Last month we briefly talked about tournament pressure and our role in that pressure. As a sporting clays instructor, it's my job to find a solution to this pressure, so let's take a closer look at the problem. It's natural to point our finger at the distractions around us and say, "there's the problem, right there." I believe – and countless studies have proven – the pressure and stress we feel in the tournament box is self-generated. Truth is, tournament stress comes more from what we're thinking and feeling and not from what we believe is distracting us. The reality is, the distraction isn't the noisy crowd behind us; the complaining shooter in front of us; the rain; the ...
With the tournament season now officially underway, I thought we could spend a little time on "performance skills," aka the mental game. It's one thing to stand in the box accompanied by our friends and the usual trash talk. It becomes something else when the score-keeper shows up and announces the shooting order. Why is that? The pressure we feel in a tournament is no different than the pressure that occurs from having to perform in front of an audience, a class, our peers, an Instructor, mentor or actually anyone whose opinion of us matters. For some, the stress can be overwhelming, typically paralyzing the performance. Jack Nicklaus spoke of his earliest experience ...