Brain Training For Better Golf Performance

          Are you analytical, good with numbers, practical and like to be in control? Chances are that you tend to use more of your left brain in your every day life. Right brain dominate people are the opposite; creative, more reactionary, they just let it happen. To be good at Golf, you need to learn to train both sides to work together and independently. How do we do that?
First, you need to learn how to practice or what I call, purposeful practice. If you go to the range without a game plan, you are wasting your time. Here is your game plan. Lets first concentrate on the left side of the brain at the range. The range is great to train the left side, but it needs to be trained with drills. Drills, practicing positions, etc. are all left side dominate ways of thinking because they are very analytical.
Say that you are working on your weight shift to your left side at impact. To best train your left brain all you need to do is preform the drill over and over again. Try to perfect the drill as much as possible. This is your chance to be analytical! Then once you think you have it, try a bigger swing without thinking about it. Just feel it. If the move sticks then you have started to move into your right side of the brain.
The key to moving from the left side to the right side of the brain is by trusting the moves that you have been drilling without thinking about it. That lack of trust is why there are so many good range players and so many bad golfers. When you have developed trust and stopped analyzing, you will begin to play out of the right side of your brain, which is more reactionary and that make your swing less “robotic” and more athletic. To further train your right side, you need to start to visualize shots, and try to “turn off” your brain like Jordan Speith says he does when he plays his best.
The next time you want to practice, remember that your need to have purposeful practice and a game plan! Train the left analytical side at the range and leave it there! Then turn that creative and reactionary right side on when you go to the course. If you can do that, your game will hit the next level!


Jared Danford, PGA, TPI, RST, USKG
www.danfordgolfinstruction.com