Golf psychology may not be a familiar term to the average person, but it is becoming very much a part of the golfing vocabulary of this country, having been practised for decades in the US as an invaluable aid to competitive performance.

There is little argument but that better concentration is the single most significant factor in achieving overall improvement. It offers the most obvious route, once players have mastered the fundamentals of the game - i.e. the swing - under the guidance of a teaching professional.

But the mind must be free to work on the mechanics of the game. And techniques for achieving this, need to be taken every bit as seriously as the grip or the takeaway. The mind must be trained and conditioned to the same level as the physical side, if maximum potential is to be reached.

Golf therapy offers a wide range of mental activities. Depending on the requirements of the individual, however, there may be only one area needing improvement. Alternatively, individuals could go through a 90-minute assessment during which the psychologist's analytical skills would explore and identify strengths and weaknesses in areas such as concentration, confidence and consistency. Then we would look at methods of overcoming these weaknesses.

It could entail hypnosis for visual imagery; special exercises to improve concentration, or the notion of taking time out to develop assertive behaviour. It is also important for individuals to understand the various personality traits they may display under different and difficult circumstances.

All too often, good golfers can lose their way and it becomes necessary to identify the reasons for this loss of form. On the other hand, physical and mental changes brought about by the simple maturing process, have to be accommodated.

In short, endless support is available to golfers in these areas. So, let us take a closer look at golf and the subconscious mind.

Firstly, it is important to establish that high achievement is within the grasp of most golfers if they have a hunger to succeed and are prepared to do the necessary work. As a child, you learn to walk, run, dance, sing. As an adult, perhaps you drive a car.

All of these learned skills are in the subconscious mind, ready to be enacted when given the correct stimulus. The practical application of the mechanical skills of golf is achieved by practice, until they become habitual. In that way, a competent golfer, like a car driver, will concentrate on the journey and potential hazards while leaving mechanical details to the subconscious mind.

Accepting the concept of the conscious and subconscious mind, we can then proceed to use both to full advantage.

The conscious mind is the part which thinks, feels, acts in the present and has the power of criticism. The subconscious mind, however, is far more extensive, yet we can be quite oblivious to its very existence. Devoid of the power of criticism, it believes everything we tell it, storing all memories which are ready to be enacted.

Now, it is important to note that the subconscious mind gets signals not only from the practical application of acquired skills -- i.e. swinging the club. It also gets signals when the player focuses on a certain image, thinks, hears and smells.

But if anxiety levels increase, the conscious mind takes over with all its doubts and fears. The player's personality and the extent to which he or she achieves control over their anxieties, will determine how successful they are in mastering the so-called Mind Game.

By learning to understand your personality - temperament, intelligence, emotion and motivation - you can take the necessary steps to alter behaviour and, as a consequence, your overall game. In simple terms, personality can be described as the interaction of heredity, which determines the qualities a person is born with, and environment, which involves a person's life experiences affecting the way they act and think.

For example, extroverts and outgoing people may need to adopt a quieter approach to the game in order to achieve consistency. Introverts, on the other hand, might need to work on heightening their competitive nature in the endless battle against Old Man Par. As a rule, introverts appear to be more receptive to learning but essentially it comes down to the person having sufficient insight to achieve a reasonable balance.

Let us take the golfer who has experienced problems on the two opening holes of their home course. Both holes have out of bounds on the left and the player almost invariably hits at least one ball over the fence, thus affecting his attitude to the remainder of the round.

What is happening here? Because of a depressing history of hitting at least one ball out of bounds, he is giving negative instructions to the subconscious mind. Meanwhile, he is desperately trying to focus on the desired target, which was his intended message to the subconscious mind in the first place.

So, with all the doubts and fears going on about the out of bounds, he momentarily loses his focus, allowing his eyes to drift to the fearsome fence rather than the intended target. In the process, another set on instructions are given to the subconscious, with predictably disastrous results.

In this case, it was necessary for the golfer to work on his focal attention. By using hypnosis, we would be able to remove the negativity with regards to the out of bounds situation and continue to work on his temperament, thereby increasing his ability to let go of bad shots and play one shot at a time.

Remember, mechanical skills should be practised until they are habitual. After that, the golfer should learn to trust his/her subconscious mind and give correct signals to the body. That is what professionals mean when they use the phrase, "trust your swing." And that is why they practise so much.