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Mark Wright has written over 200 hundred articles which are published on more than 60 web sites around the Internet world. A small selection of these articles are kept here. If you wish to use one of these articles you may do so as long as the content is kept original and the author name and web site address are included. For more information please contact us.

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The UnConscious Mind . Balance . New Groove Regulations . Golf Focus . Choosing the Right Shot . Control Golf Emotions . Become a Great Putter . How to Aim Your Club .

Golf Focus - The difference between playing in the zone and not.

Do you lose concentration at times in your golf round and it ends up costing you shots?

You know as well as I that in order to fix a problem we first need to know what the problem is right? Well what if I told you that the problem with trying to fix your loss of concentration is that you actually think you are losing concentration. In other words I am saying that you are not losing concentration and until you appreciate that then you will not solve your problem on the golf course. It is my belief that you really cannot lose something like concentration in the normal run of things but that in fact you switch concentration from where it should be to somewhere else.

Because you realise that your concentration has not been on your golf, you tend to run with the false belief that you have somehow lost the ability to concentrate. Saying that you have lost your concentration is like saying you have lost part of your mind for a while. You would be amazed at how many times golfers tell me they lost focus for a few holes and then managed to find it again! Wow!  Where did they lose it? Did they lose it in the hedge and go back and find it. Did they misplace it in their golf bag for a few holes?

They are not losing anything, certainly not the part of their mind that is responsible for focus and concentration. They are simply not adhering to a Professional Swing Sequence, commonly called a Pre-Shot Routine,  which is actually the very mechanism which, when applied correctly, will make sure that you are fully focused for each and every shot whether it is a two foot putt or a full blooded drive.

And when we say fully focused we mean fully focused on the right things that will actually help you perform better rather than your focus wandering onto things that are detrimental to peak performance. It is during these switches in focus that shots go and golfers believe they have lost focus. Remember you have just allowed your focus to wander to the wrong places. This realisation is the first step in solving the issue and the next step is to learn, implement and adhere strictly to the Professional Swing Sequence or as others call it the Pre-Shot Routine.

Are you losing your focus at similar times in a round? You could be getting dehydrated.

OK there is one caveat to this in that if you allow yourself to become dehydrated then your brain will no longer be able to function properly and this will certainly interfere with your ability to focus and concentrate. If you find that you are thirsty, your body is shouting out for water. If you develop a slight headache then you are already dehydrated and it is going to take quite a few holes to get your hydration and brain function back to normal. The lesson here is never taking a chance on hydration and make sure you drink more than you think you need on a regular basis around the course. On a hot day playing 18 holes of golf you will need several litres of pure clean water. (if you are drinking high sugar liquids or even worse alcohol, don't bother reading on, I have no sympathy for you or your game. Alcohol around the golf course is for golfers who just aren't serious about playing their best. Were you out for a heavy night of celebrating the night before? Still hung over? Your golf will suffer so make sure the party was worth it!

Summary.
If you are dehydrated or chemically imbalanced through alcohol or drug use then your brain will not be functioning normally, you have not lost brain function, you have interfered with it by allowing dehydration or inducing harmful chemicals into your system. Remember that your brain is the largest user of water in your body and suffers badly when dehydrated by as little as 10%. Drink more water and less alcohol! Drink water regularly around the golf course to prevent "in play" dehydration which will certainly cost you shots.

Dehydration and chemicals aside, you are not losing concentration or focus. You are allowing it to go somewhere else and realising this is the first part to solving it. Develop a solid Sequence of processes that you go through for every shot which will, as one of its benefits keep you focused on the shot at hand. Develop a Professional Swing Sequence and watch your game (and focus) come alive!

Find out more by  the mental game of golf now and how to easily apply principals such as visualisation, focus of attention, targeting and many others that will dramatically improve your golf results and enjoyment of the game now go to  http://www.golfmindshop.com

Improve by "Every Golfers Guide To The Development And Mastery Of The Inner Game" has extensive guides both written and on MP3 to achieve your best performance by discovering the surprising power of great Sports Thinking – The Mental Game.

Wishing you FIR’s, GIR’s & Blue Skies,

Mark Wright.