By Bill Nichols
Special to ESPN.com
Preparation for the Masters requires more than tweaking ball flights and
putting techniques. Training the brain is also essential, so sports psychologists are booked
well in advance. Players practice ways to maintain their concentration and performance levels in pressure-filled
situations.
"I'll have guys do some mental rehearsal, some visualization," Dr. Fran Pirozzolo says. "You want them to be
comfortable with what they will see and feel."
Pirozzolo has worked with PGA Tour players since 1983, including two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer and
1997 British Open champion Justin Leonard.
He offers similar advice to golfers preparing for Augusta as he did in a training manual he gave Boston Red Sox
pitcher Curt Schilling before the 2004 World Series. Schilling took his mind off his injured ankle by mentally
replaying past strikeouts of key batters.
Likewise, Pirozzolo instructs his golfers to visualize the shots they'll face during the Masters. When on the range at
tournaments, players can shape their shots while visualizing particular holes at Augusta. The key is to avoid surprises.
"Get yourself ready with the right pictures or stimuli that access the good swings," he says.""Try to see in
your mind's eye the ninth fairway. Start doing that a month out, so it's not a new shot when you get there."
Gio Valiante, a professor at Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla., stresses a no-fear approach when attacking Augusta. Having
worked with Davis Love III, Chris DiMarco, David Duval and Chad Campbell, Valiante tells Masters competitors to "expect the
best and prepare for everything." In other words, don't get rattled by a rare double bogey.
Using visualization, Valiante helps his players form a selective memory so they think only positive thoughts. For example, after
hitting two balls in the water on No. 12 the first round, a player should arrive at the hole the next day concentrating on his
original plan of attack instead of the mistakes.
Excitement can negatively affect players, as it did with DiMarco in his first Masters (2001), when he shot 74 on Sunday to
tie for 10 th. He says he made the mistake of trying to force a good score.
Last year, Valiante stressed the one-shot-at-a-time mantra for DiMarco, using tunnel vision to block out the gallery and
other distractions. DiMarco says that patience played a key role in his tie for sixth place.
"At the Masters, guys become outcome-focused," Valiante says. "It's impatience to win something you dreamed
of. I try to get the guys to play the golf course, just get lost in the process."
Considering the magnitude of the Masters and the beauty of Augusta, it's understandable that minds wander.
"You want to be able to attack Augusta with the things you do well," Pirozzolo says. "Don't try to make
eagle on the first hole, or try to be 12 under after nine. Make the challenge doable."
Bill Nichols, who covers golf for the Dallas Morning News, wrote this story for the 2005 Masters Journal.
This article was originally located at:
http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=2019433