The Guinea Pig: Thinking & Playing

Last updated: 4th May 2009

Matt Cooper, golfer: a hacker playing off 15. Gentleman, we can rebuild him. We have the technology. We have the capability to build the world's first bionic golfer. Matt Cooper will be that golfer. Better than he was before. Longer, straighter, holing more putts.

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I felt a little bit like a kid in a sweet shop this week as I made my way south to the fifth London Golf Show.

Even under normal circumstances I would have had little difficulty having fun amongst so many golfing goodies, but with the Guinea Pig project in mind it was a real thrill to meet the movers, shakers and innovators of the golfing industry.

I'm not talking about the sort of naff golfing novelty presents we've all received at Christmas from a well-meaning relative. Instead the advances and gadgets I saw last week were nothing quite so cheap or useless as that.

These were expertly-conceived, beautifully-manufactured and well-marketed examples of original technology.

It was genuinely stimulating to meet people who were so passionate about what they had to offer. Often they came from a design or engineering background, other times they were ordinary golfers with an extraordinary idea they believed in.

As this project suggests I have a soft spot for any David in his fight with Goliath and talking with these small operators, as well as the bigger equipment giants who were no less zealous about their technology, left me inspired and motivated.

I also departed with a rucksack full of cards and leaflets holding the contact details of so many people who had generously offered their time, skill and good wishes when I explained the mission.

Reflecting on this afterwards, at a pub in Wimbledon with friends, something suddenly occurred to me however.

"You know, if I'm not careful," I said. "I'm going to look a bit of a moron if I don't improve off the back of all this help. How embarrassing will it be if I'm still hacking away in 18 months' time? It won't just be humiliating for me, I'll have single-handedly destroyed the dream that keeps the golfing industry alive - the dream that if you use a certain product or technique you can get better. What happens if I can't?"

Perhaps the dawning weight of expectation explains why I ended up drunk and lost in a private garden somewhere behind the All England Tennis Club, emerging next morning with a pair of ripped trousers. I just hope it wasn't a sign of things to come ...

But the truth is that my doom-laden words rang a little hollow even as I uttered them. For one thing, I'm really not worrying about the future.

My early assignments with my mind-coach Dr Karl Morris have already kicked in and any long-term dreams have been acknowledged but put aside.

Instead a rather curious (and possibly unique) confidence has settled around me. I'm left feeling content and excited about my journey.

And the reason for this seems clear: I am living in the here and now far more than I probably ever have done.

Following Morris' advice I have begun to set myself a series of every day tasks which I tick off after completion so that, almost imperceptibly, actually completing tasks rather than thinking about completing them has become a habit.

Even when testing my chipping with a little target game in the back garden I have observed a change in attitude - where previously I would start to daydream about my score I am now maintaining focus on the next shot.

It isn't quite second nature yet, but it is definitely getting there.

The real test, though, comes on the course itself and I was thrilled to see the positive effect when I played against an old friend at the weekend.

In truth I didn't play very well, partly excused by a dodgy knee that I injured whilst running.

But I did enough to win by remaining calm, controlled and unhurried.

The first test came during the first eight holes when a solid long game went unrewarded by my inability to hole any putts on the porridge-like greens. Often I would rage at these misses and dwell on them, but on this occasion I moved on to the next hole with an almost eerie serenity.

The toughest examination came after a disastrous spell around the turn when I took it upon myself to play each hole worse than the last going double bogey-triple bogey-quadruple bogey.

At that point I felt the effects of three days in London begin to wear me down, but I rallied. I did set myself an ambitious target to retrieve the round, but I was also aware that I attacked that target one shot at a time.

More pleasing still was the way I did it without thinking.

I only once got ahead of myself (and it contributed to a wayward approach to the 17th) but I promptly pulled myself together and got up and down from the bunker for a par five.

The sense of achievement afterwards was quite profound - there was nothing special about the round, almost no shot was memorable, but my attitude felt right.

That sounds simplistic, but as Morris often reiterates, we all know the simple truths - the difficult thing is applying obvious practices.

Which leads me to the latest course assignment: creating a pre-shot routine.

The key to this element is acknowledging that golf is a strategic game which requires an immense amount of thinking.

We have to judge distance, adjust it with regard to the wind, pick a club, choose to hit a full-shot or a half-shot with maybe a draw or a fade, selecting either a high risk option or a low risk alternative.

Add to that the thinking we do about swing planes, shoulder turns, keeping the head still, making a full turn and any number of other swing thoughts.

Not to mention worrying about the economy or the environment, about a bank account or job satisfaction, about a relationship or even the lack of one.

And yet, when you've played your very best golf, what were you thinking about?

That's right: nothing.

When we play good golf we separate thinking and playing.

Karl Morris doesn't advocate thinking less or even not thinking at all - he's realistic enough to know it is inevitable and understands that it is fundamental to the game of golf anyway.

But thinking has its place - and that it is between shots. Once you step forward to hit the ball, you stop thinking.

Next week: more news of the pre-shot routine plus I introduce a couple of innovations that should improve my game including a glove that promises bionic properties.