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Advice
for Vijay
This is a continuation
of my tip "Take
a Lesson from Vijay" that I wrote last summer. Here
is a short summary of that tip and some advice for Vijay as well
as yourself.
On August 15, 2004 Vijay
Singh won the 86th PGA Championship at Whistling Straits. Earlier
that morning I read an interview with Vijay in the Sunday newspaper's
sports page that caught my attention The interviewer was probing
Vijay about his desire to supplant Tiger Woods as the number one
player in the world. Listen to what Vijay had to say about his desire
and focus.
"My focus two
months ago was the wrong thing," Singh said. "I was
focusing so hard to get to the No. 1 spot; I started not focusing
on my own game. Every time I teed it up, I didn't want to play
bad, and hence, I started to make simple mistakes.
"Right now, I
am totally focused on what I am doing, my game and not worried
about the rankings.... It doesn't bother me at all."
That interview told me
a lot about Vijay. He was not only out working his competition on
perfecting his mechanical skills and staying in good physical condition.
He found the secret to greatly improve his mental game and elevate
his golf another notch. The secret is to focus on the process and not the outcome.
The outcome is merely
a by-product of improving the process. Vijay had learned to focus
on the process and allow the outcome to take care of itself. By
the end of 2004, Vijay won nine tournaments and was the number one
player in the world.
On January 17, 2005 Vijay
won the Sony Open in Honolulu for his first win of the New Year.
In the sports page the next day there was another interview with
Vijay. Listen to what Vijay had to say.
"This takes a
lot of pressure off me. If I had not won one, like I let one go
last week, I would be tensing up as the weeks go by. But this
is a load off my back. I can go relax and play."
This interview told me
that Vijay is back to being concerned about the outcome and winning.
He is putting himself in the same position as Tiger Woods by creating
pressure on himself to win as much as he did in the past. Focusing
on the outcome and winning is going to take Vijay out of his game
and make it harder for him play up to his new expectations. It is
just a matter of time until this happens if he keeps his focus on
the outcome.
My advice to Vijay is
to go back to what made him so successful last year. Focus on the
process and allow the outcome to take care of itself.
If you have not
read "The Mental Keys To Improve Your Golf", you will benefit greatly
from my book by seeing the whole picture instead of just pieces
contained in my mental tips.
I guarantee it! So
order now and lower your score.
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