Mental Rule for Teaching Golf and Other Thoughts
How much time do you spend teaching the mental game to your students? If you’re like many teachers, you probably spend far greater time dealing with the physical aspects of the game. Yet, the teacher can greatly enhance the student’s learning experience if the teacher has a good grasp on the mental game.
Some of the more prominent sport psychologists have put out bestselling books in recent years, most notably Dr. Bob Rotella and Dr. Richard Coop. These books contain good insights into the mental game.
One book that is highly-endorsed by several prominent golf professionals, but may be underappreciated by the general public because its author is not yet widely-known, is MentalRules for Teaching Golf by Dr. Gregg Steinberg. This book is unique in its format, reminiscent of Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book.
There are 61 chapters, or “mental rules,” in Dr. Steinberg’s book, each of which is approximately 2-3 short pages – just like Mr. Penick’s book. Both feature easy reading and simple but insightful truths regarding our great game. If you liked the Little Red Book, you will also greatly enjoy MentalRules for Teaching Golf.
When it comes to the mental game overall, it seems the more advanced the player is, the more he or she is into the mental game. For some reason, too many average golfers focus exclusively on swing mechanics in their pursuit of improvement. They seem content to have a mental approach consisting of extremely basic platitudes, such as “think positively, not negatively,” or “focus on where you want the ball to go, not where you don’t want it to go.” And, of course, there is the infamous “I just need to try harder.”
Yet, as Dr. Steinberg explains, trying harder may not be the best approach, which is one of the many interesting MentalRules his book features. In order to help our students evolve their mental games to a higher plane, it is imperative that we, as teachers, have a good working knowledge of the mental game beyond the basics.
MentalRules for Teaching Golf is not just for teachers. Most golf students will enjoy reading the book, too.
The USGTF thought so highly of this book that it agreed to become a main distributor. As mentioned earlier, the book is highly endorsed by such luminaries as Hank Haney, Hale Irwin, Laura Diaz, Lou Graham, and Dean Reinmuth. USGTF members should find that they, too, will glean some useful insights into both teaching and playing. Another option USGTF members have is to make the book available to students as part of their lesson program, and to make this easier, a volume discount is now being offered.
To order MentalRules for Teaching Golf, please contact the national office at (888) 346-3290. Each hardcover book is $12.95 individually, or just $9.95 apiece with an order of five or more.
