How do I prepare for a big golf tournament?
Hello and welcome back to the blog!! This week I wanted to explain how I prepare for a big tournament. Good preparation is essential in making sure that you are on top of your game for a big event. I will be running through some of the things I focus on and different ways that I practice implementing these things.
1. Practice
My first goal leading up to an event, is making sure that I go over my technique for all aspects of my game. I like to have weekly lessons with my coach to fine tune and make sure that we are maintaining the right movements. I also like sending a lot of swing videos to my coach, to receive feedback on whatever I am working on.
Leading up to an event, you should be making sure that you are maintaining your movements rather than learning something new. It always takes some time to implement what you have learned, so it is better to work on it after, rather than before an event. With maintaining technique, I go to the range to make sure that my movement is right and to give myself space to think about what I am doing. If it is difficult for you to get out to a driving range, you can also practice your swing technique at home using a mirror.
2. Play competitively
The next thing I like to do leading up to an event is playing competitively, whether it be a club comp round, or playing a match with my friends. Playing competitively allows you to implement what you have practiced on the course in a pressured environment. It’s important to replicate an environment like the event you are playing in when you practice so you can feel comfortable when playing the actual event.
Other ways that you can practice playing under pressure include playing a match with your friends with something on the line (such as loser buys lunch). When I play a match with my friends, it ramps up my competitiveness and shows me how well I perform under pressure.
3. Health & fitness
The last thing I like to focus on before a big tournament is to stay on top of my fitness and health. I am generally pretty good with eating well, but I like to focus on it even more before an event. It is important to eat well to not feel fatigued during an event, so a healthy balanced diet is essential. Fitness wise, apart from going to the gym to train, I love going on long walks or runs for some good cardio. It’s great to keep your body moving as much as possible so you can build up strength to walk the course over a number of days.
All these things are really important in order to be able to perform at a tournament to the best of your abilities. There are so many different ways to go about preparing, and this was just a little insight into what I do. I hope you enjoyed reading this week’s blog! As always, happy golfing!!