Dealing with nerves?
 

Hey all,

I'm going to be playing in my first competitive golf tournament next weekend, the qualifier is this Saturday. I am playing in the San Antonio city amateur championship. Anyhow, I am starting to feel some nerves about it, even though it is just a stupid golf tournament.

Anyone have advice for dealing with my nerves on Saturday?

Imagine everyone else in their underwear.

Its hard to get past the nerve thing. When I did some competative car racing I would always be a bundle of nerves leading up. As soon as things got underway I was no longer nervous.


Good luck!!

Inderal.

Being a golfer you should know how to deal with nerves. Drink! :)

I at first had a John Daly joke.

Bananas. Seriously! They're natural beta-blockers. I heard this lots of times from musicians, but never really believed it until I tried it myself a few years ago. I was really surprised at how much more settled I was during the performance (violin). Eat 2 good size bananas 30 minutes before the game, maybe bring a couple more to munch on throughout.

Yukon Jack, 3 shots 35 mins before tee. Lime to taste:D

Bananas is an interesting idea, never heard of that. I've dealt with nerves before, exams and whatnot, but in golf your swing is so affected by muscle tension that nerves can really screw up your first few shots and then you start to get mentally out of it and worried about not hitting it poorly again.

I keep telling myself that this is just a golf tournament that no one will remember a week from now, but I still am nervous about it. Plus it doesn't help that my driver seems to have left me for the time being, I played a round on Tuesday and was not hitting it well off the tee which makes it pretty tough to score. Hopefully the swing will come back to me before Saturday!!

That's exactly the same thing I face as a performer. When the nerves get going, the fine muscles in the hands don't respond properly. So much of violin technique is in the subtleties, particularly the bowing, and when my nerves kick in, I get a bit shaky. That ends up completely destroying my tone. The bananas really helped to settle that shaking. I still wasn't as calm as I would be at home practicing, but it was a notable difference.

I've found trying to talk myself down does no good, because my nerves don't kick in until the very last second, usually as I'm tuning, right before playing. Same thing happens at the dentist... :)

How would I know man, you're the one shooting chili peppers up Lee Jansons' ass.:)

Do what I do when they alarm me in the middle of the night because of a newly born baby that does not breath and have no heart activity. Keep telling yourself 'I can only do my best - and thats good enough'.

Then again, Moses advice is right on!

For real? Do you have to take it every day? Or can you pop one and have it settle the nerves?

Here's a routine that works pretty good for any sport (don't need a golf club). Close your eyes and check the muscle tension in your neck and shoulders - inhale while tightening the muscles in the neck and shoulders - relax the muscles as you exhale. Allow the shoulders to slump loosely. Then shake your arms and hands -allowing the muscles to shake loose freely. You want "spaghetti arms".

Use the routine before a shot - loosening shoulders, arms, and hands. Keep the same loose feeling as you swing.

Use a three wood off the tee. Tee the ball up so most of the ball is above the top edge.

Have fun!!!

Yes Joel, you take it when you need it.

You would not believe how many artists, speakers, musicians etc that use it on stage to keep it together. Basically it put a bit of brake on the internal throttle, avoiding unpleasant heart beating and sweat dripping from your forehead. Calms you down. And it works.

Edit: Hence, it does not work if you are nervous running a 400 meters dash! :D At least, you won´t win.

One small dose two hours before public speaking/performing. Works magnificently. It can exacerbate asthma and drop blood pressure. Check your doc to see if it's OK for you.

It got me through two day oral exams and a few TV interviews.

I hear you Livi, it's wierd, I can run a code without being nervous but a friggin golf tournament gets me.

The worst nerves I have had yet were before my board exams. Man, that was worse than my wedding day and I was plenty nervous then!!

Rick,

Just had a 3 day event this w/e. Was 1 under for the 54 holes and had to go sudden death playoff for 1st. Had been cool as a cucumber all w/e, then got nervous in the damn playoff (lost on 3rd hole to a PAR). So I know of what you speak....

Having said that, I'm usually OK at battling the nerves. Non-pharmaceutically, that is. During the round, ignore score and focus only on the shot at hand, don't get ahead of yourself. Fairways and greens...if you give yourself a lot of birdie putts good things happen.

As far as the swing goes...at address, I make sure that my forearms are relaxed before I begin the swing (for me, that's where the tension collects). During the swing, I think only about maintaining tempo, to avoid the tendency to get short & quick.

Give 'em hell!

Wow, Ed, that's a hell of a tournament you put together!!

I'm a 6.5 handicap index right now but I've been having some trouble getting under 80 in my last few rounds, mainly due to inaccuracy off the tee.

I'm just hoping to make the championship flight (which is top 80 out of 144 entries) and then just have fun in the actual tournament.

My solution is not to play golf. Some say it's relaxing, but I've never been so pissed off after playing a round.

Golf can be relaxing, I just find it to be the most challenging game I have tried yet.

Plus I have gotten to where I am passable at it so that makes it easier too. It isn't much fun to hack it around and get frustrated.

I really enjoy being outside and getting my mind off of the everyday hassles of life. Nothing is better than teeing off early while the dew is still on the fairways or coming in on the 18th hole as the sun is setting and the shadows are falling across the course. THAT'S relaxing...

Rick,

Thanks.

Play competitively as much as you can, against the best players that you can. I played in my first state amateur tournament in the late 90's, I think 1997, becuase the then-club champ told me I was good enough to compete at that level. I was about a 5 or 6 handicap and did not see myself in that group, until I heard it from someone else.

I made the cut in the first tournament I played in, and made it a point never to miss one again. I don't always make the cut, but it's helped my game immensely (I now hover between 1 and 3 handicap). I've made more than a few friends in those tournaments, as well.

LOL, same here... my dad loves golf and now that we are more mature (read: don't want to kill each other) I though it would be a good father son bonding thing. I am a pretty good putter (I kill at miniature golf.. except for that damn windmill! :D ) and I can drive a long way... just not in a straight line.

Rick,

I have the same problem playing music, I don't know how to explain it but over the years I developed a method of "not being there" I focus on what I am doing and try to block everyone else out. I also keep repeating in my head "I am doing this because it is fun" ;)

I used to be a nervous wreck before taking the stage for my dance routine. Now, an Inderal and Bio-feedback work wonders!

I used to be a nervous wreck before burnin' would take the stage for his dance routines. Belushi cocktail worked wonders!

:D

A blow job always worked for me. Took my mind off of all the hassles of life, and if she made you a sandwich with a beer afterwards life was good... :)

Thats quality advice !!:D

That's really going to slow the round down. Probably get a penalty for delay on the first tee.

I practiced the self-hypnosis relaxation methods mentioned earlier. Start with your head, then neck, then shoulders, arms.... etc. It does remove tension that you aren't even aware of. It also takes your mind off the game itself so you don't suffer cerebral brain farts and overthink each shot.

I recommend that you get a hard workout in. Play some racquetball or do some kind of sport that will wear you out. The euphoric feeling afterwards will calm you.

You can also get "some" from your wife or significant other to substitute for the workout.

Good luck, David

I find the best thing to calm the nerves in competitive play is to be certain to follow your established pre shot routine. The nerves will go away after a few holes but following the routine is very helpful in staying focused on a competitive attitude. It's only a game, have fun.

I've played golf since I was 9 and for the first 40 years I used to get pissed and throw shlt but it never helped, now I enjoy the game and expect that I will hit some bad shots, like Bob Rotella says, Golf is not a game of perfect.

Interesting that with this attitude my competitive game has actually become better and more consistent. If I do get in trouble I take the shortest safes route back to the short green stuff, sounds simple but it takes discipline to do that all the time.

Your not Kevin Costner and it ain't "Tin Cup"

Thank God I'm not Kevin Costner!!

I have Rotella's book and I liked it alot. I also have read Every shot must have a purpose by Pia Nillson. That's a good read as well.

The good news is that I was hitting the ball very well on the range yesterday, my driver seems to have decided to play nice for now. That gives me some more confidence going into the round. It was very therapeutic to hit 70 or 80 good shots yesterday to erase the memory of the 20 bad shots I hit on Tuesday...

I've seen this hole on TV. Hit the big dog up the chute.

Well, here's the update. I played the qualifying round today. Overall I would give myself about a 5/10 for how I handled the pressure. I had 3-4 holes that hurt me, lost one ball. I was amazed at how much different the game is during a tournament and how mentally exhausting it was to try and play focused golf for that long.

I had some evidence of nerves early, I hit a good drive off the first but 3 putted from 4 feet and took a double bogey (doh). 3 putted from 4 feet!! That's amazing. I seemed to finally settle down on the 3rd hole.

Anyhow, I shot 86 which is about 6 strokes more than what I wanted. Even taking that into account, I am actually pretty happy with how I played. This was my first tournament ever and I feel like I learned a lot about how I deal with pressure. Most of all I proved to myself that I could play tournament golf and not completely blow up. Thanks for all the help guys, the real tournament starts next week. Hopefully I can take what I learned today and play better next week.

Well I'm a little late...right before the tournament hit a few Balls to loosen you up...warm U up...that way the iniatial nervousness has allready been played out..

There is short green stuff out on the course? I will try looking for that stuff next time I play. I take it's better than the weeds and sand I have been play in.

Re: Dealing with nerves?
 

I always do a few shots of Jager.