One of the questions that I often get from clients is in regards to the use of swing thoughts. There are those in the field of mental training and sport psychology who strongly advise that players have no swing thoughts when they are in competition and that they instead focus solely on the target. I too would prefer for most players that they primarily focus on the target…as long as their swing is automatic. This last part is critical, as many times a player will be working on something in their swing going into an event (hopefully something minor!). While we would typically prefer that this not be the case, I believe strongly in dealing with the realities that face a player rather than an “optimal model” that may or may not fit a player’s circumstance on a particular day.

I experienced a prime example of this at the PGA Tour’s Second Stage of Q-School this last week. The player with whom I was working (and caddying for) had recently taken a short lesson to make an adjustment in his swing. The first couple of rounds, he was attempting to swing without conscious thought related to his swing, and he subsequently hit the ball inconsistently. We discussed his concern about attaching too much emphasis on his swing, but decided that he would go with one specific swing thought (“rotate hips”) and only when he had a short iron or wedge in his hands. This had him cueing himself to make what he believed was a critical movement in his swing, while he was still paying attention to where he wanted to hit the ball. I’m pleased to say that he hit the ball fabulously with this adjustment and had 12 fairways and 18 greens en route to a tournament-best 65 on the final day which puts him into the Final Stage and in a hunt for his Tour Card.

How and why this worked, I believe, is because we did the work to figure out which was the critical swing thought, and he stuck to that thought on every shot for two days. He did not change the swing thoughts from shot to shot or hole to hole, and he kept it relatively simple.

You too can be benefitted from a simple swing thought in those rounds where your swing isn’t automatic. Just make sure and keep it to one thought, and keep it consistent throughout the round!