abundance at Sunningdale. Two magnificently conditioned courses of superb design and so pleasing to the eye, a clubhouse which provides members and visitors with an unforgettable experience of pampered comfort, accompanied by exceptional food and wine, a staff that anticipates and provides for the members’ wishes, no matter how eccentric they may be, a first class professional’s shop and competent instruction on hand, the most knowledgeable caddies in the game and the finest halfway house I know.”

My first memory of playing at Sunningdale was in the early 1970s when I played in an event there run by The Plus Four Society an elite group of golfers sponsored by the Surrey Golf Union with membership restricted to handicaps of 4 and less under the old handicapping system. Thankfully, I can’t remember much about my rounds that day, but I do remember one of my fellow golfers playing both courses of the championship tees in 68 for a total of 136. It must have really felt like he was being cheated when his plus 2 handicap was added back to his score and he ended up with a net 140 for the handicap event. It certainly seemed so unfair to me, as someone playing off 2 handicap and desperately needing both my shots! Unlike today, there were very few players of plus 2 in those days. I was intrigued to see that same man playing in the Senior Open Championship there last week and still as an amateur.

I really enjoyed watching so many of my golfing heroes out there playing just as well as I remembered back in their heydays. People in their 50s and 60s playing that standard of golf is an inspiration to people like me of a similar age and, like last week at the Open, it reminded me that I really can’t use my age as an excuse for playing less golf.

I found it difficult to choose who to follow and who I really wanted to win and it came down to a choice of Greg Norman and Tom Watson. They are both players I admire and both have played remarkable golf in major championships in the last two years. I felt sorry that Tom again missed out after coming so close at the Open. However the person I really wanted to win was Greg Norman. Although Greg has won the Open twice before, I hadn’t realised how many times he had slipped up in the last round of majors. I remember of course his pushed long iron on the final hole of the Masters in 1986 when a par would have got him into the playoff and his turning a six shot lead in the last round there ten year’s later into a 5 shot defeat by Nick Faldo.

When I checked the records, it turned out that Greg had just had those two Open victories out of 23 majors where he finished in the top 6. In addition he came second in 8 of those majors and third in 4 more. So he clearly has a problem finishing off his rounds.

So what happened last weekend, well Greg was striking the ball awesomely well and his shots were going long and straight. Despite dropping a few shots, that you’d expect from a man who plays so little competitive golf, his short game was just amazing. He was probably playing as well as he did in all those top 6 finishes in majors. But when he got to the 16th on Sunday, needing one more birdie to tie the lead or two to win outright, he pushed his drive way right just like he had hit that long-iron back at the Masters in 1986. He made a miraculous recovery from deep in the trees and hit his third fairly close to the pin, he was out of it and three putted. He was still hitting the ball well on 17 and 18, but he was a defeated man.

Here’s wishing Greg Norman and all my other golfing heroes every success at the US Seniors Open this coming weekend.

Andrew Fogg, the Golf Hypnotist, is an enthusiastic golfer, hypnotherapist and NLP Master Practitioner. He is a practicing golf psychologist and author of a soon to be published book The Secrets of Hypnotic Golf and a series of golf hypnosis MP3 programmes.

Visit his website for information on how to get the most success, pleasure and enjoyment from the wonderful game of golf. More specifically, it is about how to improve your golf by working on the 90 percent of the game that is played in the 6 inches between your ears.

Sign up for the free Golf Hypnotist ezine at http://www.golf-hypnotist.com/ and get your free 25- minute Your Own Virtual Caddy golf hypnosis MP3 that goes with this article.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/golf-articles/shark-bitten-at-sunningdale-without-golf-psychology-and-self-hypnosis-1086443.html

The Callaway Golf X22 Tour Irons are performance irons designed for accomplished golfers seeking premium feel and stability. To improve on the highly successful X-20 Tour Irons, Callaway Golf engineers added new features that allow the X-22 Tour Irons to play even better and feel even softer. Precision Notch Weighting and a new sleeker hosel combine to raise the moment of inertia (MOI) for better stability and allow the center of gravity (CG) to be moved lower and more in line with the center of the face. This generates ideal trajectories and significantly enhances the level of feel. The head shape has been refined with the thinnest possible topline while still using a 360-Degree Undercut Channel, and the optimized sole width progression provides better turf interaction.

Features: 
Precision Notch Weighting – Precisely positions more weight to the perimeter of the iron to create a higher MOI for greater forgiveness and stability while maintaining the CG position that produces ideal trajectories and feel 
Tour-Proven Head Shape – Features the thinnest topline possible while still incorporating a 360-Degree Undercut Channel. The blade length is shorter and the CG has been moved lower and in line with the center of the face to provide unparalleled performance with enhanced feel 
Redesigned Hosel – The sleeker design significantly improves feel and allows the hosel to be more easily adjusted to fit a golfer’s custom specifications 
Sole Width Progression – The sole width of each iron has been optimized based on the length and loft to provide better turf interaction through the entire set 

Callaway Golf Core Technologies 
VFT Technology maximizes ball speed and perimeter weighting for more distance and forgiveness 
360-Degree Undercut Channel maximizes perimeter weighting by moving the CG lower and farther back in the clubhead, enlarging the hitting area and stabilizing the clubhead for more forgiveness

Callaway Golf X22 Tour Irons with free shipping only $398.99 on http://www.discountsgolfclubs.com

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/golf-articles/callaway-golf-x22-tour-irons-1085647.html

Golf clubs are more expensive than other sports equipment. Why? Is its material, steel or graphite are much more expensive? That’s not the case. In fact, the technology applied in producing golf clubs are the main costs. You see, how does a 59-year-old Tom Watson compete for a major against men half his age? Some of it had to do with guile and experience. A lot had to do with modern technology. And what makes the golf become the rich’s activity is also the technology. Unlike basketball and football, golf clubs are more demanding in technologies, that’s why many big companies invest huge sum of money in it wich results in the high cost.

Many golf name brands such as TaylorMade, Callaway, Nike, Titleist, PING are making every effort to update their technologies in their products. And the new technology in a club can always be its unique selling points, such as the Ping Rapture V2 irons.

The Ping Rapture V2 represents the culmination of Ping’s development of multi-metal technology that combines the key properties of the materials to maximise the performance of the club. The Rapture V2′s 460 cc head combines a titanium body with external tungsten weight pads that are located at the back of the club, near the heel and toe. The weight pads position the centre of gravity to allow the Ping Rapture V2 to deliver a lower spin and high launch angle together with a higher MOI, even a World Tour R9 can not reach, that improves both distance and accuracy. The head is plasma-welded and it’s taller face has been machined to variable thicknesses to promote increased ball speed and is styled with an aggressively tapered crown featuring the Double-Rapture alignment aid.

However, although modern technology may help you to improve your game, it can not solve every shot in golf!

SEE MORE golf things on http://golf-inspiring-club.blogspot.com/

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/golf-articles/golf-and-technology-1085560.html

Golf is a magnificent game of chance as much as skill for some amateurs.  One day you’ll be shooting great shots landing cleanly on the fairway, hitting all the greens and even the longest of putts dropping, on other days it seems like nothing will go to plan.

It’s by practicing the fundamentals that will make our rounds rely less on luck and more on our skill level.  Below are just a few tips to make sure that you hit less bogeys and more birdies.

Get a grip
Your grip of the club is often key to a well struck shot; many people may think that having a firm grip of the club will mean that they hit the ball cleaner and farther.  This is a common mistake with many shots played with a very tight grip often being inaccurate and either hooking or fading.  Keeping a loose but firm grip will keep your swing feeling more natural and should help give you more control on impact with the ball.

Get into the swing
Your backswing should end up with the club being parallel to your body; the toe of the club should be pointed at the sky.  What many golfers struggling with their accuracy find are that they take the club too far inside.  One way to remedy this aside from professional tuition is to find videos of pro’s swing motion.  Many videos are online (via sites such as YouTube) showing in slow motion exactly how to swing like a pro.

Hit the ball right
Striking the ball is determined by a number of factors.  Obviously speed comes into it but the angle and the amount of force transferred through your body, arm and club can all be altered subconsciously.  Making sure that when you swing you are hitting the “sweet spot” in the centre of the club face is important.  Some clubs are constructed to have a large area which in theory increases the chances of beginners hitting the ball more accurately.

Follow through correctly
A good amount of the effects of the shot you take are determined by your motion and follow through after striking the balls, you shouldn’t snap at the ball with little or no follow through.  With wedge shots and putts the majority of the power the ball gets is from the follow through so it is very important to flow through naturally.  Making sure you keep your eyes locked on the ball throughout the swing is vital to make sure you make contact, looking away will often result in miss-hit shots.

These are just a few fundamental tips, there are many more that can affect any part of your golf game, one good way to determine what you need to work on is either getting a partner or even yourself to note down during a round where you are dropping shots or struggling.  At the end of the round you should have a few key points that you can take away and work on.

John Woosey is a golf writer with experience in Insurance for golfers and 2 for 1 golf offers

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/golf-articles/start-as-you-mean-to-go-on-with-your-golf-swing-1082362.html