Confidence is this “thing” many golfers would love to have. Hitting a shot in front of friends, driving a ball off the first tee, or playing in a work golf tournament are all settings where golfers would like to “feel” more confident. I wish I could sell confidence to my students however, it isn’t this tangible thing you can just buy off the rack. It is a skill that can be worked on an improved in order to build more of it for when you need it.
Confidence is a state of certainty that one can accomplish a task. Sport confidence is the belief and feeling that one can achieve a task within sport. Many situations in golf require a golfer to have confidence in order to aid performance. In fact, sometimes a more confident golfer will outperform a less skilled golfers-merely because they believe in what they can do!
In 3 easy steps, you can begin building your golf confidence, whether you are a golfer brand new to the game or have been playing for some time and need a confidence boost. Confidence makes us feel good when adversity strikes, or when we are faced with an uncomfortable situation. Confidence is that extra kick to help us overcome when we want to give up and run away. A confident feeling can make you feel like you will master anything thrown your way!
Step 1: Build Your Confidence Resume
We all have times in our lives when we have already felt confident. Perhaps you sunk a 10-footer on the last hole of your club championship to win the trophy or crushed a drive off the first tee with many friends watching. You have experiences in your memory bank that can be used to build a “resume” of confidence. This technique, shared with me from fellow Mental Coach Dr. Rick Sessinghaus years ago, helps you identify the times in your golf career you have shined! Make a list of every golf club in your bag and try to recall one vivid memory of when you hit that club. Try to describe the scenario with as much imagery utilizing your senses as best as possible. Where did the shot occur? What did the shot look like, sound like, feel like? Who were you with? What happened after? This process may take some time but then you will have a solid history you can rely on times you have performed well with a club. Next time you start struggling with the putter, you can refer to your confidence resume and recall the times you and your putter were on good terms. This can help preserve your confidence and provide a foundation for building it.
Step 2: Body Language
How we position our body in space can increase and decease specific hormones needed to feel confident. In fact, a famous study by Dr. Amy Cuddy showed standing in a powerful pose for just a minute can begin to increase testosterone (an important hormone in confident feelings) and decrease cortisol (a hormone aiding in the feelings of stress). Powerful poses include standing tall with your hands on your hips, raising your chin slightly, sticking your chest out, and expanding your body in space. If you hit a shot you are unhappy with, avoid lowering your head, slouching your posture and making yourself smaller. Stand tall, look ahead at the challenge awaiting and seize the opportunity!
Step 3: Create A Mantra
Create a meaningful phrase or sentence serving as inspirational for you when times get tough. ‘I’ve got this,’ ‘I know I can,’ or even ‘Stay calm – it’s all good’ can be helpful mantras you repeat to yourself throughout the round. The words we say to ourselves impact our self-beliefs—so why not make them inspirational and powerful? When you have a mantra you can repeat over an over when things get tough on the course, it will help redirect your brain from going down a dark hole of frustration and anger. Keeping your mind focused on the present and the task at hand is vitally important to building your confidence.
Practicing these three steps to building your confidence will improve the strength and accessibility to confidence when you need it most. Golf can be hard sometimes, and we can make it even harder on ourselves-so having a reservoir of confidence will come in handy and help your performance on the golf course.
