Stop thinking and start swinging with confidence off the tee.

Stepping onto the tee box with the driver in hand can be an exhilarating yet daunting experience for golfers of all skill levels. The pressure to unleash a powerful and accurate drive can sometimes lead to a barrage of swing thoughts, causing tension and inconsistency. Most golfers take a lesson from a teaching pro or worse get on YouTube and try to incorporate or even remember all the things they need to do during the swing to hit a great tee shot.  There is a time and place for getting a lesson, and most golf pros mean well. If something is really off in the swing, schedule a lesson and create a path for success. However, by implementing a few key strategies every time you tee it up, you can approach the driver with unwavering confidence, setting the tone for a successful round. We want to help you maximize your driving potential without overwhelming your mind with excessive swing thoughts.

 

Unlock Your Mind’s Eye 

One of the most potent tools in a golfer’s arsenal is the ability to visualize success. Before stepping into the tee box, take a moment to close your eyes and vividly picture your desired shot trajectory. Envision the ball soaring off the clubface, climbing to its apex, and rolling smoothly in the fairway. This exercise clarifies your target and programs your subconscious mind to execute the shot you’ve envisioned.

 

Calm Your Mind, Unleash Your Swing 

Proper breathing is often overlooked, yet it plays a crucial role in maintaining composure and rhythm during your swing. As you approach the tee box, take a few deep breaths, inhaling through your nose and exhaling through your mouth. This simple act can help alleviate anxiety, clear your mind, and promote relaxation. Incorporate a consistent breathing pattern into your pre-shot routine, exhaling smoothly as you initiate your swing.

 

A Ritual for Success 

Developing a consistent preshot routine is akin to building a mental and physical checklist that prepares you for each shot. Create your routine, even if it is short because you like to play fast, and stick to it. Start by taking a few practice swings, focusing on your desired swing tempo and rhythm. Next, visualize your target line and pick a specific intermediate target to aim for. Finally, assume your address position, take one last deep breath, and commit to your swing without hesitation. A simple routing like this not only instills confidence but also promotes consistency, allowing you to trust the preparation you’ve put in.

Embrace the Process 

One of the biggest obstacles golfers face is the tendency to second-guess their swing or doubt their abilities. However, true confidence stems from trusting the countless hours you’ve dedicated to practice and preparation. Remind yourself of the hard work you’ve put in, the drills you’ve mastered, and the swing changes you’ve implemented. This mental affirmation will help you approach each shot with a sense of trust in your abilities, freeing your mind from doubt and allowing your swing to flow naturally.

Cultivate a Winning Mindset 

Confidence is not merely a state of mind; it’s a skill that can be cultivated and nurtured. Implement positive self-talk, reminding yourself of your strengths and past successes on the course. Celebrate small victories, such as hitting a particularly good drive or executing a well-planned shot. Additionally, surround yourself with supportive playing partners who encourage and motivate you, creating a positive and uplifting environment. Remember, the key to consistently crushing your drives lies not in overwhelming your mind with thoughts but in cultivating a mindset of trust, relaxation, and unwavering confidence. By implementing these best practices, you’ll approach each tee shot with a clear head and a focused mindset, allowing your natural swing to shine through. As you embark on your next round, embrace the process, trust your preparation, and let your drives soar with confidence. Happy golfing!

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Avoiding Youth Sports Burnout: Why Kids Need Performance Training 

Far too many young athletes in America are overplaying their sport while undertraining – setting themselves up for burnout, injury, and stunted athletic development. The traditional approach of piling on more game reps and tournaments is misguided. What kids need is more well-rounded athletic training, especially strength and conditioning work and speed and agility fundamentals. “We see a lot of worn down athletes coming from elite travel programs,” said Mike Tollefson, head strength coach at Arizona State University. “They’ve been over-specialized in their sport from a very young age without any emphasis on overall athleticism and physical preparedness.” The intense singularity of playing one sport year-round inevitably leads to overuse injuries and burnout before kids even get to college. According to a study in the American Journal of Sports Medicine, kids who played the same sport for more than 8 months per year were more likely to have serious overuse injuries. “It’s extremely rare for me to get a freshman who hasn’t already had some sort of overuse injury in their joints or thrown out their back or shoulders from overtraining,” said Jill Miller, head softball coach at Cal Poly. “I need my athletes to be sturdy and resilient, not broken down before they’ve even started.” The better approach is to cap hours spent playing the sport each week and use that free time for strength training, mobility, skills work, and active recovery. Getting strong through lifting weights or corrective exercises allows kids to move better, run faster, jump higher, and throw harder – directly translating to better sports performance. “The kids who come in with a foundation of functional strength and muscle are the ones who stay healthy and progress the fastest,” said James Bolton, strength coach at Stanford. “There’s no substitute for getting your muscles prepped through basic strength work from an early age.” Many top coaches are now prioritizing strength training over excessive skill camps or weekend tournaments once kids hit the puberty age range of 11-14 years old. “I want my players in the weight room just as much as the batting cages once they’re physically mature enough to start strength training,” said Rhonda Revelle, head coach of the powerhouse University of Nebraska softball program. “Getting them strong translates directly to hitting dingers!” Rather than pushing young athletes into a singular obsession, the smartest approach is providing a diverse, well-rounded athletic foundation of strength, mobility, skills, and conditioning. This holistic approach keeps kids healthier, more motivated, and better prepared to handle the rigors of the next level. Don’t let your child become another sad overuse injury statistic – get them performance training!

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It’s More than a Lesson

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As we eagerly await the start of golf season in the Midwest, many of us are dusting off our clubs after a long winter away from the game. If you’re like most golfers, your swing could use a little tune-up after several months without hitting balls. Or maybe you’ve been practicing all winter and you’re ready to transition your game outside.  Either way, this is the perfect time to invest in a lesson or two from a professional coach who can guide you. 

To be completely honest, Correct2Compete does not believe in the traditional Golf Lesson which is typically one hour of swing tips that leave players with more questions and internal swing thoughts than answers.  We believe that golf drills lead to acquired skills that you can take to the course.  A coach is a person who can guide you through a technical change, practice plan, mental hurdle, or even a different way of approaching the game or a shot altogether. 

“The most important thing is developing a rapport and trust with the student,” says Chase Cooper. “As the instructor, I need to communicate in a way they understand and make them feel comfortable enough to make changes.”  In a proper golf lesson, there should be questions that facilitate the next steps needed, and each session should offer communication on why we might be making this change vs how to do a move.  A great coach will meet you where you are and walk you through every step of the way on your path to better golf. 

For Greg Rose, a TPI (Titleist Performance Institute) expert, patience and a building-block approach are critical: “You can’t rebuild a swing overnight. We’re retraining muscle memories through the repetition of proper movements and positions. Small incremental changes build the new groove over time.” Greg Rose also states, “There’s no substitute for hands-on guidance from a trained set of eyes. Investing just a couple of hours can pay huge dividends this season.”

The benefits of even one or two well-structured lessons can be game-changing. You’ll get personalized coaching, a clear plan of attack, and professional-level practice drills tailored specifically to your needs. “After a long layoff, it’s very common for faults and flaws to creep back into a player’s swing,” notes Dave Phillips. “A good instructor can quickly diagnose and address those issues.” So don’t just dust off your clubs this spring – invest in your golf game with a lesson or two. A professional instructor can quickly get you headed in the right direction and maximize your enjoyment of the course this season.

“The couple hundred bucks for a series of lessons is a very wise investment compared to losing multiple rounds and bits of your golf soul to a glaring swing flaw you can’t fix yourself.” – Chase Cooper

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Unlock the Power of the Foot

As athletes, we’re always looking for ways to gain an extra edge and boost our power and performance.   While many speed and agility programs focus on the major muscle groups first, the foundation of movement – the foot – is often overlooked. By improving foot function, you can tap into an incredible source of strength and stability that will translate to more explosive power in your sport. As coaches, we are always seeking more information to help our athletes perform at their highest level. We rely on science and data from all over to help our athletes, and our goal is to simplify and implement proper movement mechanics into every coaching session for our athletes.  We build athletes from the ground up. 

The feet are the roots that ground us and transfer force from the ground up through the entire kinetic chain. “The feet are the first point of contact with the ground and play a huge role in absorbing and generating force,” explains Sarah Kolowicz of FootCollective, a group spreading awareness of optimal foot biomechanics. Poor foot function leads to poor force transmission, energy leaks, and increased injury risk. 

According to the team at MoveU, experts in human movement mechanics, the feet should have a tri-planar movement capacity. “The feet must have the ability to move into pronation and supination while also having enough mobility in plantar flexion and dorsiflexion,” says MoveU’s Christopher Napier. “Restricted motion in any of these planes crushes force generation.”

Building a Powerful Foot Foundation 

Dr. Emily Splichal, podiatrist and founder of the Evidence-Based Movement Lab, emphasizes the importance of restoring and maintaining the medial longitudinal arch. “The arch acts like a spring to load and unload energy. A collapsed arch leads to excessive pronation and a positional disadvantage for the lower extremities,” she explains. Arch strengthening exercises like short foot isometrics, towel curls, and weight shifts can help reinforce this crucial structure.

Although the arch is just part of the equation – your toes are also a pivotal piece. Sarah from FootCollective stresses using your full toe spread and incorporating exercises that load the foot in its universal lending pattern. “Having a strong, mobile, and integrated use of the toes enhances proprioception and provides more surface area to grip the ground.”

Integrating Foot Training 

To truly tap into foot-powered potential, the experts all agree that foot-specific training shouldn’t be done in isolation. MoveU emphasizes integrating foot drills into warmups, strength sessions, and practicing movement skills specific to your sport. “Powerlifters should do exercises that load the foot under maximum weights, team athletes need multi-planar lateral and rotational drills, and so on,” advises Chris. “You need task-specific foot training.” Dr. Splichal sums it up: “The feet influence the entire body – posture, alignment, force output. By developing strong, resilient feet and applying those forces appropriately, you’ll be amazed at how much extra power and injury resistance you’ll gain.” So athletes, start building your power where it matters most – from the ground up. Invest time into restoring optimal foot function, and you’ll be rewarded with a formidable source of strength.

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Golf Practice

Level Up Your Golf Practice  

We’ve all heard the familiar phrase “practice makes perfect.” But when it comes to golf, a perfect round of golf is truly unattainable. So instead, we say, “Intentional Practice Leads to Trackable Results”. Just hitting balls aimlessly at the driving range won’t lead to any real improvement on the course. To take your game to the next level, you need intentional, structured practice routines that incorporate key elements of effective golf practice. Let’s explore some expert perspectives on how to get the most out of your practice sessions. 

Have a Plan 

According to TPI (Titleist Performance Institute) expert Dave Phillips, “One of the biggest mistakes I see amateurs make is not having a plan when they go to practice.” Before you head to the range, sketch out what you want to work on and how you’ll go about it. Break your practice into segments focused on specific areas like driving, irons, short game, etc. Prioritize your biggest weaknesses but also set aside time for maintenance practice on your strengths. At Correct2Compete we have detailed practice plans for five of the main areas of the game, and we have indoor and outdoor practice options built specifically for you.   

Build in Pressure 

“If you practice without pressure, you won’t be able to perform well under it,” says esteemed sports psychologist Bob Rotella. While it’s important to groove your swing with repetitions, you also need pressure practice that replicates the strain of being out on the course. Throw down objects as makeshift hazards, play target games where you aim at a small circle, or put yourself on the clock to hit shots within a time limit. Learning to execute under stress will pay dividends.  We have created different levels of games for our clients to build that pressure into their practice every time they go to the driving range.  

Use Technology 

Modern launch monitors and swing analyzers provide a wealth of data to ensure your practice is optimized. As Dave Phillips advocates, “With tools like Trackman, you can see exactly what your swing is producing in terms of ball speed, launch angle, spin rates, and more. Let that data guide what you need to work on mechanically.” At Correct2Compete we use FlightScope because with love the FlightScope Skills app for game-building and tracking practice. Analyzing your numbers identifies shortcomings and allows you to set specific goals to improve your deficient areas. 

Play Games   

“Practice without purpose just isn’t as effective,” states Bob Rotella. To make practice more engaging and pressure-packed, play games that simulate real on-course scenarios. Games allow you to score your progress, and you leave the range with a winning or losing feeling which drives your inner competitive spirit. Challenge yourself to set parameters and finish the game even when you are losing, it’s much better to lose on the range than on the course.  Bringing that element of accountability makes practice more rewarding. With a mix of structure, challenge, variety, data-driven purpose, and gaming elements, your practice sessions will be exponentially more productive. Before long, you’ll experience the profound improvement that only intentional practice can produce.

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C2C Winter SIM League!

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