MY TEACHING PHILOSOPHY:
My general philosophy of teaching is based upon the idea that the basic mental mechanics needed to play more intelligent golf should be and need to be simple. The game is complex enough and when under stress, each player needs a set of easy prompts that work specifically for him or her, in order to establish their focus; maintain their focus; and re-establish focus throughout a round of golf, a tournament, or an entire season. It’s also vital to learn when to “turn it off”.
The ability to effectively focus on one shot at a time is totally correlated with our ability to be present in the moment…and only the moment. And being in the moment is what optimizes our ability to swing freely…what Jim Flick sometimes refers to as “unconscious competence” – where there is no conscious thought of trying to swing the club but, rather, just a feel for the swing.
I refer to this as a “unified swing” which I define as a swing that is best accomplished with no mechanical thoughts during the actual swing. It is my firm belief that the unified swing naturally resides within every single golfer but can only take place when the golfer’s body and mind are acting as one, in harmony, and in total synchronization. When this happens, my students often describe the feeling of a unified swing as pleasantly effortless.
At this point I think that I should also mention that I am not a swing coach. That area of the game is the province of the professional swing instructors of my students and I do not interfere with the mechanical aspects of my student’s swing mechanics. My job is to help my students develop the mental mechanics required to play this game at a higher level. Having said that, I enjoy working collaboratively with swing coaches in order to help a student reach a new level of performance.
To continue: the very top golfers in the world are those who have developed a sound unified swing more consistently than those who have not. It isn’t that they play perfect golf. To the contrary, golf psychologists, swing coaches, and mental coaches have lectured about the impossibility of reaching perfection in golf for decades. Nobody plays perfect golf. Ben Hogan once said that in the best competitive round of golf he ever played, he hit just four pure shots! I hope this bit of knowledge will help reduce some unwanted stress as you read this!
Since we are going to hit imperfect shots, it seems like a smart move to help golfers learn how to bounce back from one or more poor shots. What I have observed in my game and that of fellow golfers is a tendency to make one or a series of mental errors after hitting a poor shot. Golfers learn ways to help them bounce back. They make significantly less mental errors than the average golfer and as a direct result they learn how to shoot lower scores.
To help you achieve this mental level of golf, my philosophy of teaching focuses on several very specific areas as it relates to how you think on and off the golf course. My experience observing and working with golfers over the years has taught me that it is important to initially assess several key areas for each and every student: (1) what is your learning style; (2) what are your strengths and what can we do to build upon them; (3) what are your weaknesses so that we can attack them and either reduce their influence, if not completely eliminate them. We then begin to focus on what you would like to accomplish and set out to help you achieve your goals.
Ultimately and somewhat selfishly, there is great satisfaction and joy for me in having the opportunity to help a fellow golfer realize more of his or her maximum potential and to see the proverbial light go on when they gain mastery over an area of the game they once considered beyond their ability. There is great pleasure when a student tells me that something we are working on is producing results for them. This brings me as much joy as when I pure a five-iron, leaving a three-footer for birdie!
Gary “Doc” Brown, Ph.D.
Golf Performance Specialist
Los Angeles
(310) 208-3105