Ultimate Golf Blog

Now there’s no argument about the fastest way to improve your golf game… And ANYONE can do it!

New Research has shown exactly what happens in the brain during PROPER practice to create supercharged improvement at any task, including golf. This new research shows shocking new evidence that proves:

Skill IS learned rather than a gift.

Translated: You can achieve anything you set your mind to.

Daniel Coyle has written a book called ,”The Talent Code” that goes through the process that takes place in a person’s mind when they practice any activity properly. He also studied various hotbeds of talent around the world to pin down this new skill secret. If you wish to excel at anything, this book is a must read.

So what is the difference between those who appear gifted and those who seem to work much harder, but cannot seem to achieve the same level of competency?

During any activity specific neurons in the brain fire depending on the activity. Whenever those neurons fire they get wrapped with a material called Myelin. The myelin protects the “circuit”, but more importantly, as more myelin wraps that neuron, the better and faster that neuron can fire. In other words, repetitive firing of those neurons turns their communication circuits in the brain from ‘dial-up” to T-1 high speed Broadband.

So if you want a higher degree of mastery, build more myelin! But it’s not that easy or we would all be masters…

What separates the masters of any field from the average Joe struggling to improve?

Proper practice. As a golfer I’ve heard one phrase quoted often but all too quickly ignored…

Practice DOES NOT make perfect; PERFECT practice make perfect.

Science has now proven this to be true and discovered what constitutes perfect practice. There is a lot more than constant repetition to achieve mastery.

Consider that Ben Hogan turned his game around in a couple short years from a struggling pro who fought a nasty hook to one of the most controlled, accurate golfers of all time.

To this day, the golf magazines write articles about one certain technique or another that Hogan used to achieve his accuracy… But they completely missed the boat, because…

His secret wasn’t in his technique… It was HOW HE DEVELOPED HIS TECHNIQUE! In other words, his practice technique.

You see, even back in the fifties the methods proven by this new research were already in use… And Hogan was one of the few who used them.

Hogan practiced in such a way as to accelerate this process researchers have discovered inside the brain. But this doesn’t just work for golf. It works whether you are; playing tennis, soccer, the cello, piano, or even learning to overcome shyness!

As long as you practice properly, so that you enage this newly discovered process of myelination in the brain, you can improve any ability at exponential speed.

So what constitutes proper practice?

There are a number of elements:

• Focused practice - all attention should be aimed toward every detail of each practice session.
• Breakdown of movement to smaller movements - Each component of an activity should be mastered separately so that the whole activity doesn’t blur the details of smaller parts. The more detailed the practice, the more neurons get wrapped so that the resulting movement is more exact.
• Accurate practice - Every movement needs to be compared to a “map” to immediately catch and correct mistakes. Mistakes need to be corrected immediately and constantly so that every repetition fires the same neurons to cause the brain to put more wraps on the circuit.
• Passion - because it takes an immense amount of energy to focus so closely and accurately during practice.

So, how did Hogan practice to achieve his turn-around?

Hogan used to take hours to hit only 40 balls. He would hit a golf ball, take a drag from his cigarette, and ponder each shot for a while before he hit the next. He practiced to correct errors and repeat only exact movement. Hogan often practiced his swing movements in slow motion to insure exact movement. He used the balance feedback felt in his feet to create a map he could accurately compare every swing to to insure exact movement.

But there is so much more than the golf swing that makes up a great golf shots. For the rest of the golf shot, a golfer must have excellent focus because he or she must use both the conscious and subconscious mind together to consider all of the variables and decide on the perfect shot shape and spin. Although the swing hits the ball, focus puts each individual swing together that a specific shot requires.

The ability to customize any shot comes from practicing in small parts before reassembling the whole swing. There is the setup, the backswing, transition and downswing and each of these parts can be broken down into smaller parts. Each part may have slight variations that need to be practiced as well so that each individual shot “package” can be created as needed for the varying situations that each shot presents on the golf course.

Hogan was consciously aware of every detail of his body’s movement during his practice. Hogan also practiced his FOCUS technique so he could play without distractions, and properly plan and execute every golf shot. Hogan was not only building his golf swing neurons, he also built up his focus neurons, Something Tiger has done as well.

Now for some bad news…
Because of the degree of focus and attention needed during practice, this also proves that Muscle Memory is the slowest way to groove a golf swing. Your muscles cannot act to engage the mind into the process of remembering your golf swing. Because practitioners of Muscle Memory believe that they can passively engage the brain through mere repetition, they are basically… Wasting most of their time! Sorry guys, but proof is proof.

All of this focus and mistake correction sounds like a lot of hard work doesn’t it? The advantage if done properly is that you can condense 8 hours of practice into 30 minutes or less.

I was teaching golfers world-wide these very practice techniques long before scientists discovered the myelination process and since the start, have been hearing my students rave about how quickly they are improving…

And these methods are easier to use and they still get much faster results than current mainstream teaching methods… And now science has proven the value of this type of practice. (If you can’t tell, I’m a little excited about this.)

This is the very same process with which I was able to successfully teach 1000’s of golfers around the world to quickly and permanently improve their golf games using just the written Golf Swing Control Manual over the last 8 years.

More specifically, what Golf Swing Control has done is to show golfers how to make sure they practice accurately and with the type of focus that generates the myelination process in the brain for the fastest improvement of their whole golf game.

If you have Golf Swing Control and haven’t seen the results I’m talking about here, go back to the manual and read these two chapters:

• “Practice for Quick Improvement”
• “Programming Feel Into Your Game”

And pay attention to DETAIL, because that’s what builds myelin on your neurons.

You may have heard me talking about boosting the abilities of your brain’s communication circuits by using Balance Feedback as the basis of visual focus during movement. Well, what I’ve been saying all of these years has finally been scientifically proven .

My current project, Bio-Visual Focus is another step toward exact practice and super stimulation of the myelination process, but this process is targeted specifically at the neurons that control focus. Bio-Visual Focus is the process I use with better golfers to give them the super-focus to get the final fine-tuning it takes to consistently shoot those sub-par round it takes to win consistently on the PGA Tour. The side effects I have seen of super accuracy and consistency are amazing even to me!

Now before you start writing me emails about Bio-Visual Focus, it’s only for better players
(hcp 4 or less). It is the next level for professionals or those who have mastered the practice techniques in Golf Swing Control. If you want to learn ultimate focus, you must have a legitimate 4 or better handicap OR have mastered the practice techniques in Golf Swing Control (in which case, you’ll probably have or be very near a 4 hcp.)

If you don’t have Golf Swing Control, this new scientific evidence should prove that it is the best method to gain your fastest improvement for your golf game… Even if you can only practice at home during the off season! As I’ve always said, if you do nothing, nothing will change. If you want fast permanent results, get Golf Swing Control. You won’t regret it.

Stay tuned for more cutting edge golf…

Hit’m well,
Tracy
www.golfswingcontrol.com

Popularity: 3%

I’ve had more questions about this new process for getting into the Zone on the golf course so I’ll try to answer these questions here.

Golfers want to know how getting into balance gets them into the zone and now that I think about it, it does sound too easy.

The proper use of Dynamic Balance is just the first step. Here’s why getting into the Zone is so hard to accomplish…

The zone has been described as that place where you play flawlessly without thought, but have you ever thought about what is really happening?

We are of two minds, the conscious and subconscious. The conscious mind is in charge, making decisions, asking questions, analyzing situations, and interfacing with the outside world as needed. The subconscious is the worker, running all of the body functions, storing all memory, and providing information to the conscious mind as needed.

The conscious mind cannot control more than one function at a time, while the subconscious controls many all of the time. When it comes to the golf swing, the conscious mind tells the subconscious that it wants to make a golf swing, and what type of golf swing to make, but it’s up to the subconscious to translate the intentions of the conscious mind and create the body movement for that golf swing.

Here’s where the mind starts to work against itself. If the shot doesn’t turn out as the conscious has planned, it starts to ask why, doubting the ability of the subconscious to accomplish the task. Since the conscious is the boss, it will try to accomplish the task itself Unfortunately, the conscious can only do this with the cooperation of the subconscious mind, which it is already second-guessing. If this sounds like a typical Boss-Employee relationship, you may get an idea of how bad the communication between the two parties can get. The result is what pros call their “C” game, where they have to grind it out and play defensively.

So what really happens when a golfer is in the zone?

Basically, the conscious turns off and the subconscious is free to create each golf swing without interruption. This is rare because the conscious mind doesn’t shut off unless you are asleep. What is actually happening is that the conscious is simply allowing the subconscious to work without question or doubt. It usually starts when a golfer starts the round with a few perfect shots. The conscious approves of the subconscious’ work and simply allows it to continue.

The Zone is fleeting because somewhere during the round or after the round, the golfer has time to contemplate what has happened, and starts trying to figure it out… Consciously. Once the conscious gets involved it becomes the distraction once again that keeps the subconscious from running at peak efficiency.

So how does Dynamic Balance cure this problem?

Dynamic Balance works through live feedback from the body. The feedback is normally used only by the subconscios mind, but if you ask to see it (consciously) the subconscious will show you what it sees, giving the conscious mind a peek into how the subconscious can accomplish a complicated task like the golf swing consistently. This opens up the communication system between the subconscious and body to the conscious mind.

Next, I simply train the golfer how to read the feedback and then, how to use it consciously in conjunction with the subconscious to improve the communication with the body. This process aligns both minds toward the same goal, improving focus during the golf swing, and improving consistency and accuracy.

How does this block out distraction?

Since the conscious mind is not usually part of the swing process, it must try to be quiet during the 1.5 seconds of each swing, but to the conscious mind, 1.5 second is an eternity. So if there is any outside stimulation for the conscious mind, it will divert its attention to it, which unfortunately also acts as a smaller distraction to the subconscious at the same time. By aligning both minds toward the same cause and involving the conscious mind, it will become more apt to ignore outside distractions during the swing.

Here’s the bonus:

Since the two minds are working together, they can also share talents. The subconscious mind doesn’t analyze things. It only recalls events for the conscious to analyze. Well, when the shot is on its way, the subconscious can clearly recall the swing so the conscious can analyze the movement and correct any errors, storing the correction into memory for any following golf swings.

Instant feedback and instant correction…Which means a few bad shots no longer mean a golfer is resigned to grinding out a round with his “C” game. Instead, the golfer can identify the errors and fix them to improve the round rather than struggle with it.

Not only does this help you focus on the golf course, but since both minds are working together, the process reduces mental stress on the golf course, making your rounds truly relaxing.

What more can you ask for? Can you see why I say that this is one of golf’s greatest breakthroughs?

Hit’m well,

Tracy

Popularity: 4%

I wanted to give subscribers to this blog the first notification…

Good news and bad news…

I have discovered and tested the keys to the highest goal in golf - The Zone… That place where you play over your head… Out of your mind… And you don’t know why.

I have tested my process on a small number of better golfers. The results are beyond amazing. Golfers who were playing in the low 70’s now routinely break 68, with 65’s and better becoming commonplace… Under the pressure of competition!

Now, you can get into The Zone at will… That’s the good news.

Now for the bad news…

This discovery comes with certain caveats… What I have discovered will only work for golfers who are ready for it. But there is more good news…

Golf Swing Control gets golfers ready to enter The Zone.

So you might be thinking that for years thousands of scientists with multiple letters behind there names have been trying to make this discovery… How did I do it?

Well, I looked where they didn’t, of course! Actually, the answer was in front of me for years and I just didn’t see it. Let me explain…

To play “perfect” golf, your body has to perform flawlessly, so how is that possible? The body gets its instructions from the subconscious mind, so for perfect performance, the instructions the mind gives the body must be crystal clear and without interruption… Which brings up the age old wive’s tale about “Muscle Memory.”

It’s believed that through repetition, the mind will store muscle movement into memory so it can be repeated in a controlled manner later. So is it true or not?

Look at a simple scenario for the answer. What happens when a person trips? The body automatically reacts by throwing out arms or legs to counter-balance the imbalance… Instantaneously, without thought or the use of “Muscle Memory.” So how does it happen?

Think about this question… Why do we have muscles in the first place? Did you know that astronauts who stay in space too long risk muscle atrophy? We have muscles to overcome the forces of gravity.

We have an auto balance system for the same reason… Gravity.

You see, the auto-balance system works based on balance feedback from the body, and when the body gets out of balance, the auto balance system takes over control of the muscles, using the same network.

The muscles may use some of the memory stored for any movement, but control of the muscles is live and it’s based on the same live feedback that the auto-balance system uses.

Tapping into the Auto-Balance System is the first key toward controlling The Zone. Good news… That’s just what Golf Swing Control teaches golfers to do. The Auto-Balance System is the link between the mind and body, and we use 24/7 already. All I did was tap into it to use the system to improve your body movement during the golf swing.

The trick to getting into The Zone is in the process of how you use your Auto-Balance System but believe it or not, the trick is in getting the conscious and subconscious minds working together toward focusing on the same goal. When done properly, your power of focus doubles.

The other caveat… And this is why I reserve this instruction only for the best players… You cannot be “swing-bound” if you are to get to the level of The Zone. Golfers who are stuck on the swing, need to look deeper. If you have Golf Swing Control, the course really isn’t meant to be swing instruction, but rather  swing understanding. The control comes from using your balance feedback.

If you haven’t started using the balance feedback routines in golf swing control, let go of swing mechanics and start working on control. When you do, the swing will take care of itself.

In the mean time, I’d like to hear your experiences with The Zone.

Hit’m well,

Tracy

Popularity: 4%

Between Tiger not making the cut, and Watson not making the putt, I have been at a loss for words. Both of my heros fell short and I’ve been mourning a bit. So late as it is, this is the answer to Tiger’s issues. I’ll get to Watson in an upcoming article…

Tiger was the favorite to win The Open, but somehow, he failed to bring his “A” game. So what really happened?

Is there a weak spot in Tiger’s armor? I believe there is…

Tiger has been fighting that block to the right mainly with his driver for years. Why does he do it? Well, most instructors, including Hank Haney would probably blame the timing of his hands during the downswing. After all, the block happens because the hands are getting “stuck” behind the turn of the body… Right?

Tiger’s problem at the Open was that Hank wasn’t there to help him tweak his timing. Kind of amazing if you think about how many amateurs have swings built completely on timing. If Tiger has a hard time with it, how successful can the average amateur be, without the practice or access to the top instructors that Tiger has?

So it’s just timing, right? Well, so far… But that is usually where most instructors stop their analysis. The real question is why does it happen?

Well, on occasions where Tiger hits the driver well, he gets his hands through in good time, so it has to be the hands… Right?

Wrong!

Tiger’s problem on his driver when he blocks the ball is that his hips open too far too fast. When that happens, it is nearly impossible for a human to get their hands to “catch up.” Now and then, Tiger does… But that’s Tiger.

See, Tiger is firing his hips for all it is worth for extra distance on the driver. What he needs to figure out is a way to control the timing of his hips, not his hands. So how can he do that?

If you have studied Golf Swing Control, you know you control the hips by controlling the weight felt in the feet. You know that by keeping a certain intention during transition, you can control the hips and the whole left side during the downswing. And it’s much easier to do than trying to time the fast firing muscles of the arms and hands for every swing… No matter how much you practice.

So, if Tiger wants to get his driver under control, he needs to quit trying to time the hands and become more aware of his feet.

Tiger, If you’re reading this, call me. I can fix it in about 15 minutes. I mean it.

Hit’m well,
Tracy

Popularity: 6%

This is just a quick note about the Traveler’s Championship. Kenny Perry won and Paul Goydos was real close. Neither of them has a pretty swing… But did anyone notice their setup routine?

Granted, it wasn’t strict GSC setup, but there were both stepping in with the right foot and keeping the clubhead grounded behind the ball as the looked down range and set their feet…HMMM!

I didn’t teach them this directly or they would have hit the ball even better, but it shows that this setup routine does a lot to make up for a not-so-perfect golf swing. Maybe they saw it on the website… You never know who’s watching.

If you haven’t used the setup routine, check it out. The link is over on the right.

Regards,

Tracy

Popularity: 7%