Opinion & Analysis

There is something wrong with me – the Myth of Sport Psychology

Published

14 years ago

Jun 23, 2012

GolfWRX Staff

By Domenic Crouch

GolfWRX Contributor

You’re standing on the first tee, palms are sweaty, your stomach is in knots, you can hardly remember how to swing the club. In your own mind you aren’t thinking at all about the task at hand, be it hitting the fairway or green, all you can think is:

Don’t stuff this up.

Don’t go in the water

Don’t embarrass yourself

What are my playing partners thinking of me?

It is no wonder you top the ball or slice it straight into the water … really you’ve got no idea what you’re doing.

The slice or top is the result of a swing fault. It is not caused by poor swing plane, poor balance or not keeping your head down. Certainly, this is the manner in which most of these individuals will attempt to explain what happened, many would think it was time for another lesson. This is a failure to correctly attribute their error to a poor mental approach.

Why does this happen? Mostly, it caused by a lack of awareness and understanding of their own mental game. Performers understand the technical aspects of their swing and importantly also feel a sense of control over them; therefore, it is more comforting to use this explanation. Unfortunately, it is quite clearly a mental error and explaining it away as anything else will leave the issue unresolved. Simply, in the above instance you were unable to focus your attention on the appropriate task relevant cues and your were unable to manage your anxiety and nerves in a way that would allow you to “zone in” and do this.

This mental error and the many others most club golfers (and the pros) are making isn’t being handled well. To fix this error, you may listen to your playing partner or your club professional. All I can hope is that one of them has had some serious experience in sport psychology and mental skills. Can a handy man fix the wiring in your new house? Probably to some degree, the problem is that they are not fully trained in understanding the specifics and troubleshooting a qualified electrician would give you.

For a 20 or so handicapper to take the step of seeking out a sport psychologist or mental game professional to many is an outrageous step. There is a stigma of admitting a mental game weakness and to many this is just too much to bear. We don’t like admitting a lack of confidence or being afraid to hit over the water. Also, being attributable to a more generalised personality weakness holds many back. Compounding this, a general fear and lack of confidence also leads many of these individuals to continue to hold onto these feelings and perform well below their potential. It’s so easy to suffer in silence with mental game errors because we can’t see them like a swing fault.

“Competitive golf is played mainly on a five-and-a-half-inch course, the space between your ears.” – Bobby Jones

Firstly, everyone makes mental errors on the course. Jones knew that and his quote outlines how the victor is the one who makes the least mental errors. This is important, because it is not the one who makes no mental errors, but the least!

I present to you an argument for why a mental coach should become part of every golfer’s resources. The reason lies in the widely held view that golf is a highly mental game. Sport psychology and improvements in the mental game are the future of instruction in golf. Similar leaps and bounds were made in the field of technical instruction, strength and conditioning and equipment development throughout time; however, the mental game is something that golfers are yet to have fully experienced and utilise to improve their games.

The statisticians of the golfing world have noted very little change in the average handicap of golfers as the game has progressed, will it be the mental game that sees the average golfer improve their performance and take club golf to a whole new place.

Click here for more information in the “Golf Talk” forum.

You can follow Domenic on Twitter @domenic_crouch and GolfWRX at @GolfWRX

For more information on Domenic, visit his website, www.thinkfeelperform.com

Opinion & Analysis

5 Things We Learned: Thursday at the PGA Championship

Published

2 weeks ago

May 15, 2026

Ronald Montesano

Aronimink is not a storied club, but when Donald Ross himself proclaimed it to be as good as he can design and build, one had to take notice. Jay Sigel was the pre-eminent male amateur golfer from the mid-1970s to the mid-1990s. He might have called any number of Philadelphia clubs home, but he chose Aronimink. It served him well. Gary Player won a PGA Championship here in 1962, and was followed by the 1993 winner … nobody. Aronimink gave that event away to Inverness, for reasons of which it is certainly not proud. So be it. We had to wait sixty-four years for the PGA to return to Newtown Square, but here we are. Aronimink has been neo-restored by Gil Hanse and team, to return Ross features with an eye toward defense against the dark arts, errrr, high-tech equipment.

Day one saw Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau dig big holes, to the tune of plus-four and plus-six, respectively. Since the first-round lead will be minus-three at worst, many shots will need to be made up for the power couple to reach contention. By nightfall, seven golfers held the day-one lead at three-under par 67. Shots and sticks caught our attention, and we are proud to present Five Things We Learned on Tech Thursday at the 2026 PGA Championship. Thanks to InsideTourGolfer, Today’s Golfer, and GolfWRX for initial equipment research.

First, meet Min Woo Lee

Min Woo Lee, aka Dr. Chipinski, has once again thrust himself into the conversation of Can he, will he, when will he? Lee has so much talent, wins not nearly as often as we believe that he should, and has no major near-misses (much less titles) on his wiki. The young Aussie is getting older and wiser, but is he able to avoid the scarring that holds the older and wiser back from breaking through? Philadelphia offers another opportunity. Min Woo signed for five birdies and two bogeys on day one, and grabbed a share of the opening-day lead at Aronimink. Winners transcend history and the moment, and Lee will need that sort of ascent to lift the Wannamaker on Sunday.

Second, meet Aldrich Potgeiter

The young South African golfer can rip driver with the best of them. Aronimink tips out at nearly 7400 yards, but beyond the fairway bunkers that ensnare only the mortals, Potgeiter can take his chances with wedge from the rough. On Thursday, he spent plenty of time in the spinach. Like Popeye, he used his muscles to gouge and thrash and dig his way out. Six birdies against three bogeys on the card brought AP in a three deep.

Third, meet Martin Kaymer

Not a major event takes place without a where’s he been throwback moment. We know that Martin Kaymer left the PGA and DP World tours for LIV golf, but the two-time (US Open and PGA) major winner has a lifetime exemption into at least one major event, and he seizes the opportunity each May. Kaymer joined the six-seven brigade with four birdies and a solitary bogey on day one. Kaymer was never a long hitter, and the years are kind to no golfer. The German champion will need to uncork every bottle of guile and strategy in his cabinet to remain in contention. For today, though, he occupies a rung on the ladder of Tour Tech.

Fourth, meet Scottie Scheffler

Let’s see, he’s the defending champion at the PGA, and he found his way back to the top tier with five birdies against two bogeys. To be a favorite and then play up to that stature and expectation is quite difficult. Just ask Rory, Bryson, and some of the other pre-tournament heartthrobs. Scheffler’s game is complete, and to knock him off the OWGR #1 pedestal, one needs to defeat him at the majors. Aronimink is the sort of course that fits Scheffler’s game. Better yet, it unfits the game of many of his challengers. Don’t expect Scheffler to go away anytime soon. Come Sunday, he’ll be around.

Fifth, meet Stephan Jaeger

Clocking in for the unheralded players shift are Ryo Hisatsune and Stephan Jaeger. Hisatsune logged seven birdies on day one, but gave most of them back with four bogeys. Still, he’s tied at the top for a time. Jaeger pitched five birdies against two bogeys, including a run of three consecutive, from holes four through six. Odds are that one of the two will hang around through 36 holes. Odds also suggest that both will be gone by Saturday evening. Still, the PGA Championship has historically been the major most likely to be won by an under-known. Both Hisatsune and Jaeger feature on that list, so good luck, lads!

Club Junkie

Club Junkie’s Titleist GTS driver fitting results!

Published

2 weeks ago

May 14, 2026

Brian Knudson

On this episode of the Club Junkie Podcast, I head to the Titleist Performance Institute for a full driver fitting with the new Titleist GTS lineup. We dive into the fitting process, talk about what made the biggest difference in performance, and break down how the different GTS heads and shaft combinations compare on the launch monitor. If you are thinking about a new driver setup for this season, there is a lot to take away from this one.

I also get into Brooks Koepka and the gear setup he brought to the PGA Championship, including the putters that caught my eye during the week. There are some interesting equipment trends showing up at the highest level right now and we break down what stands out.

To wrap things up, I talk about reshafting a few wedges, what I learned during the process, and swapping an adaptor onto a new shaft for another build project in the shop. A gear packed episode from start to finish for anyone who loves golf equipment and club building.

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Club Junkie

Club Junkie WITB, week 16: New Titleist GTS woods!

Published

2 weeks ago

May 14, 2026

Brian Knudson

Excited for this week’s WITB as we get to add the new Titleist GTS woods to the bag! I was fit at Titleist’s TPI facility in Oceanside California a few weeks ago and my new clubs just showed up. I am also adding a cool set of irons that I built last year some wild custom wedges into a new golf bag. Speaking of the bag I have a new Ghost Anyday Black Ops stand bag that I will be using on my Motocaddy Remote M7 electric cart.

Driver: Titleist GTS3 (11 degrees @ 10.25)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 6s

3-wood: Titleist GT1 3Tour (14.5 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD CQ-7s

5-wood: Titleist GTS (18 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7s

9-wood: Titleist GT1 (24 degress)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7s

Irons: Bettinardi CB24 (5-PW)
Shafts: KBS C-Taper Lite 110 stiff

Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (50-09 SB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff

Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (56-12 SB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff

Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (60-08 LB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff

Putter: Dan Carraher ZT Proto

Ball: Callaway Chrome Tour

Bag: Ghost Anyday Black Ops Stand Bag