The Mental Game

Scaramouche

Scaramouche

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Dr. Bob Rotella - golfers mental-game coach
People who think about their swings are basically telling their brain that they don't know how to swing. It's a sign that they are afraid of something.

Michael Jordan
I never looked at the consequences of missing a big shot ... When you think about the consequences, you always think of a negative result.
 
the

power of the positive mind is a bigger factor in matches than equipment imho. wanting it more than the other guy is as valuable if not more than anything else with the exception of skill haha
 
Did you ever say out loud "that's exactly what I thought would happen!" when the cue ball scratched into the pocket?

Dr Rotella also submits that the brain doesn't comprehend the word 'don't'. So when you say, I 'don't' want to hit the golf ball into the water, the brain only hears... I want to hit the golf ball into the water. ....
 
Tom that is why you never assume your opponent knows where all the hazards are on the golf course and you should not feel bad pointing them out to them.
 
I used to miss a lot of dumb shots because of my faulty fundamentals. Yes, it partly because of my stroke, but it was more my mental approach. If I missed a shot, I just looked at it like all the others accepting the fact that it was going to happen like it always happens.

As I got better, I realized that there is an exact spot to hit the ball and a correct way to deliver the stroke. If I could get my mind to match up with that shot and just give it time to 'soak in' before hitting the shot, I would just fall into a natural rhythm and it would 'appear' for me.

Now, when I play, I and everyone watching me knows the ball is gonna sink before I even shoot it. It's about getting honed in on finding the 'origin' of your technique from start to finish and then repeating that same delivery every time.
 
Scaramouche said:
Dr. Bob Rotella - golfers mental-game coach
People who think about their swings are basically telling their brain that they don't know how to swing. It's a sign that they are afraid of something.

Michael Jordan
I never looked at the consequences of missing a big shot ... When you think about the consequences, you always think of a negative result.
Click to expand...

Bob Rotella is really DA MAN!
Would I ever like to have in my corner while playing in a tournament, even if he had never hit a pool ball in his LIFE!
JoeyA
 
How about a little reality check here.

Have you ever told yourself, "I can't get drunk tonight. One more point and I lose my license." And then you forget about it, go out with the guys and you just don't feel like drinking that much. Your unconscious listens, understands, and helps you do what you really want to do.

Ever say to yourself, "I have to wake up in an hour because ..." and exactly one hour later you wake up. There you go again. Your unconscious listens to positive and negative information.

For some of us we want to quit smoking (pick your own bad habit here), but the unconscious does not agree and so we find we "can not" quit. You see your unconscious has what it thinks is your best interest as it sees the world. Sometimes you just find yourself with a cigarette in your hand and honestly say to yourself, "How did that get there?"

Probably the best thing you can do is find out where you and your unconscious agree and disagree and learn to live with it. You can tell when your unconscious disagrees because you usually get that stupid feeling inside that "this isn't going to work."

If you try to be too controlling your unconscious just goes underground and does what it thinks is best for you: Those bad habits you don't like but can't get rid of. Lie to yourself and your self will lie to you.

If you ask the impossible such as that double bank to the side the unconscious goes, "Sure we can try but its stupid," and so you make a half hearted attempt.

It all come down to how well do you know yourself and how well do you get along with yourself? Easy to say, takes years to comes to terms with, and playing pool is a very small part of it all.

The Greeks put it well many years ago, "Know thy self."

There are ways to change bad habits and other things that need to change. In general, you have to honestly show (not tell) your unconscious why some other way is better and then you have to compromise, not lie, or try to jam it, and maybe, if it really works, your unconscious will give it a try.

If you think this is all BS stop and think about the last time you had to really apologize for some stupid hurtful thing you did to someone you love. I'll bet you said, "I'm sorry, I just wasn't myself." Oh yeah, who were you then when you did those stupid things? Some part of you is not you???
 
Last edited:
Steve C said:
Tom that is why you never assume your opponent knows where all the hazards are on the golf course and you should not feel bad pointing them out to them.
Click to expand...


Had a caddie like that once.
 
Its scary how powerfull the mind is...

when choosing your cribbadge hand the saying goes, think long think wrong.

John Daly, the more you think about a putt, the more ways you think of how to miss it.
 
I agree with JoeW - a large part is getting the conscious and unconscious parts of the mind to communicate effectively.

When you are down on the shot, your unconscious mind will sometimes give you an alarm signal about something - you experience some nagging feeling. This is a sign that there is some conflict between what the consious mind is directing the body to do, and what the unconscious mind thinks is a good idea.

When this happens the key is not to ignore it - you must take notice.

If it is a feeling that you are about to miss the shot, then 9 times out of 10, your unconcious mind is right to warn you: It knows that you are not aiming right or have not prepared properly. You should take notice, get up and reset.

Sometimes the unsettling feeling takes a different form. For example being unsure that the shot you are about to play is the right choice. This again it shows a conflict between the conscious and unconsious parts of your mind. Again it should not be ignored.

In these cases, get up, acknowledge your anxieties and then decide whether or not to change your shot selection. Chances are you won't. But when you get down to the shot again, this time your unconsious mind will not be shouting about something that it thinks that you haven't noticed (eg that the shot is missable, and if you miss you will sell out). Once you have got up, confronted the fear and consciously thought about it, when you get down again there should be no conflict and you will feel more settled.
 
Much is said about "feel" and playing pool. I think there is much to it. Stop using words in your head and just look at the table. Let the unconscious help you analyze and run the balls. I find that I am at times surprised and gratified by what the unconscious can do when it is given full reign. It is a matter of trust.
 
JoeW said:
Much is said about "feel" and playing pool. I think there is much to it. Stop using words in your head and just look at the table. Let the unconscious help you analyze and run the balls. I find that I am at times surprised and gratified by what the unconscious can do when it is given full reign. It is a matter of trust.
Click to expand...
Very true.
 
Siz said:
I agree with JoeW - a large part is getting the conscious and unconscious parts of the mind to communicate effectively.

When you are down on the shot, your unconscious mind will sometimes give you an alarm signal about something - you experience some nagging feeling. This is a sign that there is some conflict between what the consious mind is directing the body to do, and what the unconscious mind thinks is a good idea.

When this happens the key is not to ignore it - you must take notice.

If it is a feeling that you are about to miss the shot, then 9 times out of 10, your unconcious mind is right to warn you: It knows that you are not aiming right or have not prepared properly. You should take notice, get up and reset.

Sometimes the unsettling feeling takes a different form. For example being unsure that the shot you are about to play is the right choice. This again it shows a conflict between the conscious and unconsious parts of your mind. Again it should not be ignored.

In these cases, get up, acknowledge your anxieties and then decide whether or not to change your shot selection. Chances are you won't. But when you get down to the shot again, this time your unconsious mind will not be shouting about something that it thinks that you haven't noticed (eg that the shot is missable, and if you miss you will sell out). Once you have got up, confronted the fear and consciously thought about it, when you get down again there should be no conflict and you will feel more settled.
Click to expand...

Siz,
I like what you have said about dealing with the subconscious mind and think you are spot on. I hope to improve communication this week. Maybe that "nagging" feeling is the subconscious mind knows that you are not lined up correctly to make the shot and it will take a miracle or a crooked stroke to make the ball. :smile:
Thanks,
JoeyA
 
I am not nitpicking here. Sometimes having a clear idea of what is going on will help you to play better.

The subconscious contains all those things that you can readily bring into consciousness but of which you are not currently aware. For instance, the way your socks feel right now is not something you were thinking about but as soon as I mention it you can "feel" your socks and bring this into awareness. That is using your subconscious to bring things into awareness that are needed for whatever eason.

The unconscious is believed to contain thoughts, emotional attachments, memories and attitudes of which you are not aware and things that in general you cannot bring into consciousness. For instance, you simply do not like people with red hair, you don't know why and there is little that you can do about it. (Before I offend anyone my first wife was a strawberry blond so I like red heads).

In general, you become aware of unconscious perceptions, thoughts and ideas by "feelings" that you get from time to time, like that feeling about the red head. The unconscious also has decided preferences such as liking to drink or gamble and it will often facilitate behaviors that will accomplish specific goals.

When playing pool you may get a feeling that you should take a shot that seems unlikely. If you go with the feeling you may be pleasantly surprised. On occassion I have observed my unconscious not like the route I planned to the next shot in 9-Ball. I went with the feeling and the cue ball traved less distance with the right position. I thought to myself, why didn't I see that.

In general, the unconscious is non-verbal (though there are ways to talk with it). It is highly perceptive and quite good at figuring out spacial problems. Probably one of the best ways to use the unconscious' abilities is to simply look at a table lay out (in 9-Ball) note where every ball is relative to the other balls and let your self feel the best solution. It is important to not talk to yourself. Verbalizations interrupt the unconscious processes to some extent.

Most of us call it intuition when we "see" a table layout or meet a person we just do or do not like. It is probably your unconscious at work because the unconscious is quite good at picking up subtle clues, signs and using its spacial awareness and control of your body to accomplish various tasks.
 
JoeW said:
I am not nitpicking here. Sometimes having a clear idea of what is going on will help you to play better.

The subconscious contains all those things that you can readily bring into consciousness but of which you are not currently aware. For instance, the way your socks feel right now is not something you were thinking about but as soon as I mention it you can "feel" your socks and bring this into awareness. That is using your subconscious to bring things into awareness that are needed for whatever eason.

The unconscious is believed to contain thoughts, emotional attachments, memories and attitudes of which you are not aware and things that in general you cannot bring into consciousness. For instance, you simply do not like people with red hair, you don't know why and there is little that you can do about it. (Before I offend anyone my first wife was a strawberry blond so I like red heads).

In general, you become aware of unconscious perceptions, thoughts and ideas by "feelings" that you get from time to time, like that feeling about the red head. The unconscious also has decided preferences such as liking to drink or gamble and it will often facilitate behaviors that will accomplish specific goals.

When playing pool you may get a feeling that you should take a shot that seems unlikely. If you go with the feeling you may be pleasantly surprised. On occassion I have observed my unconscious not like the route I planned to the next shot in 9-Ball. I went with the feeling and the cue ball traved less distance with the right position. I thought to myself, why didn't I see that.

In general, the unconscious is non-verbal (though there are ways to talk with it). It is highly perceptive and quite good at figuring out spacial problems. Probably one of the best ways to use the unconscious' abilities is to simply look at a table lay out (in 9-Ball) note where every ball is relative to the other balls and let your self feel the best solution. It is important to not talk to yourself. Verbalizations interrupt the unconscious processes to some extent.

Most of us call it intuition when we "see" a table layout or meet a person we just do or do not like. It is probably your unconscious at work because the unconscious is quite good at picking up subtle clues, signs and using its spacial awareness and control of your body to accomplish various tasks.
Click to expand...

OK, I will be Charlie Brown for the momen and will now sign my allegiance to your suggestions, Joe. Having a doctorate in the field swayed me as much as your suggestions. I especially like not communicating verbally with my subconscious as it doesn't like to listen to my angry words. :smile: BTW, were you implying that the subconscious and unconscious mind are the same thing, with the italics?

I THINK Efren looks at the table and simply looks at the table and let's himself "feel" the solution. Whatever he does is at a level above most mortals but I believe it is similar to what you say.

Thanks for your valuable insight.
JoeyA (Charity Joe)
 
JoeyA said:
OK, I will be Charlie Brown for the momen and will now sign my allegiance to your suggestions, Joe. Having a doctorate in the field swayed me as much as your suggestions. I especially like not communicating verbally with my subconscious as it doesn't like to listen to my angry words. :smile: BTW, were you implying that the subconscious and unconscious mind are the same thing, with the italics?

I THINK Efren looks at the table and simply looks at the table and let's himself "feel" the solution. Whatever he does is at a level above most mortals but I believe it is similar to what you say.

Thanks for your valuable insight.
JoeyA (Charity Joe)
Click to expand...


Think of the conscious and unconscious as another term for the front of the mind vs the back of the mind. The unconscious is not a place in the brain, rather it is a function. It can be a reservoir of wisdom and so "listening" to it is vital. With pool being such a mental game, this is a valuable asset for players to have. I assist pool players and golfers, via self-hypnosis, to tap into this resource.
 
Sorry for the poor wording Joey. The subconscious and the unconscious are different. You can easily access the subconscious by retrieving past memories. The unconscious is not easily brought to mind and contains other components.

To learn to "talk" with the unconscious read Leslie LeCron's "Self Hypnotism: The technique and its use in daily living." This text was published in 1964 so you would have to get it from abe.com or some similar place. LeCron's work is little recognized but aside from Erickson's work there is not much better.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top