The Golfing Mind

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowIn a few weeks, the tremendous gladiatorial competition that is the Ryder Cup begins again. There are very few sporting events with the anticipation, drama, heartbreak, epic heroics and excitement of the Ryder Cup. After Europe's bruising defeat to the Americans two years ago, can Europe turn it around when the cup is back in Italy, where the Ryder...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/offers/BaAEYBog/checkoutThis year two of the greatest golfers currently playing, and both major winners have been getting themselves in a position to win another major, only to see it slip through their fingers due to bad putting, particularly in the final round. Rory McIlroy and Scotty Scheffler have demonstrated in every major this year that their abilit...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/offers/BaAEYBog/checkoutI can think of no more destructive shot in golf than the yip. Most commonly it is associated with an affliction of the putter, where the poor player makes what appears to be an involuntary movement of the muscles that result in a hideous shot. In reality, people have the yips with other clubs notably the wedge and the driver. There...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/There is a time in every golfer's career when they play an extraordinary round of golf, a blissful round of golf that comes as close to perfection as it is possible to imagine. What led to it remains a mystery as puzzling as the origins of the pyramids. In the world of sport psychology, it is a state referred to as optimal flow. A state of mind where -  th...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowThis week's podcast previews the 151st Open Championship, played at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club, also known as Hoylake. As always, Mike Kershaw, Neil Falconer, and the host Robin Sieger attempt to analyse their top players who they believe have the best chance of walking off with the Claret Jug. Never an easy task- however, in previous major previ...

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Send us a text Who is the greatest golfer of all time?  This question has often been the source of heated differences of opinion, and writers clearly believe there can never be the greatest of all time. There can only be the greatest of a particular era. In this week's podcast, we put ourselves on the spot, and each of us picks who we believe is the greatest golfer of all time. In this week's podc...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowFormer European tour professional and SKY Golf commentator Richard Boxall is my guest on this one-off special edition of The Golfing Mind. Richard shares his thoughts and reflections from his time on the tour, how the game has changed and recalls in detail his single most extraordinary exit from an open championship that has now become the stuff of...

Send us a text Slow play, for many players, is disruptive and makes a fun day into an endurance test. One of the great challenges is how to, keep it moving and reduce standing around on waiting for tee boxes without getting frustrated and angry. Robin, Mike and Neil discuss ways it may be improved or an alternative way to get along with it without losing your cool.https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-no...

Send us a text Over the past two years, we have previewed the major championships with extraordinary success at picking winners and runners-up. Can we do it again? Rob and pick the winner of the USPGA, and is confident you can do it again at the US Open, or at least he hopes so. Mike Kershaw and Neil Falconer give their reasons for their picks (which include two long shots) and the guys talk a lit...

Send us a text We can all (sadly) suffer a catastrophic loss of form on the golf course. It may last for a few holes, and it may last for the whole round. In every golfer's life, there will be weeks, if not months, when this loss of form is as puzzling as the pyramids and the solution as remote as a banjo-playing unicorn.  It can not only be demoralising but also spoil our enjoyment of the game to...

Send us a text Bunkers! Love or hate them, they are a big part of the game, and I suspect, on the balance of evidence, most people do not love them. However, for the average club golfer, they can be a source of catastrophe, and once confidence is gone, it can make for very challenging and often upsetting experiences. In this week's podcast, Mike and Robin look at bunkers in a more pragmatic light...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowIn every good drama, there are the good guys and the bad guys. These characters are the staple of most movies, urban myths and timeless morality tales. Sport, in particular, is an area where there are famously well-known grudge encounters between teams and personalities that have a chequered history. In martial arts, boxing, wrestling and more recen...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowNext week the USPGA Championship -the year's second major gets underway. As always, we at The Golfing Mind podcast put on our thinking hats and bookmakers' mindset, then offer our thoughts and reflections before picking our three picks for who will take away the prize. Over the past five majors, we have been consistently getting our picks finishing...

Send us a text The mental game of golf is, to many, a mystery. There is no precise formula to its mastery, yet throughout golfing history, there have been players who appear more than others to have unlocked their fullest potential by having a solid mental game. What did they know that others didn't? Or perhaps, to be more precise, what shaped their mental development, that gave them the competiti...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowThe Open Championship and the United States Open Championship. They  are the most significant major tournaments in the eyes of purists. The competitors are there by merit alone, not by invitation or association; they are the original majors. In this week's podcast, we explore the unique qualities which make them so wonderful a test of golf. Plus, ex...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowIn the United States, if you mention in casual conversation to someone that you played college golf, chances are the person would be a little impressed and believe you to be an excellent golfer. However, that would not be the case if you made the same comment in Europe  In this week's podcast, Robin and Michael compare the two systems in creating wi...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowIf you were to ask the average golfer which part of the game would they wish to improve, I think the short game would have the greatest number of requests. It is probably the single area of the game where, when it goes wrong it can go catastrophically wrong and in some cases, a remedy would appear almost impossible. It begs the question,  is it a me...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowIn this week's podcast, we share our favourite golf books.  Some you may be able to guess, and others I am sure you will never have heard of before. However, we discuss why we like them and what we learned from them and hope you will find some insights, nuggets or straightforward enjoyment from reading them. Given the thousands of books written abou...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowIt is that keenly awaited time of the year again when the Masters' tournament appears over the horizon, signifying the end of winter and the start of the major season. The most colourful and exciting of the majors, it is a truly magnificent showcase for professional and elite amateur golf worldwide. It is golfing theatre, at its best, the drama of t...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/buy-nowIs mental toughness something we are born with? Is it a skill set we can develop? In Professional Golf, some players are famous for getting the job done. Others are sadly infamous for when their moment of opportunity arose, somehow snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Their failure became a defining moment, and many never returned to the top o...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/offers/BaAEYBog/checkoutAs if golf was not challenging enough, for many of us, the Rules of Golf can be a minefield of misunderstanding and confusion. How often have you been playing in a four-ball when no one knew exactly the correct ruling in a given situation? It has been famously said that golf is not a fair game. Can the same be said of the rules?  Th...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/offers/BaAEYBog/checkoutGolfers worldwide are always looking for the edge, that secret discovery that will give them immediate improvement. Most average golfers believe that advantage is found in technology, new design, new shaft, new club face or new ball construction. Every year, some golfers buy the latest technology to help them play better, while othe...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/offers/BaAEYBog/checkoutWhat is the best match-play strategy? Match play golf is not quite a gladiatorial encounter or combat sport between two people rather it is a perfect mix of tactics, psychology, instinct and golfing ability under pressure. Some players are they are very difficult, if not almost impossible, to beat. One only has to think of Ian Poult...

Send us a text https://www.siegergolf.com/offers/BaAEYBog/checkoutWhat do the great putters in the game of golf have in common?  Putting has been called a game within a game; for some, it is the ultimate science, yet others, myself included, consider it more of an art. The debate will continue forever, but for now and in this podcast, let's explore this simple question – "what goes into making a g...