Month: August 2017

Think On Your Feet

maggie@will2golf.comMaggie August 26, 2017
Just when you think you are completely prepared for anything, you get a shot or situation that you have never experienced. Two important things to remember: 
 
1. Always be prepared to expect the unexpected. This mindset will lower anxiety when you get into an unknown situation.
 
2. Golf is about processing information. Golf requires thinking on your feet. What experiences can you draw upon to help solve the current situation? It is sort of like baking a cake when out of butter. What other ingredients can be added to make your cake taste good?
When the shot appears to be new, use past experiences to figure out how to hit the shot that seems unfamiliar. You probably have a bigger library of shots than you think. Your brain has temporarily frozen. Tap your foot on the ground and start thinking on your feet!

Practice Hard

maggie@will2golf.comMaggie August 26, 2017
Practice Hard, Play Easy

Apply pressure in practice.

When you make your games difficult and create stress during practice, two things happen:

1. You learn to handle pressure and build a Library of Confidence to draw upon when pressure occurs in competition.
2. You learn how to think on your feet and process information more quickly which makes competition less stressful.

 

                                      

Conversation with Karen Palacios-Jansen

maggie@will2golf.comMaggie August 25, 2017

Join Maggie as she speaks with Charlotte (NC) based instructor, Karen Palacios-Jansen, LPGA Teacher of the Year and Top 50 Instructor.  Karen explains the benefits of fitness for overall health and your golf game.  Take the 30-day challenge at www.cardiogolf.com.

Dreams Do Come True

maggie@will2golf.comMaggie August 22, 2017

Dreams Do Come True

I have read this article several times and keep it on my desk.  I made it a goal to reach out to Coach Brian Hearn (now at Centre College) and recently spoke with him. I was not disappointed as he recounted the article and we shared our thoughts.  Ironically, I have known Coach Brian Craig (U of Kentucky) for 25 years.  We had the same instructor when he as a junior golfer and I was in college.  Small World of Golf!

The journey of Coach Hearn and Evan Cox confirmed to me again that dreams do come true and sometimes they take different routes than we expect! Coach Hearn says, “Make the most of where you are and work hard because you never know what your future holds!”

Having been to several NJCAA events as well as D-II and D-III events this year, I have been impressed by the events they play as well as the passion of the coaches.  They understand that sometimes you need a place and a little extra time to get to your goal.

Why Practice?

maggie@will2golf.comMaggie August 22, 2017

Why Practice? 

 …or HOW to Prepare for Competition?

How many times are you great at practice and poor in competition?  Probably more than you would like.  It is time to stop “practicing” and start having proper preparation for competition.

Let’s think of it in terms of your classroom studies.  Would you study your history notes in preparation for your calculus exam?  Would you casually look over your Physics notes in preparation for an AP Physics exam.  I think not.
Yet, I constantly witness young golfers preparing for the test in golf (competition days) randomly and haphazardly… no pressure, no commitment, happy-go-lucky, I got this sort of focus.

 

Practice Hard, Play Easy

(Secret of My Success)

 

“I believe the purpose of practice is to prepare for competition by challenging yourself .”

~Maggie

 

Apply pressure in practice to learn YOUR tendencies and teach YOURSELF ways to overcome them.  Every elite business or athletic professional has learned to limit their tendencies under pressure using their OWN little aids and tricks. (Keep a little notebook in your golf bag.) YOUR tendencies will never go away under pressure.  Stop thinking they will.  (Just ask Sergio Garcia, 2017 Masters Champion).  However, YOU can learn to contain and limit YOUR tendencies. (Like plugging up holes in a sinking boat.)

Teach yourself to have fun building the “house of pain” in practice so that you can learn how to limit your “crumble” in competition. The crumble happens to everyone… even on their best days.  Teach yourself to manage it. Guess what? You will learn the ability to smile at adversity in competition and excel under pressure.

I hope you saw Jordan Spieth play some this week.  He did not have his “A” game, but he fought through his adversity and holed a bunker shot to win the play-off!  I know for a fact that he challenges himself in his practice to prepare for just that very moment!  Are you pushing yourself in your practice to be ready for your moment?

Find out How to Prepare for Competition in Maggie Notes