Destino
Over recent weeks we have reviewed the power of the mind and how to tap into this most valuable part of your’ make-up’ as a golfer.
Just how important can it be?
I will give you examples based on highly talented golfers and winners of major championships.
Probably the greatest of European golfers in modern times is none other than Severiano Ballesteros who mystified us with an array of low scoring and wonderful recovery shots over many years until his back began to restrict his abilities.
Was it his back or something else?
If you read his autobiography you will see that while he was a hugely talented golfer he was also a borderline depressive.
During his best golfing years he believed that it was his ‘destino’ to play outrageous recovery shots, to hole birdies, win championships and to beat the Americans.
His total belief in this ‘destino’ over ruled and fears of failure that he had and allowed him to play in a free and relaxed manner convinced that success would follow.
When did this feeling end for Ballesteros?
The answer is simple, in 1986 while leading the Masters, which he had dedicated to his recently deceased father; he ‘dunked’ the ball into the water on the 15th Hole and handed the event to Jack Nicklaus.
He was never the same golfer again because his inner belief or ‘destino’ had been lost along with that championship.
Another former champion Ben Crenshaw generally regarded as one of the best putters of all time claims that at his best he could almost ‘will’ the golf ball into the hole.
This all goes to underline the power of the mind and the importance for golfers of all abilities to be able to eliminate negative thought from their minds and replace them with positive ones.