Your ability to focus is the key to breaking 80 consistently. If you’re distracted during a shot, you lose focus. Do it on too many shots during a round and your score will reflect that. Do it on too many shots during a season and your golf handicap will reflect that as well. Focus is that important. Put another way, staying focused while hitting a shot is among the most precious assets you have on the course. Improve your golf focus with these drills below.
But staying focused when hitting a shot is hard. Too often we anticipate too much. Our minds race ahead to the shot’s outcome instead of concentrating on the shot. That causes poor swings. To generate good swings consistently, you need to learn to focus on the task at hand. By that I mean you need to keep your conscious mind quiet throughout the shot or think about something in the present during the entire motion. That’s hard to do because of the time between shots.
Nevertheless, you can learn to focus better. But to do it, you need to practice this skill to sharpen it. Below are several golf drills that will help you boost focus when playing. That, in turn, increases consistency and ballstriking, helping you play better and chop strokes off your golf handicap:
- Balance — This drill improves your stability and teaches you to swing without a mind full of bad thoughts: Make a few swings with or without a ball with both feet together. Make at least five swings. Now, lift your left foot off the ground and make five more swings. Then, lift your right foot off the ground and make five more swings. Finally, close your eyes and make five more swings.
- Tempo — This golf drill gets you to focus on one simple thing—the duration/rhythm of your swing: Hit five balls where your swing takes a full five seconds to complete from beginning to end. Next, hit five balls where your swing takes four seconds to complete from beginning to end. After that, hit five balls where your swing takes three seconds to complete. Then do it again for two seconds. Note at which tempo you hit the balls best. Use that tempo when playing.
Feel — Anxiety can ruin shots because it prevents you from feeling the clubhead do the work. This golf drill improves the ability to feel the clubhead. Without a ball make practice swings in a bunker. Focus on the clubhead when swinging. Visualize how it moves and how it interacts with the sand as well as the distance you want the ball to travel. Be conscious of the move and how it feels. Then do the same with a ball in the bunker. Don’t worry about results. Stay focused on the clubhead.
Timing — Timing is critical to hitting good shots. This drill helps you improve the timing of your swing, including synching the clubhead, your arms, and your body: Line up five balls on the practice range in a single row. Then hit them in a continuous flow. Say the word “hit” the moment you strike each ball. If say “hit” early, you’re anticipating the shot. If you say “hit” right at impact, you’re on time and staying focused.
Tension — When facing pressure putts, golfers tense up and try to control their strokes. This golf drill relaxes you and takes your mind off of controlling the stroke: Find a bright-colored ball. Place it about a foot from a hole. Now stare at it for 10 or 15 seconds. Let the ball fill your vision. Release any tension you have in your arms and hands. When you’re ready, putt the ball, but keep your eyes fixed on the ground where the ball was. You should see a dark spot about the size of the ball, which will soon fade away. Do this 10 times.
Working on these five golf drills will improve your ability to stay focused when playing. Staying focused boosts consistency and ballstriking—two keys to breaking 80. Improve in these 5 areas and you’ll not only break 80 but also lower your golf handicap.
