How To Overcome First Tee Nerves
We humans are creatures of habit and far happier staying in our comfort zones than stretching out and trying something new.
Many of us understand the theory of ‘fear and flight' and that a quick decision to run was very necessary in cave man days; especially if there was the possibility of a Sabre Tooth Tiger eyeing you up as ‘dish of the day'. To simplify what is going on in your brain and also how your body reacts in any emotionally charged situation we can look to the behaviour of the early cave man. At this point in evolution the ‘cave man' was not noted for his intellectual prowess, he had only the mental tools to make an ‘emotional decision' – a ‘gut reaction' as we call it today. So he would feel or ‘sense' danger and would react very quickly.
Over time man's intellectual abilities have evolved, but accessing the intellectual part of our brain still takes longer (even if it is only a milli-second). So when we sense danger we still react through our emotions; both emotionally and physically. Thousands of years ago this could have meant the difference between life and death – nowadays on the golf course it just seems like it!
It is strange that we still feel this anxious knot in our stomachs when faced with a situation that takes us out of our comfort zone, but we need to put some perspective on what is going on otherwise reacting so instinctively can result in poorly executed shots. Take ‘first tee nerves' for example – most players want to take that first shot as quickly as possible and just get out of there as the pressure of other people watching how we play can over-take any rational thinking!
This emotional response is all well and good if you are running out of a wood to save your life from an ensuing animal, but you honestly do not need to react so quickly on a golf course. You can take your time and this is where so many amateurs and professionals can make mistakes. They want to get it over and done with as quickly as possible. You know that feeling don't you? This does not, however, help in achieving the results that you want in order to play great golf.
This is where learning to understand what happens to you will help you change what you have always done. You need to learn how to give yourself time to get yourself into a good place emotionally and physically before taking your next shot.
By learning how to compose yourself in any anxious situation, controlling your emotional responses, and allowing your intellect enough time to give you a truer picture of what is going on, your self-talk has time to give you a positive outlook and support you in the belief that you are prepared and more than capable to make a great shot.
Here are some tips to help:
1. Take your time – learn to take a breath and relax your shoulders – then in this more relaxed state take a practice swing. When done properly and repeated in your pre-shot routine every time will create a trigger and help your confidence. Make sure you repeat the breathing and relaxing of the shoulders when you take your proper shot - this is essential for a good golf swing and will result in a more consistent and winning drive off your first tee.
2. Learn to switch off that mind-chatter by giving your sub-conscious just one word or thought to concentrate on such as focus or commit! Or why not count yourself through the shot as soon as you begin the back swing. This will help with tempo and cutting out any negative mind chatter.
3. Visualise exactly where you want the ball to end up. Our thoughts follow what we last visualised so always hit towards your goals and not away from the hazards.
4. Follow through.
Over centuries of evolution our emotions have controlled us in order that we can face predicaments and tasks that we feel are way too important to leave to intellect alone; for many of us this is never more evident than on the golf course. The one thing though that would help us from giving into our emotions, and to take the control back lies in just one word ... Trust! You have hit many good drives in your time on the golf course so trust that you can and will do it again and again including at the first tee.
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