Put your ego aside and play realistic pars golf.
You’re not Rory McIlroy, and one of golf’s top mental instructors has some bad news for you. “It’s absurd to expect you to go out and shoot under your handicap when the greens are bad and the weather is bad,” explains Dr. Karl Morris. “As a result, I always meet with my clients at this time of year to explain the concept of realistic couple.”
This basically means that I want golfers to stop thinking that their course is the same par all year round and instead think about adding strokes to par to compensate for course conditions during the winter months.
“Given the state of UK courses between November and February, and the harshness of our weather, I don’t think it is unreasonable for us to add two strokes to the par of the course for every nine, making a par-68 course par 72, and so on.”
The point is not to be pessimistic; rather, by being realistic you can increase your chances of having a more confident winter.”
Still not convinced? To see how big this revelation is, try it on for size. “As a mental exercise, realistic par is quite similar to Earl Wood’s ‘Tiger Par’ concept when Tiger was growing up,” explains Morris.
“The concept behind ‘Tiger Par’ was that Tiger was too young to hit par, so instead of trying and failing over and over again, he focused on hitting a more realistic score known as ‘Tiger Par’.
Practice your swing on a golf simulator.
Although the evenings are dark, there are plenty of indoor sites across the country where you can play St Andrews and Pebble Beach. Although putting is a bit hit-or-miss, indoor simulators are great for driving and hitting irons.
Utilize the winter greens
We’re serious about this. Temporary greens won’t help you with your putting, but they will help you with other aspects of your game. “Because the winter greens are smaller, distance control is more important,” explains PGA professional and TG teacher Steven Orr (www.stevenorrcoaching.com). “Aiming at smaller targets requires us to think more about the shot, which improves your iron game and focus.
Another advantage of wintergreens is their geographical location. They are usually in front of the garden, reducing the length of the fairway and ensuring that everyone is hitting shorter irons on target. As a result, we can improve our wedge game without even realizing it.”
Play with a high visibility yellow golf ball.
Yellow balls were once the domain of driving ranges and hard to find cheap balls. But several premium versions from Titleist, Srixon, Bridgestone and Wilson are now yellow.
Serious golfers often avoid yellow golf balls, but they perform as well as white golf balls and are easier to spot among leaves or frost.
“Science has determined that yellow is the most visible color in the spectrum, making it incredibly easy to see even from long distances,” said Dean Cracknell, Srixon Golf’s Custom-Fit Manager.
Green has also been linked to calmness and stress reduction in psychological studies. To achieve this relaxing effect, our Tour Yellow balls are mostly yellow with a touch of green.”
Srixon’s designers did thorough visibility testing to evaluate how much easier the Tour Yellow golf ball is to see compared to the Pure White version, and the Tour Yellow golf ball was twice as easy to see at 225 yards.
Keep a warm and active body.
“You don’t want alcohol in your veins because it lowers your core and peripheral body temperatures. Instead, the key is increasing your metabolism by consuming foods or drinks stimulating the nervous system or making your body work harder. This can be accomplished with a couple of cups of strong coffee. Still, other recommended options include green tea, which raises body temperature and is believed to benefit blood pressure (drink two or three cups an hour before the round).
Coconut milk helps you maintain your energy levels throughout the day by raising your body temperature (consume 100-200 ml about an hour before the round). And protein raises body temperature (eat 150g of lean red meat, chicken or pork an hour before your match, or drink a 30g protein shake).”
