Golf Arousal Levels- Performance

With arousal control - activation a golf player can control his emotions and body energy - intensity. This allows him to fine tune his emotional and body state to find his ideal performance state.

Arousal or activation in this example describes the state we are in. This state is at the same time our emotional state and body energy state.

When we are over-activated it means that we are irritated, angry, upset and so on. We feel a lot of energy. That's when players throw clubs and »explode« on the course. They have too much energy for playing top golf.

And when we are under-activated it means that we are in a bad mood, disappointed or even frustrated. This is when the energy is low and players move slowly on the course and their body language shows (with low head and shoulders position) that they feel bad.

There is a so called ideal peak state of activation that enables us to play our best golf. This ideal state gives us a lot of energy, positive emotions (or none - just flow) and we feel enthusiastic and optimistic. We are able to move economically and effortlessly.

Players often start the round close to this ideal state. Some of them are still under the effect of pre-match anxiety but after a while of playing they get used to it.

So he starts the round close to the ideal state and then many events happen in the round which »cause« him to lose this ideal state. He gets upset, disappointed, angry, fearful and so on and he is over- or under-activated.

Why »cause« in the brackets? Because until the player reaches acceptance about events and himself and sees reality as it is, he will feel that events are against him. He will feel cheated, that injustice has happened to him, that he shouldn't have missed a certain shot and so on. These thoughts and perceptions will make him lose his state.

When the player finds acceptance - when he accepts reality as it is, then these events cannot touch him. They are normal and the player either deals with them or let's them go.

There is one more problem in these two states beside too much or not enough body energy. We are in an emotional state and in this state we cannot think clearly. Even though we are not aware of that, the decisions that will arise and appear in our consciousness will be based on emotions.

In the long run this doesn't work. We make too many mistakes. We choose tactically wrong solutions; we perform our strokes under emotional influence which consequently affect our body's abilities.