Interviews with GBGA golfers that have been injured and continued to train using advice from George Bryan, III.
Scott Feaster
1. When you first were injured and George presented the idea of a mental training program while you were recovering, what were your thoughts?
My injury occured in the early part of the year 2001. When presented the mental training program, my thoughts were to go for it seeing that I had a lot of time on my hands!
2. What were some of the ideas and exercises that you engaged in while you were injured?
A lot of the ideas that I took part in had to do with visualizing myself playing great golf, winning tournaments, and moving to a new level. I don't remember George asking me to read anything, but I did watch tour events.
3. How often did you engage in these exercises or techniques?
I would try to visualize myself playing great golf probably twice a week at first and after a few weeks into the healing process I began to do it more, say 3-5 times a week, usually for a half hour at a time.
4. When you recovered from your injury and started playing golf, when you came back how did you play?
I came back from the injury in May of the same year and started slowly, but played well by the summer of that same year. In fact one of my first (if not the first event) I played was the US Amateur Qualifier which I won! I got to play in my first US Am that summer and made it to match play.
5. Did you anticipate playing better after injury or was it a surprise?
I didn't really have any expectations when I came back from the injury, so to play pretty well that spring and summer was a nice surprise.
Wil Hutchens
1. When you first were injured and George presented the idea of a mental training program while you were recovering, what were your thoughts?
After my injury, I was devasted. I was willing to do anything to play good golf as soon as I was physically capable. There was no way of knowing if a "mental training program" would help, but I figured it certainly couldn't hurt.
2. What were some of the ideas and exercises that you engaged in while you were injured?
I engaged in anything that could shed positive light on my situation. Muscle memory is what controls our tendencies and habits. Not playing golf for 5 to 6 months, I thought I could do away with the physical "bad habits" that I had developed over the years and use my mind to create good ones. I watched videos of Tiger Woods swing (a pretty good golfer to try and immulate) and others including Ernie Els. I played golf in my mind all the time visualizing making perfect swings and hitting perfect shots (I wasn't physically playing golf, but I was slowly becoming a more confident player). Also, I read books written by Dr. Bob Rotella to help with the mental aspect of the game.
3. How often did you engage in these exercises or techniques?
Several times a day.
4. When you recovered from your injury and started playing golf, when you came back how did you play?
My first tournament back was good. I shot 73, which I was very pleased with. However, after that day, it was a slow climb to get back to where I was and beyond. It took me about 5 months before I truly was confident physically - before I could start thinking about "playing" and not about what my body physically would or would not allow me to do.
5. Did you anticipate playing better after injury or was it a surprise?
I certainly anticipated playing better golf, but I didn't think I would have to wait as long as I did. It was tough, but I stuck with the process and trusted that the hard work would pay off... and it did!
Gerry Coleman
1. Tell us about the operation.
It just an operation I had to give my father the kidney because he was having some kidney problems. I was just in the hospital for a couple of days but I was out of work for several weeks. And I could not pick up a golf club for 10 weeks, which is 2 months, per doctor’s orders. Obviously, with any major organ donation you can’t really twist and turn very much.
2. What did George introduce to you when he first found out about you having the operation?
Actually when I told him, I was upset. I was disappointed because I had worked with him for 5 months and I was upset because after putting that work in, it was all going to be lost because I couldn’t play for 2 months. So basically when I came to him about it, I was upset but he was actually excited. He told me right off the gate that this 2 and a half months off would probably do wonders for my game. Of course I didn’t believe him but just because I’m stubborn but he introduced to me a CD of some players and some old CDs of myself (of my previous swing) and told me what to work on and told me just to watch those while I was in the hospital. And I did.
3. How did you react initially to what George had to suggest about your time away from golf and your recovery?
I thought it just him trying to cheer me up kind of, and to not be disappointed about it. My initial reaction was “whatever, ok” but sure enough he was totally right.
4. How was your golf game before having the operation?
I started seeing George in November, but the summer before I came to see him I was actually playing really well, not as well as I am now, but I was playing at about a 15 handicap. When I started seeing him in November, it just went to hell. My game was terrible I just couldn’t do anything but he just tried to convince me that I was going through training and it was going to be bad but to just be patient with it Then I got to the principles that he set forth in front of me and once he did that and I actually took it to heart, and just said “OK I tried everything else, I put my hands to George with my golf” and now I’m playing wonderful!
5. Describe your daily training program and please include some of the exercises.
The only thing I’ve done is stand on the wall with my butt on the wall and do a little thing he taught me against the wall, a little chair drill. It keeps my posture and I just watch the mirror and make sure my hands drop down before my head turns around. Just do that, look at the mirror, and that’s all. I just do that 20-30 times a day and sometimes I’ll miss a day but I do stick to it; it is part of my routine. Not only could I not play golf [after surgery] but I couldn’t lift anything over 10 lbs. so that’s all I could do were those wall drills. That was something that he had introduced to me in November but I just never really did them. Well, I did them but I didn’t concentrate on them. But now I realize if I could do this and get better and I don’t have to go hit balls for 2 hrs in the sun, I’m concentrating on this.
6. How did it feel to break your personal record? Describe in detail.
It felt great. It felt great but then I was mad because I missed a lot of putts and I thought that the 77 should have been a 74 or 73 but I was very, very happy. [I was] stunned and shocked. I wouldn’t say stunned or shocked because I knew I had the ability to be a single digit handicap, I just need somebody to bring it out of me and have that mindset and that’s what George has done for me. I know I have the talent to do it, it’s just he’s doing a good job of working with me and knowing how I think.
7. Is there anything else you would like to add?
The only thing I’d like to add is: I think the big, important thing not only was my training routine while I was in surgery, but it was that highlight reel he has done for me. He has me go down and put down the best hole or best shot that I’m about to hit and think about what hole and how I hit it before. And when I do that, then that’s all I think about on the course. It makes the golf so much easier because I know if I pull out my 3-iron, I just think of a 3-iron I’ve hit in the past, and I’ve got it written down so I know I can hit the shot. I know I can do it but then if I don’t do it, I just say “oh well, bad shot,” but the thing about it is that it blocks everything else from my head. I just picture that shot and then just go hit it; just be an athlete.
George Bryan IV
1. When you first were injured and your dad presented the idea of a mental training program while you were recovering, what were your thoughts?
My thoughts when I was recovering were that this was going to be hard to do and probably boring, but I knew if I wanted to get better and get the most out of it, that I would have to do the mental training in order to keep getting better while being injured.
2. What were some of the ideas and exercises that you engaged in while you were injured?
The first one was to visualize myself winning golf tournaments, watching myself practice in my mind, and visualize myself hitting good shots. Then I watched golf tournaments and watched other good players play and paid attention to what they were doing. And I also visualized myself in the same situations that they were in.
3. How often did you engage in these exercises or techniques?
I pretty much did it everyday.
4. When you recovered from your injury and started playing golf, when you came back how did you play?
I played really well. The first tournament back, I shot 71-72 at the Bobby Chapman and had 8 birdies, and that was one of the first rounds of golf I had played in 3 months.
5. Did you anticipate playing better after injury or was it a surprise?
It wasn't a surprise. I didn't know what to expect because I didn't have any expectations.
Wesley Bryan
1. When you first were injured and your dad presented the idea of a mental training program while you were recovering, what were your thoughts?
I thought to myself, "What a goofball"
2. What were some of the ideas and exercises that you engaged in while you were injured?
I watched every single hour of coverage of pretty much every single tour event, and I read pretty much every article in Golf Week for a couple of weeks. I was beginning to learn how to visualize myself playing golf in my head and I played a lot of rounds of golf that way.
3. How often did you engage in these exercises or techniques?
I played golf in my head every day, definitely, and I at least saw myself hitting golf shots every day. And every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday I watched a lot of golf.
4. When you recovered from your injury and started playing golf, when you came back how did you play?
I came back and finished 2nd at Region and 4th at State as a freshman and then I had a really good summer after that. I also qualified for the US Jr. and the Georgia/South Carolina matches.
5. Did you anticipate playing better after injury or was it a surprise?
My dad told me I was going to play better and he was confident I was going to play better, but I had my doubts. In the end, though, I came out a better player.