Zen Golf

Shambhala is a legendary kingdom that is a model of enlightened society, like the story of Camelot and its ideals of genuineness, confidence, and dignity. Shambhala warriorship is not about conquering others and wreaking destruction. It is about having the bravery to overcome aggression, to manifest fearless gentleness. The fundamental training of a Shambhala warrior is based on the Buddhist practices of mindfulness and awareness in action.

Often a golfer will have a bad start to a round and get completely depressed, assuming that the day will go that way. His discouragement creates a self-fulfilling prophecy. But since each hole is physically independent of the others, isn’t it possible that the rest of the round will be the best he ever played? Sometimes we struggle and struggle until late in the round when we say, “Oh, I give up. I’m just going to get up there and hit it.” And to our surprise the shot comes off well.

All too often we try to get something extra out of our drives, and the results are usually the opposite of what we desire. Even if we’re lucky enough to find the ball, it has traveled less than our usual distance. The golf swing is a series of muscle movements, all in sequence. Any interference with that sequence, such as extra muscle tension, interrupts the flow of the swing, causing errors in body action, swing path, and contact point.

A musician came for instruction from the Buddha in practicing meditation. He asked, “How should I hold my mind when I practice? Should I try to concentrate hard and keep it under tight control, or should I relax and let it wander wherever it wants to go?” The Buddha answered the musician with a question. “When you tune your instrument, do you make the strings too tight or too loose?” The musician replied, “Neither too tight nor too loose. I make them just so.”

One of the most fundamental principles of the Buddhist and Shambhala traditions is that the true nature of human beings is basic goodness. Acknowledging our own basic goodness means taking the attitude that there is something fundamentally, essentially right with us. How we feel about ourselves as a person doesn’t need to depend on the quality of a particular golf shot or the outcome of a round.

In the martial arts and similar mind­-body traditions of the East, the body’s “center of gravity” is the source from which all movement and energy flow. It is located a few inches below the navel, in the center of the torso. Awareness of this center of gravity is extremely helpful in golf.

Many years ago in Japan, a student came to a master swordsman 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 try 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 try as hard as I can?”

Once there were two monks walking along a path through the woods. When they came to a stream, they encountered a young woman dressed in fine silks, unable to get across without ruining her clothes. One of the monks offered to carry her on his back. She climbed on, they all crossed the stream, and on the other side he set her down. She thanked him, and the two monks continued on their way. The monastery to which these monks belonged had a rule prohibiting them from touching women.

A young monk was spending some time each day in meditation and contemplation. He wondered how many of his thoughts during those sessions were virtuous (about doing good deeds) or non-virtuous (about deeds based on hatred, greed, or prejudice). He collected a pile of pebbles and put them in front of himself, and he placed a bowl to his left and another to his right. As he meditated, he would put a pebble in the left-hand bowl when he recognized a virtuous thought.

There are reactions to good and bad shots that are common to most golfers. If we hit a drive down the middle of the fairway, we might bend down and pick up our tee before the shot has even landed. If we hit a poor shot, we follow it to the finish and get upset. Here’s a post-shot routine that reverses those responses. When you hit a shot that comes out just the way you pictured it, get some emotion going.

Let’s start with an exercise. Take your golf stance and close your eyes. For a few seconds, think of a situation that you’re afraid of or that causes you anxiety when you anticipate dealing with it. Now check on your breathing—is it deep and relaxed? Chances are it isn’t. Most people respond that they were barely breathing at all.

A man from town asked an old farmer to be on a citizens’ committee that would work on improving the town. The farmer asked, “Do you want me to be involved or committed?” Puzzled, the man asked, “What’s the difference?” The farmer answered, “It’s like a bacon and eggs breakfast. The chicken is involved, but the pig is committed.” Commitment involves believing without a doubt that the plan you’ve made is the best one.

A young man had read all the books he could find about Zen. He heard about a great Zen master and requested an appointment with him to ask for teachings. When they were seated, the young man proceeded to tell the master everything he had understood from his reading, saying that Zen is about this and Zen is about that, on and on. After some time, the master suggested that they have tea.

As we address the ball, occasionally something happens that makes us want to change our mind. It may be a change in the wind, something about our lie or stance that we didn’t notice before, or an uneasy feeling about our club selection. When you change your mind about how you’re going to play a shot just before you execute it, there’s more that needs to be done than you might think.

When we say to someone, “Don’t think of a monkey,” the image that comes to mind is a monkey. That’s because the word “monkey” refers to something we can perceive, but the word “don’t” is purely conceptual. On the golf course, when we say to ourselves, “Don’t hit it into the lake,” the image that appears in our mind is our golf ball flying toward and splashing into the lake. Golfers tend to have a negative attitude about themselves after hitting the ball in the place they hoped to avoid.

In golf, if we keep thinking about a mistake we made on a previous hole, or project how our score will turn out at the end of the round, it’s as if we’re daydreaming. We spend much of the time “asleep” to the present moment, preoccupied with thoughts about the past and future. Lacking awareness of the task at hand leads to poor decision making before the shot and distraction while we’re swinging.

Brian had entered the Qualifying School for the PGA Tour for twelve years, but had fallen short every time. The Q-School is actually a series of tournaments, culminating in the finals, a grueling six-round tournament. It is the ultimate pressure cooker, as each golfer’s career for the next year is on the line. I met Brian two months before the Q-School finals. He told me about his career in golf, his hopes and fears, his strengths and weaknesses.

There is a very clear correspondence between our state of mind and how our body manifests. When our mind has anxiety or fear, our body feels tight and agitated. When we are discouraged or depressed, our body feels heavy and sluggish. When we are confident and at ease, our body feels energetic and responsive. Our mental state affects our posture, how our body looks as we stand or walk.

The best preparation for any shot is to have an image that is as complete and precise as possible. For putting, imagine the ball rolling the full distance to the hole. See in your mind’s eye the way it will change speed and direction. See the path it will take all the way to the exact point on the edge of the hole where the ball will fall in. In the following pages are techniques, exercises, and routines that will help you feel confident over any putt.

Chris, a good junior golfer, came for a lesson. He complained that his swing gave him trouble when he “got quick at the top.” That usually refers to an especially quick start to the downswing. It sometimes reflects a premature transition, starting the downswing before the backswing is complete. He showed me his swing routine, how he approached and set up to the ball, then how he swung.