Most advice you read on the pre-shot routine is about getting your body in position to hit the shot. The question remains, are you mentally prepared to hit the shot? To say yes, I would recommend you initiate a mind-body visualization loop.

Visualization is allowing what you see between yourself and your target to create an impression in your mind of what shot to hit and how to hit it. This impression then becomes lodged in the body as well. Your body becomes a physical expression of your mind – not taking orders from the mind, but the mind made manifest.

This kind of visualization is not the same as watching a movie in your mind of the ball going where you want it to go. That’s just wishful thinking. It’s more like tossing a wad of paper into a wastebasket from a few feet away. First you look at the waste basket, get a feeling for just how hard to toss the paper, and ride on that feeling as you let the paper go.

You start with the result you want and work backwards through your mind creating a physical impression of what the body has to do. Then you move in just that way. The process takes only a few seconds once you get used to it.

Though you can’t be on the golf course without any technique at all, after acquiring a basic grasp of how to hit different shots, it all comes down to feel. If you spend a few moments just looking at what lies in front of you, without pre-judging how you’re going to deal with it, the right solution will present itself to you every time.

Add this mind-body visualization to your practice routine so it can come out on the course. You may use it for every shot you hit, from drive to putt.

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