Saturday, July 28, 2007

The Artful Athlete

"That natural ability to translate your thoughts into actions is the un-spoken essence of golf." -- Peter Nomm


Philippines Ladies Amateur Open by Saxmax

Peter Nomm shares his insights at Great Golf into the role athletic ability plays in golf, suggesting that, "coordination and a feel for the athletic movement makes the game much easier to learn and to improve upon." In his experience teaching golf, he has found it far easier to work with an individual who has played many other sports than one who has not, because that natural understanding of how to throw a ball or swing a bat has many similarities to hitting a golf shot.

Nomm says that "anything you can do like playing catch or shooting baskets will also help you reap rewards in your golf game. That natural ability to translate your thoughts into actions is the un-spoken essence of golf. Practice this feel and work on your coordination, and you will be surprised to see how it translates into your golf game!"

I agree that Nomm's advice to practice other sports can benefit your golf game. Other activities not only help develop feel and coordination, but provide new opportunities to recognize and eliminate tension, allowing relaxation in movement to be experienced, the essential ingredient to swinging freely.

According to Dan Millman, "relaxation in movement is the foundation of physical talent."

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Posted at 10:24 AM :

2 Comments:

Anonymous Paul said...

Right on topic given Tiger's recent comments also about physical conditioning, after the 2007 PGA.

August 16, 2007 2:18 AM 

Blogger The Artful Golfer said...

Yes Paul, I've highlighted the value of athleticism, but failed to mention the importance of fitness and conditioning, which Tiger attributes his win. Even if you're not playing in 100+ degree heat, good fitness helps reduce those bad holes in the middle or end of the round when you're swing fails due to just being a little tired. In golf, like most other sports, success depends on physical talent and conditioning in addition to emotional and mental toughness.

August 16, 2007 8:33 AM 

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Golf as Art

When you disappear, Golf as Art shows up. The resulting void is where all the important discoveries, personal development, satisfaction, joy and fulfillment take place.
–Fred Shoemaker, Extraordinary Golf

Swing motion at its highest level is the uninterrupted flow of natural rhythm from within.
–Tom Woods, True Golf

A great golf shot is a thing of beauty. Repeating it is an art.
–Mark Guadagnoli, Practice to Win

Artful Milestones

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  • Jun 05 - Broke 80 (21st round)
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  • Jan 06 - 10 GIR (62nd round)
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