To play great golf you want to be in a coherent state, physically, mentally, and emotionally. In the coherent state you are able to be present, think clearly, manage your emotions, and react intuitively. From this measurable coherent state you have the greatest chance of making your best swing to get the golf ball to the desired targets.
Last month's column talked about how focusing on heart rhythm, not heart rate, is what gets you into the coherent state. Lowering heart rate helps you relax, but at times you need a higher heart rate to be energized and in control. Most golfers play the game for the passion and enjoyment of it. You don't want to lose that passion; you want to use and direct it for high performance. It's the coordination of your emotions and coherence of your heart rate rhythm that gets you into the coherent state and then into "the Zone" of high performance. New research and technologies from the Institute of HeartMath, such as the Freeze-Framer(r) heart rhythm coherence monitor, are helping hundreds of golfers manage their emotions and heart rhythms and get in "the Zone" on demand.
Laird Small, 2003 PGA Teacher of the Year and member of HeartMath's Golf Advisory Team says, "I have found in my life using the skills of HearthMath and the Freeze Framer that I am able to get into the Zone and stay in the Zone. I have also discovered, when my students use the Freeze Framer how they are able to control their breathing, mindset and heart rate and get in the Zone. Most of us have experienced those times when everything flowed smoothly and we couldn't miss a shot. We knew we were in the Zone. But we didn't know how to get back to it. In working with my students, I see how easily they are distracted and get out of the Zone. What is wonderful to see now with the Freeze-Framer is how quickly and easily they can reconnect and get it back. It is showing them that they have control over their golf emotions. They are entering the area of emotional intelligence, which golf requires if you want to play this game successfully or get to the next level.
"Peak Performance comes when our mind is clear and we can focus on the target. It is when we hit our best and most memorable shots. They are etched in our golfing lives. We strive to repeat them and look everywhere to do so. I feel that golf is a game of skill in so many different ways, not just swinging a club and running it into the ball. It is also a game of mind skill. Some call it mental toughness and others call it the Zone. I think it really means not losing your focus.
"Just like a certain skill is required to strike the ball over a bunker off a tight lie, a similar skill is required to quiet our minds and allow the skills we have practiced on the range to come out. We have to get to the point where we can shut-out the mechanical and allow the trust and the hours of work on the range to be expressed. We have to realize that when golfers play this game they are standing on a tee and often all they see is trouble, i.e. trees, OB, water, rough, bunkers. Now if they don't trust their swing, it is difficult to see the narrow focus of the target. They are emotionally distracted, if not by the course then by the shot they need to play or the swing or the people with whom they are playing. The Freeze-Framer gives clear helpful techniques to help golfers get control of their emotions and helps to re-channel their energy positively. It will allow your best golf to come out more often and stay longer. I think you will get more joy out of the game with the help of the Freeze-Framer and that is why we play this great game. Conquering the emotions is just as important as fixing your swing and maybe more so. Your attitude will determine your productivity."
Getting into the Zone can be part of your pre-shot routine just like aiming the golf club. Ideally you want to be in the Zone every time you address the ball. In other words, you want smooth access to all of your abilities: your emotional power, technical skills, intuition, clear thinking, coordination, focus and confidence.
During a round of golf there are many internal attitudes that can create "noise in your system." It could be your own doubt, impatience, or anxiety. It could be a nervous twitch or the yips that has you worried. It could be challenging weather, an unlucky bounce, or an opponent saying something that rattles you. The key to getting in the Zone, and staying there, is to be aware of this stress or noise, then quickly use a clinically proven method to manage the emotions and bring your heart rhythms back into coherence. One such method is HeartMath's "Quick Coherence(tm)" technique. Briefly, you focus your attention on your heart, then breathe as if you're breathing through your heart slowly for a few seconds, then find something to feel appreciation for while you're breathing through the heart. It's the positive feeling for what you're appreciating (not the thoughts about it) synchronized with heart breathing that creates coherence. You can watch how this works if you practice Quick Coherence with the Freeze-Framer heart rhythm monitor and see your heart rhythms change into a smooth and coherent pattern as your emotions and attitude change. You can advance through four coherence levels as you practice with the Freeze-Framer to get deeper in the Zone, which it also measures.
Before you play a round or before a tournament, you can train with the Freeze-Framer at home or at work. We also suggest, if possible, having the Freeze-Framer loaded on a laptop computer on the practice tee with you. As stressful or irritating thoughts and emotions arise, watch your heart rhythms go into a disordered, incoherent mode, then practice Quick Coherence and watch them shift back to a smooth, coherent mode. It only takes a minute or two. After practicing with the Freeze-Framer, go back to hitting shots and making putts. Notice the difference in your swing rhythm, feel, and focus after practicing to achieve a coherent state.
Golf situations the Freeze-Framer can help you improve:
* pre-shot routine
* post-shot routine
* maintaining focus and confidence
* learning the golf swing and other shots in the game
* anxiety over a particular shot or particular hole
* nervousness over an important tournament
* frustration over a missed shot or penalty situation
* emotional disappointment and drain of a bad hole or round
* having the yips or other nervous twitches
* giving a victory speech
Everyone is bound to hit some bad golf shots at times. How quickly you "bounce back" and manage your emotions and attitude is what makes a great game. By practicing getting in the Zone before you play, and building an internal reference for the Zone that you recalibrate to while you play, you can achieve and maintain peak physiological and performance states during golf practice and competition.
Deborah Rozman is a high performance psychologist, author, President and co-CEO of Quantum Intech, Inc. (QI) a technology company that develops and licenses products and services that reduce stress, improve health, and increase performance based on the HeartMath? System For more information about on the HeartMath? System, visit www.quantumintech.com or www.golf.freezeframer.com.
Laird Small is Director of the Pebble Beach Golf Academy. He has received many honors, including 2003 PGA Teacher of the Year award and NCPGA's Northern California Teacher of the Year in 1996. Small has been named consistently by Golf Magazine as one of the country's "Top 100 Teachers," which is one of the most prestigious honors a golf professional can attain. He has the rare ability to combine premier playing abilities with the gift of teaching golf acumen. Small was Head Professional for nine years at Spyglass Hill Golf Course before directing the Pebble Beach Academy. He was instrumental in developing the AT&T Pebble Beach Junior Golf Association and is a past president of the group, which introduces youngsters to golf through scholarships, clinics, and tournaments.
Coming Next Month: "Getting Rid of the YIPS through Heart-Brain Synchronization" How to manage your emotions and nervous system to relieve the yips.
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