Adding Techniques to Your Brain
Adding Techniques to Your Brain
By Dr. T. J. Tomasi
Keiser University College of Golf Senior Faculty and Director of Research
The elite level of competition is structured with challenges that force the player to acquire a wide range of techniques. The course is set up to surprise the player with challenging situations – as Rory McIlroy describes it: “It’s like taking an exam every day with different questions.”
Thus, a key skill as you rise through the competitive levels is to be able to make adjustments as the challenge changes. As Ben Hogan said, “Golf is a game of adjustments,” which is one reason why many players can hit it well on the range but not during competition – they can’t make the correct adjustments. It is also the reason why a player does well at the lower levels of competition but struggles as they advance upward.
If we could peer inside the brain of the good player, we would see a storage bin filled with multiple techniques for solving Point A to Point B problems, and the better the player, the more techniques he or she has. Evolving as a player, therefore, is a constant search to add techniques, i.e., the ways and means of problem-solving.
Studies of London cab drivers, who, after two years of study, must pass a rigorous test called “The Knowledge,” show that their brains are larger in areas dedicated to solving map problems. So, it is highly likely that the golf brains of champions such as Tiger Woods, Ben Hogan, and Jack Nicklaus are physically larger than the average amateur’s brain when it comes to storage.
As an example: with the pin on the front right of the green, the average player has only one technique; i.e., bring the ball in high with a wedge and try to judge it perfectly. The Pro may have three techniques depending on the lie and other circumstances – bring it in high, hit it long and spin it back, land in front of the green and roll it to the flag. But the champion may have five techniques: in addition to the three mentioned above – they can also spin the ball to the flag after it lands – from right to left or left to right.
It’s obvious that since none of these golfers were born with these techniques in-house, at some point, they underwent a period of acquisition where they added the techniques they were missing. The best players in the world work hard at this acquisition process, whereas lesser players tend to rest on their laurels.
This young tour pro has the pitch and run in his repertoire. Note how he holds the face square to decrease adverse spin – you don’t want spin on a shot you expect to release.
If you’d like to study with Dr. Tomasi and other PGA Master Professionals, contact The College of Golf today.
