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Calendar
November: Dr. Parent will be coaching golfers at the 1st, 2nd, and Final Stages of the PGA TOUR Qualifying School
December: Zen Golf – a two-day program joining golf and meditation, based on Dr. Parent’s new book. December 8 and 9 at Rancho San Marcos Golf Club
Notable News
Blake Moore, a high school student who started receiving coaching from Dr. Parent last May, won his first American Junior Golf Association championship at a national tournament in August.
Alex Quiroz was three-time amateur champion of Mexico. He has been a Zen Golf student since 1998. Playing well this year on the Canadian Tour, he will try to qualify for the PGA TOUR this fall.
Trudy Carlson made her first hole-in-one (with a seven-iron on the 102-yard 14th hole) during a playing lesson at Rancho San Marcos on August 12.
Dr. Parent’s new book, Zen Golf: Mastering the Mental Game, is due to be published in April 2002 by Doubleday. It presents a unique combination of modern psychology, experiences of generations of golfers, and the ancient wisdom of the Buddhist and Shambhala traditions.
An Excerpt from Zen Golf
Patience Pays
Long ago in Japan, a student came to a master of Zen swordsmanship and said, “If I become your devoted student, how long will it take for me to master the sword?” The master replied, “Perhaps ten years.” “That’s a long time,” said the student. “If I work really hard, how long would it take me?” The master replied, “Oh, maybe twenty years.” The student was shocked. “First you said ten, now you say twenty years. What if I work day and night, as hard as I can?” “Well,” said the master, “in that case it will take thirty years. Someone as impatient as you are to get results will probably take a long time to learn anything.”
In golf, we often fall victim to impatience. Golfers’ have a tendency to look for the secret, the magic tip that will make the swing work perfectly, instantly and forever. They want it all and they want it now. But it doesn’t work that way. It’s like a patch on a coat. If you haven’t addressed the fundamentals, quick fixes don’t hold up. They are bound to stop working, just like a patch on a coat is bound to fall off. There’s no substitute for doing the repetitions (of good habits, please) until the movements become natural. Practice with guidance, practice with a purpose, practice with patience. If you’re working on something, try to have the patience to make it yours before you take it out on the course. Train it until you trust it, and trust it before you try it. If you play while you’re working on something, it’s very important to stick with it without expectation of getting immediate results. It takes commitment. Both Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods reworked their swings at points in their career when they were already winning. They felt they had the potential to play better and win even more often, especially in major tournaments. They were willing to accept a period of lesser results for the future reward of reaching new levels when their new swing became a natural motion. They got their rewards.
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For more information on Dr. Parent’s playing lessons at Rancho San Marcos, phone consultations, and speaking at meetings and conferences, please visit www.MentalGameMastery.com For schedules and availability, please email info@MentalGameMastery.com or call 805-884-1978.
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