INNER COACHING

"Earl of Scotland ," was his name, and Bob met him on a Tuesday morning as he sat with his coach in their "golf cart office" beside the practice tee.

Earl had some things in common with literary favorites, Shivas Irons of Golf in the Kingdom and Baggar Vance from, The Legend of Baggar Vance, yet Earl was clearly unique.

Earl came from Bob's own intuitive imagination and was his personal image of an "inner coach." Over the next several months he became Bob's trusted inner companion on the links.

Earl had the qualities of a good coach; he knew the game and how to teach it and he held Bob to high standards of performance. Earl was trustworthy and Bob knew Earl had his best interests at heart as he gave him ideas about how to improve his golf. Earl's job was to share his knowledge, on and off the golf course, just like any good coach would do.

How did Bob meet and get to know Earl? Through training in a mental skills process known as Interactive Guided Imagerysm. There are many different skills to be learned which are intended to help people achieve more success in sport and in life. Interactive Imagerysm is one of the finest tools available.

The use of inner images is hardly a new concept. Buddhists have been using images in this way since the 13th century, if not earlier. Only in more recent history has imagery been actively accepted and used in our Western culture. The popularity of the process has been spearheaded by health-care providers but has quickly broadened out into other fields such as corporate training, and sports psychology.

Bob was in the early part of an imagery experience when he met Earl. Bob had been given a few relaxing suggestions and invited to get comfortable and quiet inside. He then allowed an image to come to mind of a favorite golf hole. Once there, he invited an image to join him on the tee box that represented a wise and skilled coach.

Earl showed up!

Bob began to "communicate" with Earl and liked him right away. This kind of dialogue is much like the ones you have in your mind when you are problem solving or worrying about something and you imagine talking to someone about the problem or the source of the worry. We often experience using our imaginations in rehearsal, or in daydreams, nightdreams, worry or fantasy. Interactive Imagerysm is using that same process in a skillful and positive manner to create the results you want or to gain information about a problem.

Over the course of the next several months Bob shared many stories about Earl and how impressed he was with their relationship and the trust that had developed between them. Here are a couple of those stories:

One experience took place on a chilly, overcast day, the second round of a 3 day amateur tournament.

Bob, three shots off the lead, was on the 7th tee, a short par three, when he pushed his shot into the greenside bunker.

Bob had not yet talked to Earl during this round although he sensed his presence with him, but now, noticing increased anxiety he wanted some help. Earl was Johnny-on-the-spot. Bob had learned to take a breath and let a question come to mind, then to wait for an answer from Earl.

Bob's question on this hole was, "How can I handle this anxiety I'm feeling?"

Earl answered, pointing out that Bob was re-membering the last tournament and how he missed a 2nd place finish when he blew a bunker shot.

Earl went on to suggest that Bob notice what he remembered, then choose to remember a bunker shot he had played well, "image " it, pick his target (the Hole) and make his shot. Bob did, the ball flew true and landed inches from the pin. An easy par.

Bob went on to finish 2nd and was excited that he had learned one more way to deal with anxiety on the course.

Bob and Earl often met off the golf course as well. Bob was practicing his mental skills regularly and part of that was spending relaxed time at home playing golf with Earl in his imagination. His second story was about one of those times.

Bob and Earl were having a discussion about Bob's goals in golf, and what Bob discovered through Earl was that he had a tendency to set goals for what he thought he should do instead of what he wanted to do.

Earl encouraged him to set goals for what he wanted and when Bob began to do so he noticed that he was more smooth and trusting with his swing. Also, his handicap dropped from a 20 to a 15 in six months time.

The two ways Bob learned to use Interactive Imagerysm were; actively, as when he rehearses playing in his best form, and receptively, as when images like Earl are invited to bring helpful information and problem-solve.

You too have an "inner coach" ready and willing to be a mental skills guide on and off the golf course.

Just imagine...your own personal inner coach...what a great addition to your game that would be!

---

Dr. Paula King, Golf's "Head" Coach®, is a licensed sports psychologist in private practice in Phoenix. Specializing in work with golfers her clients include tour pros, juniors and amateurs. Comments or Questions?