Instruction
6 fundamental steps to building your mental game
A big problem I see with golfers is that most players understand the importance of the mental game to performance, but don’t know how to develop it. There’s a lot of work required to build the necessary mental skills, just like there’s a lot of work that goes into building a proper golf swing.
Similar to the physical game, there’s a lot of information out there about the mental/emotional game that offers short-term tips, tricks and shortcuts. While those ploys are seductive, they aren’t a long-term solution.
Instead, we need to build a strong mental foundation from which we can build upon. Building the right foundation and then shaping that based on our strengths, limitations and triggers is the way to create sustainable performance and a stable mental/emotional platform.
So how can you begin to work on your mental game each day so that you build it over time and it becomes a core strength? Below are keys to develop a long-lasting, stable mental approach to play your best golf.
The 6 fundamentals
Follow these steps to building a strong mental golf game:
- What’s your plan? Create a plan for exactly what you want and what you want to achieve in the game. What would you like to do and what might be the steps to accomplish it? So many players have no direction, no timelines and do not know what they want — so there is constant frustration and a feeling like they are on a treadmill, going nowhere. Have a plan and a long-term direction.
- Why do you play? It seems simple, but it is an important question to support your plan. The best, most authentic reasons for playing are because you love the game and enjoy the feeling you get from it. If these are your reasons, keep them fresh in your mind and be careful not to get caught up in all the negative little details that can distract you from these genuine purposes.
- Assess, assess, assess. Knowing where you are is important in taking the steps to improvement. We assess every athlete to understand where he or she might be mentally/emotionally and it provides a starting point in creating a development plan. Do you know exactly what you need mentally/emotionally so you can create your own plan? We use the Emotional Intelligence Sports Inventory (ESi) at newedgeperformance.org to help us get initial baseline readings from which we can build a game plan.
- Reflect. It’s very important to use the information you are creating in your game to always move forward. Take the lessons from each practice session and each round and evaluate what specific areas need work. The best players take at least one lesson from every practice session or round and apply it moving forward. Ask yourself what you learned from each of your sessions and rounds and how this information can be adapted moving forward.
- Create your own “emotional caddie.” Build your own positive support system — an environment within yourself that you can play in. The tendency for most players is to be negative and self-critical. Learn to build a conscience and voice that supports what you do and is your own best friend. Download my book, free to you, to learn more about building your emotional caddie. See johnhaime.com for download: Chapters 7 and 8.
- Always build confidence. Understand what confidence is, threats to your confidence, when you might have confidence and when you don’t, and create a plan to proactively build it. Fear is often the antithesis of confidence. What causes fear in your game and prevents you from having a positive, proactive, confident approach?
There are many skills required to having a solid, positive, authentic mental/emotional approach. Like the golf swing and the physical skills required to play the game, however, the fundamentals and foundation are the backbone of this part of your game, too. With a solid foundation and structure, you will still encounter the unavoidable low points, but you will have the skills to navigate these points and move out of them quickly.
There may be no more painful affliction in golf than the “yips” – those uncontrollable and maddening little nervous twitches that prevent you from making a decent stroke on short putts. If you’ve never had them, consider yourself very fortunate (or possibly just very young). But I can assure you that when your most treacherous and feared golf shot is not the 195 yard approach over water with a quartering headwind…not the extra tight fairway with water left and sand right…not the soft bunker shot to a downhill pin with water on the other side…No, when your most feared shot is the remaining 2- 4-foot putt after hitting a great approach, recovery or lag putt, it makes the game almost painful.
And I’ve been fighting the yips (again) for a while now. It’s a recurring nightmare that has haunted me most of my adult life. I even had the yips when I was in my 20s, but I’ve beat them into submission off and on most of my adult life. But just recently, that nasty virus came to life once again. My lag putting has been very good, but when I get over one of those “you should make this” length putts, the entire nervous system seems to go haywire. I make great practice strokes, and then the most pitiful short-stroke or jab at the ball you can imagine. Sheesh.
But I’m a traditionalist, and do not look toward the long putter, belly putter, cross-hand, claw or other variation as the solution. My approach is to beat those damn yips into submission some other way. Here’s what I’m doing that is working pretty well, and I offer it to all of you who might have a similar affliction on the greens.
When you are over a short putt, forget the practice strokes…you want your natural eye-hand coordination to be unhindered by mechanics. Address your putt and take a good look at the hole, and back to the putter to ensure good alignment. Lighten your right hand grip on the putter and make sure that only the fingertips are in contact with the grip, to prevent you from getting to tight.
Then, take a long, long look at the hole to fill your entire mind and senses with the target. When you bring your head/eyes back to the ball, try to make a smooth, immediate move right into your backstroke — not even a second pause — and then let your hands and putter track right back together right back to where you were looking — the HOLE! Seeing the putter make contact with the ball, preferably even the forward edge of the ball – the side near the hole.
For me, this is working, but I am asking all of you to chime in with your own “home remedies” for the most aggravating and senseless of all golf maladies. It never hurts to have more to fall back on!
Over the last couple of decades, golf has become much more science-based. We measure swing speed, smash factor, angle of attack, strokes gained, and many other metrics that can really help golfers improve. But I often wonder if the advancement of golf’s “hard” sciences comes at the expense of the “soft” sciences.
Take, for example, golf instruction. Good golf instruction requires understanding swing mechanics and ball flight. But let’s take that as a given for PGA instructors. The other factors that make an instructor effective can be evaluated by social science, rather than launch monitors.
If you are a recreational golfer looking for a golf instructor, here are my top three points to consider.
1. Cultural mindset
What is “cultural mindset? To social scientists, it means whether a culture of genius or a culture of learning exists. In a golf instruction context, that may mean whether the teacher communicates a message that golf ability is something innate (you either have it or you don’t), or whether golf ability is something that can be learned. You want the latter!
It may sound obvious to suggest that you find a golf instructor who thinks you can improve, but my research suggests that it isn’t a given. In a large sample study of golf instructors, I found that when it came to recreational golfers, there was a wide range of belief systems. Some instructors strongly believed recreational golfers could improve through lessons. while others strongly believed they could not. And those beliefs manifested in the instructor’s feedback given to a student and the culture created for players.
2. Coping and self-modeling can beat role-modeling
Swing analysis technology is often preloaded with swings of PGA and LPGA Tour players. The swings of elite players are intended to be used for comparative purposes with golfers taking lessons. What social science tells us is that for novice and non-expert golfers, comparing swings to tour professionals can have the opposite effect of that intended. If you fit into the novice or non-expert category of golfer, you will learn more and be more motivated to change if you see yourself making a ‘better’ swing (self-modeling) or seeing your swing compared to a similar other (a coping model). Stay away from instructors who want to compare your swing with that of a tour player.
3. Learning theory basics
It is not a sexy selling point, but learning is a process, and that process is incremental – particularly for recreational adult players. Social science helps us understand this element of golf instruction. A good instructor will take learning slowly. He or she will give you just about enough information that challenges you, but is still manageable. The artful instructor will take time to decide what that one or two learning points are before jumping in to make full-scale swing changes. If the instructor moves too fast, you will probably leave the lesson with an arm’s length of swing thoughts and not really know which to focus on.
As an instructor, I develop a priority list of changes I want to make in a player’s technique. We then patiently and gradually work through that list. Beware of instructors who give you more than you can chew.
So if you are in the market for golf instruction, I encourage you to look beyond the X’s and O’s to find the right match!
Most pros take months, even years, to win their first tournament. Lottie Woad needed exactly four days.
The 21-year-old from Surrey shot 21-under 267 at Dundonald Links to win the ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open by three shots — in her very first event as a professional. She’s only the third player in LPGA history to accomplish this feat, joining Rose Zhang (2023) and Beverly Hanson (1951).
But here’s what caught my attention as a coach: Woad didn’t win through miraculous putting or bombing 300-yard drives. She won through relentless precision and unshakeable composure. After watching her performance unfold, I’m convinced every golfer — from weekend warriors to scratch players — can steal pages from her playbook.
Precision Beats Power (And It’s Not Even Close)
Forget the driving contests. Woad proved that finding greens matters more than finding distance.
What Woad did:
• Hit it straight, hit it solid, give yourself chances
• Aimed for the fat parts of greens instead of chasing pins
• Let her putting do the talking after hitting safe targets
• As she said, “Everyone was chasing me today, and managed to maintain the lead and played really nicely down the stretch and hit a lot of good shots”
Why most golfers mess this up:
• They see a pin tucked behind a bunker and grab one more club to “go right at it”
• Distance becomes more important than accuracy
• They try to be heroic instead of smart
ACTION ITEM: For your next 10 rounds, aim for the center of every green regardless of pin position. Track your greens in regulation and watch your scores drop before your swing changes.
The Putter That Stayed Cool Under Fire
Woad started the final round two shots clear and immediately applied pressure with birdies at the 2nd and 3rd holes. When South Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim mounted a charge and reached 20-under with a birdie at the 14th, Woad didn’t panic.
How she responded to pressure:
• Fired back with consecutive birdies at the 13th and 14th
• Watched Kim stumble with back-to-back bogeys
• Capped it with her fifth birdie of the day at the par-5 18th
• Stayed patient when others pressed, pressed when others cracked
What amateurs do wrong:
• Get conservative when they should be aggressive
• Try to force magic when steady play would win
• Panic when someone else makes a move
ACTION ITEM: Practice your 3-6 foot putts for 15 minutes after every range session. Woad’s putting wasn’t spectacular—it was reliable. Make the putts you should make.
Course Management 101: Play Your Game, Not the Course’s Game
Woad admitted she couldn’t see many scoreboards during the final round, but it didn’t matter. She stuck to her game plan regardless of what others were doing.
Her mental approach:
• Focused on her process, not the competition
• Drew on past pressure situations (Augusta National Women’s Amateur win)
• As she said, “That was the biggest tournament I played in at the time and was kind of my big win. So definitely felt the pressure of it more there, and I felt like all those experiences helped me with this”
Her physical execution:
• 270-yard drives (nothing flashy)
• Methodical iron play
• Steady putting
• Everything effective, nothing spectacular
ACTION ITEM: Create a yardage book for your home course. Know your distances to every pin, every hazard, every landing area. Stick to your plan no matter what your playing partners are doing.
Mental Toughness Isn’t Born, It’s Built
The most impressive part of Woad’s win? She genuinely didn’t expect it: “I definitely wasn’t expecting to win my first event as a pro, but I knew I was playing well, and I was hoping to contend.”
Her winning mindset:
• Didn’t put winning pressure on herself
• Focused on playing well and contending
• Made winning a byproduct of a good process
• Built confidence through recent experiences:
- Won the Women’s Irish Open as an amateur
- Missed a playoff by one shot at the Evian Championship
- Each experience prepared her for the next
What this means for you:
• Stop trying to shoot career rounds every time you tee up
• Focus on executing your pre-shot routine
• Commit to every shot
• Stay present in the moment
ACTION ITEM: Before each round, set process goals instead of score goals. Example: “I will take three practice swings before every shot” or “I will pick a specific target for every shot.” Let your score be the result, not the focus.
The Real Lesson
Woad collected $300,000 for her first professional victory, but the real prize was proving that fundamentals still work at golf’s highest level. She didn’t reinvent the game — she simply executed the basics better than everyone else that week.
The fundamentals that won:
• Hit more fairways
• Find more greens
• Make the putts you should make
• Stay patient under pressure
That’s something every golfer can do, regardless of handicap. Lottie Woad just showed us it’s still the winning formula.
FINAL ACTION ITEM: Pick one of the four action items above and commit to it for the next month. Master one fundamental before moving to the next. That’s how champions are built.
PGA Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer. You can check out his writing work and learn more about him by visiting BEAGOLFER.golf and OneMoreRollGolf.com. Also, check out “The Starter” on RG.org each Monday.
Editor’s note: Brendon shares his nearly 30 years of experience in the game with GolfWRX readers through his ongoing tip series. He looks forward to providing valuable insights and advice to help golfers improve their game. Stay tuned for more Tips!
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Pingback: 6 fundamental steps to building your mental game - Dan Hansen Golf Instruction
John Haime
Oct 20, 2015 at 4:19 pm
Thanks Dan.
The very best to you!
John
Ale
Oct 15, 2015 at 6:56 am
Hi john I just read your 6 steps and the comments. I am not sure why you need professional credentials as stated in one of the comments . I agree that practical experience is what helps .
My grandson is a junior golfer and at times can’t move forward from a bad shot . Advice from his swing coach that we have had for 3 years helps him and he does not have a degree in psychology. Playing the game as a pro you find out what you need to move on from a bad shot.
Thanks for the advice.
John Haime
Oct 15, 2015 at 8:59 am
Thanks Ale – agreed.
I have found that performance goes far beyond the reaches of sport psychology – sports psyche is a small part of the puzzle. Professional credentials is a good starting point – and a step in the right direction – but applying learning in a very fast paced environment is very different – where results are demanded. Actively listenting, understanding people and what they need is also a skill that can’t really be taught. It really is about lifelong learning, learning from each situation and creating a process that can work in reality – and adapting that process to each athlete or team.
Many of the best people in performance in sports, who generated consistent results, have been the great coaches. John Wooden might be the best example. He created a culture and environment for athletes to play in – and was able to give them what they needed to excel. John grew up on a farm in Indiana, attended Purdue, had great coaching influences (Piggy Lambert at Purdue) and created a new approach at UCLA when he arrived. UCLA was 3-9 in conference when he arrived, had a few average seasons and then won 10 national championships in 12 years.
Thanks very much for the comment and story. The best to your grandson in his development as a golfer.
marcel
Oct 14, 2015 at 10:18 pm
there is a way to this. just go to your GP, tell its your marital issues, get the mental referral and then see shrink. with the shirk focus on mental strength related to golf.
sally
Oct 14, 2015 at 10:54 am
Do you incorporate any mindfulness practices into your teachings?
John Haime
Oct 14, 2015 at 11:00 am
Hi Sally,
Yes, with some performers very effective. Supports our work in self-awareness with the athletes. As you know, being able to focus in the moment is key in high performance. A focus on the past and future can be a major distraction and roadblock for performers depending on the degree.
Thanks for the comment!!
Thom G.
Oct 14, 2015 at 7:01 am
Being a retired Special Operations soldier of over 23 years, I’ve realized that E.I. played/plays a big part on how operators achieve success on missions. Through constant rehearsals, training and a fast paced operational tempo, gun slingers develop techniques to enable them to handle stress, make split second decisions and become highly proficient at their jobs during situations where most “normal” humans would freeze. Thanks for your insightful article.
John Haime
Oct 14, 2015 at 9:31 am
Great to have someone with practical experience make a great comment. You’ve been in the field under fire – so understand the value of controlling emotion and keeping things in perspective under pressure.
Golfer and all athletes have nowhere near this kind of pressure as sports is not life and death. But, the principles of recognizing emotions and managing them under pressure apply.
Thank-you so much for your service. Thanks also for thoughts and pleased you appreciate the article.
CD
Oct 14, 2015 at 3:53 am
I think it’s a good topic area and you have the experience to talk about it. I didn’t like the plug for your own product because it sounds like an independent company ‘we use…’ implying that you’ve looked at other companies products and it’s clearly your company. That’s (extremely) disingenuous (at best). I’m not sure how much $99 is as I don’t live in the states. It sounds expensive for something that is pretty intangible and esoteric.
I think the principles you espouse are very sound but they seem heavy on goal-setting and assessment and less on the content. What about practical steps for building confidence in a variety of golf specific contexts? What about effective suggestions for practice and development that marry technical and mental processes?
What about context? I also think they play upon the desire in us to get better. Which is fine, and a positive attitude and optimism is obviously beneficial. But I think reference surely has to be made to time available and where golf ranks amongst life’s priorities. The tendency is for people to get carried away (especially if they love the game and if they’re in wrx they probably do) with an unrealistic assessment of their ability within the context of everything else in their lives.
John Haime
Oct 14, 2015 at 10:54 am
Hey CD,
I think you’ll find some good info in the other articles I have written for WRX – confidence being one. They should give you some good ideas.
Please note that assessment and goalsetting are critical to performance. They give people starting points (and end points) and a path forward. How do you know what to work on if you don’t assess it? How do you know where you are going if you don’t have a plan and steps to get there? This is the weak point of many athletes. They work and work and have no direction – and wasted alot of time going in circles. The focus of this article is on foundation and fundamentals not specific details. Please follow the articles in the coming months for more.
FYI – I have given you a good article, my best-selling book and directed you to a world-class assessment that we have vetted as one of the best in the industry. Please note there are significant costs to a GOOD assessment. There are some that are online for free – but there is no science and validation behind them. The ESi is validated, has some great science behind it. It is also in a great format for you. It’s certainly a first for me to be called extremely disingenuous. I am only trying to help – and please realize we also have costs and it takes time and energy to produce great content for you – that you consume for free.
Stay tuned for more. Thanks again for your giving your opinion.
CD
Oct 14, 2015 at 4:15 pm
What you say is fine, I’m grateful for your polite response too. I’m not trying to get things for free, no problem at all paying a fair price. I’m also sure your product is excellent and this article has already been very informative and a reminder too – thank you, genuinely. I just think if you say ‘we use’ and then point to your *own* product, that is very disingenuous; it clearly implies some impartiality which isn’t there and it probably detracts from how good (I’m sure) it in fact is. Just be straight.
anon
Oct 13, 2015 at 7:42 pm
Rekt
shimmy
Oct 13, 2015 at 12:25 pm
You should re-write your blurb to say that you’re “one of the world’s leading authorities in the (disputed notion of) Emotional Intelligence”.
John Haime
Oct 13, 2015 at 1:11 pm
Thanks for the comment. Would be great to have your name and background to determine if your comment is worth taking seriously.
Everything can be disputed. Nothing in life is perfect or absolute. The only thing in performance that matters is results. We have the client list and track record to highlight that our interpretation of the principles around “Emotional Intelligence” work and move our performers to higher levels. There is nothing to dispute re: “being smart about emotions”. If you are a performer you know that emotions run the show in performance – so having knowledge and education around them might be a smart thing to do.
Many of the world’s top business leaders and thinkers integrate “Emotional Intelligence” into their cultures and understand the value in leadership. See http://www.billgeorge.org – one of the world’s leading experts on leadership. “Emotional Intelligence” is woven through everything he does and he actively pronounces the importance. Bill is at Harvard, a former successful CEO at Medtronic and comments on leadership on the networks.
Happy to take this offline if you would like more information and resources.
The best to you.
shimmy
Oct 14, 2015 at 11:12 am
Let’s just say that I’m around psychologists every day and I respect their expertise. It’s a little difficult to trust someone who calls himself one of the “world’s leading authorities” in a (controversial) subject when, as far as I can tell, he lacks academic credentials and seems to be here to sell his wares.
I am a performer for a living – not in golf – and I do recognize the importance of a deep understanding of one’s self and how that interacts with success “on stage”. I would just prefer people seek the help of a properly trained psychologist instead of an “interpreter” of psychological concepts.
John Haime
Oct 14, 2015 at 11:37 am
Thanks for the comment Shimmy – probably better to take this offline as mentioned. The social sciences is a long conversation.
Please note that working with athletes and performers is not clinical psychology but coaching. I hire Sports Psychologists on a regular basis and very few have been able to get the results the athletes are looking for. And, as I mention – it’s about results and nothing else. Paper on the wall is great – it gets your foot in the door – but it’s not the real world of results. A pro athlete in his contract year could not care less about educational credentials – they want results and if you don’t produce them – you don’t last.
See Thom’s comment above. Great comment that has value as he is in the field under fire under the most extreme conditions. Certainly gives EI some practical credibility.
Thanks again for your opinion.
BW
Oct 15, 2015 at 7:58 pm
you get what you pay for, bro.