Most amateurs have a hard time focusing on the target and swinging the club to hit that spot. Well, don’t do it then. Instead, think about making a complete follow-through with your swing and aiming well beyond your target.
When a martial artist is breaking a board, his thought process isn’t punching at the wood but hitting through the target. The same thing is true for pitchers who try to throw the ball through a catcher’s glove instead of trying to guide the ball to it. And why do some basketball players struggle to shoot free throws? They could be trying to guide the ball to the rim instead of visualizing it going through the hoop.
The next time you’re on the tee or in the fairway and the landing area looks narrow or anything right or left is trouble, don’t aim at where you want the ball to land. Instead, think like the martial artist and take aim at a target in the distance – in this case (see photo) the Pechanga Resort & Casino in the background – and try to hit your ball into one of the hotel rooms.
Randy Chang is director of instruction at Journey at Pechanga in Temecula and teaches at other locations in the Southland. He can be reached at (949) 331-2443 or randychang@pga.com.
