MINDING THE SCORE
"Players should have a plan they want to execute at 17 and
work that out in practice rounds," says sports psychologist
Dr. Richard Coop. "There's a bit of wind that's hard to detect
on that hole. The important thing is not bailing out in the
middle of a swing. The players need to commit to club selection
based on a plan developed during practice rounds. That's most
important.

"If they de-commit in the middle of a swing, that's
bad news. Also, they should recall past successes on the hole.
The last thing is to get an intermediate target and aim at that
for that last look, rather than at the pin, where they might see
all that water. They're looking at the wrong place if they're
appreciating the beauty of the hole.

"Of course, the other thing is
that they now have that video online of people playing the hole
all day long. I tell my players not to watch that because you see
too many splashes. I even tell them not to watch their playing
partners hit for that reason. It creates too powerful a visual."