Golf Psychology (mini project 2)

For this project I have chosen the topic of sports psychology in golf. I will describe the topic and then apply the topic to an example. I selected this topic because I play golf and I have always wondered what a sports psychologists view on golf is. The style in which I will present this project will resemble the rant activity we did in class today. When we did this activity it gave me this idea so I figured I'd give it a shot. 

Sports Psychology From Dr. Gio Valianti:

“Many influences occur in a golfers life that can affect his or her performance, they can be physical or mental influences. The priority in sports psychology is to overcome negative mental influences.” According to Dr. Gio, there are four main mental qualities to help golfers perform at their fullest. These mental qualities are known as the four C’s: concentration, confidence, control, and commitment. Concentration is the ability to focus on a certain task or goal. Different sports require different levels of concentration. Some sports such as golf, baseball, shooting, and cricket require short bursts of concentration. In tennis, distance running, cycling you have to sustain concentration much longer.  Golfers have to overcome distractions that effect concentration; including mistakes, fatigue, anxiety, weather, coaches, opponents, negative thinking, and many others. Strategies to improve concentration depend on the individual and sport. In golf, the mental side of the game is very crucial. Each round requires concentration to be turned on and off multiple times. When walking up to a shot the golfer must turn on full concentration, when walking to the ball the golfer can relax concentration temporarily. According to Dr. Gio, six main elements are necessary for good concentration habits: knowing what things to focus on, staying focused on those relevant things, keeping a narrow and external focus, the ability to shift attention when needed, the ability to refocus when distracted, and controlling your thought process. Conquering all these elements will make any golfers mental game much more superior compared to a golfer who hasn’t mastered the elements of concentration.