Of all sports, golf can truly be a mental minefield. Golfers who fail to understand the mental aspects of the game either give up or never really master it. Many golf pros are using yoga to complement their workout off the course and aid them in mastering the mental game, gain more confidence and foster more consistent play.
Besides offering the useful physical stretching exercises that help improve your flexibility, coordination and balance, yoga also teaches mind-relaxation techniques and visualization tools that improve your focus and concentration and serve the psychological aspects of the game.
Below are a few books and DVDs, which may help you kickstart or deepen your practice of yoga, and find that body and mind connection that will bring your game to the next level.
Play Better Golf with Easy Yoga by Patricia Bacall integrates the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of the game of golf. The author aims to help you enhance muscle memory and increase flexibility, and avoid golf-related injuries to joints and spine, while calming the overactive, “critical” mind that can be so detrimental to your game.
In her book Yoga for Golfers : A Unique Mind-Body Approach to Golf Fitness, Katherine Roberts describes Yoga postures specifically selected for a golfer’s needs. The book also includes useful mind-relaxation methods and visualization tools, for success on and off the course, as well as proper breathing techniques.
More information:
Yoga for Golfers DVD by Katherine Roberts, the same author as the previous book.
The Golfer’s Book of Yoga: Bring Your Game to the Next Level
by Drew Greenland, presents the essential elements of yoga that may help you develop the concentration that the game of golf demands. The power of the breath is explained and the foundation qualities of the swing laid out.