Here’s a message I received last week from one of my students in Canada, who has kindly allowed me to share how his Performance Practice is showing up on the golf course.
“Hi Jayne,
I just got back from a golf trip with friends where we play a two-day Ryder Cup type of tournament. The players range from a 5 handicap to an 11 like me then upwards to 25 and everything between. Though it is a fun event I do get anxious beforehand but this time I was able to calm my nerves because I was doing my 20 minutes Performance Practice each day for weeks leading up to this.
I was able to swing freely most of the time. I was the captain of one of the teams and was the last to go off the tee and a lot on approach shots too. I was able to stay focused on the target and breathe from the t’an tien (hara centre) as we have been working on.
I enjoyed seeing drives sail high in the air with a nice draw and onto the landing areas on Sagebrush, a challenging course in the ranch lands approx. three hours from Vancouver. I was able to make some creative shots into the sloping greens, and I was able to putt relaxed by simply breathing and trusting my stroke.
There were a few bad shots – a couple of 3W tops come to mind – where I felt ‘Control Freak Mind’ (CFM) enter the game and start chatting at me. ” You need to hit this 3W on the green like you did on the first hole.” I wanted it too much. The swing was fast from the get-go and my body got out of rhythm. But because of my practice I was aware that it happened and was able to let it go. All in all, a successful and enjoyable weekend because I accomplished my goal of swinging freely.
Following this I had time to review the first six months of my 2025 Golf Journey. I went through my Journal that you suggested I keep and which I started January 2nd.
Reading through it, it seems that I have practiced golf either into my home set up, the range or short game area or played on the course around 15 times per month. A few of those months I was skiing as well. At any rate it was a lot and I enjoyed most of it. I wrote down a summary of each session no matter how short it was, including my feelings, my progress etc. I also listened to your books and read other books over that time, mostly on the mental game which meant that I went down the rabbit hole and started tweaking my swing with all the tips and tricks on social.
I began to see that I was struggling with the CFM or the ‘monkey mind’ and I was at my wits end some days. But then I finally reached out to you Jayne and set up the three online sessions. I re-read the material from your website and re- listened to your books and it has really helped me quiet the mind and get it working with my body naturally.
My favourite example of this would be on the 7th hole of one of our local courses. I had hit an amazing 275 yard drive down the middle the last time I played the hole and I wanted so badly to do that again in front of my friends. But I pushed it way left on to the 8th fairway which sits high above the 7th green. I walked to my ball, surveyed the situation- a blind 145 yard shot over trees to the green, bunkers in front and deep grass at the back.
I took my 9 iron, breathed into my centre on the backswing practice and out on the down swing practice then let it go. It flew high and true over the trees and I heard it stick with a thud. The other players were on the green and they started hollering. It was 10 feet from the flag. Although I missed the birdie putt, I was happy none the less as I am seeing tangible improvements to my game and enjoying my golf a lot more”.
– Blair Peters, 61 year old golfer from Vancouver, BC, Canada, 10.9 handicap.
I hope you enjoyed Blair’s story. Why not write and tell me about your own experiences or ask me any questions about your Performance Practice. I’d love to hear from you.
