Golf, there is probably no single sport that depends more on the mind. Imagine a golfer being at the tee with his pin striped shirt ready to tee off.  He has his driver out and takes a couple of practice swings.  What is the golfer saying to himself before teeing off?  What suggestions is he giving himself for his mind/body to respond to?  What ability is he characterizing himself to have?   When teeing off, does the golfer say, “ I always hit the fairway,” or does the golfer say” I never hit the fairway.”  Does the player give himself a positive command or a negative command?

There are numerous examples of how hypnosis can and is used within sports.  When a golfer is hitting an approach shot towards the green, hypnotic self talk can be used to create a better shot.  How many times does a person say before hitting the shot,  “I always put it in the trap?”  The golfer is focusing on the trap, thus his next shot will be in the trap for his focus was on the trap.   His focus and self talk to himself was not as follows: “On this next shot, I am going to put it on the green.”   If your self-talk is creating the adventure of being in the sand, then you will simply end up in the sand.  The hypnotic self talk should be based on where the golfer would like to hit  the ball and not based on what the golfer would like to avoid.  The focus becomes the positive verbal commands and not where someone should avoid.