In my last article I discussed how to begin the process of mastering golf by installing relevant information in your brain. Although consistent and continual practice is important, I mentioned that by adding to this frequent observation you can further enhance the process. This is because the act of passive observation helps your golf game by triggering several natural capabilities of your brain. In this article I’m going to take this a step further.

When you install golf-related information in your brain, this does not necessarily create mastery. It is only the first step. The next step is what I call the encoding process. Consider the first step as organizing the garden, planting the seeds, and providing the initial water and nutrients. Of course, as a gardener you want your plants to grow into thick, healthy vegetation. So, let’s go from creating structure to creating mass. Another analogy that I like to use is that of doing exercise in order to create muscle mass. However, as a golfer the muscles that I am referring to are in your brain.

Every step and facet of your golf game corresponds to parts of the brain. Mastery of golf requires these areas to be significantly developed. They consist of networks of brain cells called neurons. Like the muscles that are created when you desire strength in your biceps, the thicker these networks become, the closer you will be to mastering the game of golf. While passive observation helps lay the foundation of later mastery and may have help the encoding process, if you are serious about improving your game, there is more that you need to do. Here are a few quick tips that I wish to share with you.

The first one goes back to the act of watching masterful playing. The learning – or encoding – process now requires involves an increased level of intensity. How is this done? As you watch a master performing any step of the game, imagine that you are that person. For instance, watch Tiger Woods or Michelle Wie getting their ball out of a bunker trap. Imagine for a moment what they are feeling as you sense that you are standing in their shoes, gripping their sand wedge, and getting ready to lob their ball. What do you think is going through their mind? Where is their focus? What is their mental state? Experience this as if you are them – now. The reason that this is important is that when your brain perceives intensity with all your major senses and reacts as if what you are imagining it happening in your personal space, your brain networks grow more rapidly. The faster the networks develop in the relevant areas of your brain, the faster you master the game of golf.

My second tip pertains to continuing this process at times other than when directly observing the master’s performance. Consider the example that I just gave. How did the act of intense observation feel? When you recall the memory, your mind and body begin to react. Yes, the same encoding gets stronger and stronger each time. And, here’s another little tidbit. All that you have to do is to quickly trigger the memory of the event – which may have transpired over several minutes or hours – and the learning benefit in your brain will be achieved. Therefore, provided that the desired state is attained, visual imagery can be used to accelerate the strengthening of your golf mastery muscles even if you don’t have a lot of time. Imagine being one of the golf greats and playing on one of the most exotic courses in the world – and doing this within just a few minutes during your lunch break. By the way, doing this hypnotically makes the experience many times more powerful.

While you can do these steps any time you choose, my golf mind training products are an enjoyable way to help you develop these mental skills.