I'm a golf coach, but I don't instruct golfers on their swings. I teach them how to use their minds on the golf course and how to play from their hearts. I try to give golfers a different way of thinking about how they play the game and how they treat themselves on the golf course. I teach golfers how to play "Zen golf."

Zen means "action with awareness," being completely in the present moment. The qualities that accompany the Zen experience include expansive vision, effortless focus, a feeling of equanimity and timelessness, abundant confidence, and complete freedom from anxiety or doubt. Interestingly, this is exactly the way champion athletes describe "being in the Zone." It is also strikingly similar to the way golfers describe the feeling of a perfectly struck golf shot, a feeling every golfer wants to have again and again.

Harvey Penick, the revered golf teacher, said, "All seasoned players know, or at least have felt, that when you are playing your best, you are much the same as in a state of meditation. You're free of tension and chatter. You are concentrating on one thing. It is the ideal condition for good golf."

In the last twenty years, golf equipment such as clubs, balls, and training aids, including the use of video for swing analysis, have improved tremendously. Swing instruction books and magazines are more plentiful now than ever. Still, no appreciable improvement in the average golfer's scores has resulted. Why?

No matter how sophisticated their equipment or their knowledge about the swing, if golfers don't know how to work with their minds on the course, they encounter the common mental obstacles that keep them from realizing their potential. Performance anxiety, emotional reactions, and distractions interfere with golfers' abilities. Overcoming such obstacles is the key to breaking through to lower scores. The stories and lessons in Zen Golf: Mastering the Mental Game are about freeing ourselves from fear and doubt, and activating confidence -- what every golfer needs.

The principles of Zen Golf evolved from my study and practice of Buddhist meditation and psychology, as well as an enduring passion for golf. One of my meditation teachers, Ösel Tendzin, was an avid golfer. He used golf outings as a setting for communication with his students. After a round of golf, he would talk with us about the connection between golf, meditation, and the teachings of Shambhala warriorship, a companion tradition to Buddhism. Shambhala warriorship emphasizes fearlessness and dignity and is similar to the mind-set of martial arts traditions like Zen archery. These experiences with my teacher gave me a different perspective on the game, one that formed the basis for my coaching and the lessons in Zen Golf.

Tiger Woods, in an ABC-TV interview, said, "My mother's a Buddhist. In Buddhism, if you want to achieve enlightenment, you have to do it through meditation and self-improvement through the mind. That's something she's passed on to me: to be able to calm myself down and use my mind as my main asset."

Many books and articles on the mental game will tell you, "Stay in the present, keep focused, clear your mind, don't get down on yourself." What makes Zen Golf special is that it teaches you how to do those things, with time-tested mindfulness and awareness techniques and exercises for working with thoughts and emotions, for settling and centering your body and mind, for changing unhelpful habits.

In the Buddhist tradition there is a saying that for an activity to be fruitful, it must be good in the beginning, good in the middle, and good at the end. Through years of playing, practicing, and coaching the mental game of golf, three aspects emerged as the ideal beginning, middle, and end for any golf shot. I refer to them as the PAR Approach to golf instruction -- preparation, action, and response to results. This is the organizing principle of my coaching program for golf schools and corporate outings, for teaching every level of golfer from PGA professional to beginning amateur.

As you'll read in this book, the keys to preparation are clarity, commitment, and composure. These are necessary for developing a sound, consistent routine. The ideal state of mind for action is feeling confident, focused, and in the flow, with body and mind synchronized in the present moment. This allows you to execute a shot free from the interference of mental chatter or paralysis from analysis. The best response to results is one that enhances future performance. You'll be introduced to a unique "post-shot routine." This special way of relating to the outcome of a shot is highly effective in fostering confidence by building on success and learning from mistakes without negativity.

Continued success at golf (and any other endeavor) requires all three aspects: preparation, action, and response to results. They form the framework for the instructions presented in Zen Golf. Applied properly, they will help you achieve focus, calmness, and confidence, the most essential ingredients of peak performance.

Zen Golf will also introduce you to a unique perspective that brings together techniques of modern psychology, experiences of generations of golfers, and the ancient wisdom of the Buddhist and Shambhala traditions. Rather than an instruction manual that takes you through a systematic program like a cookbook, it is a collection of brief chapters offering the wisdom of traditional Zen stories and teachings applied in actual lessons with golfers, many of whom are PGA professionals.

The opening section of Zen Golf, "A Different Perspective," introduces a new way of thinking about your game. Instead of always asking, "What's wrong with me?" you can learn to focus on what's right with you.

The instructional section of Zen Golf teaches the stages of the PAR Approach. Many of the chapters in this section focus on putting and the short game, because the hopes and fears that create mental obstacles intensify as we get closer to our objective: the ball going into the hole. You'll be given instruction in mindfulness and awareness practice, the cornerstones of mastering the mental game. In particular, you'll learn a powerful technique that transforms habits quickly, with a minimum of effort.

The concluding section of Zen Golf, "A Game of Honor," looks at the ways in which the game of golf offers opportunities to manifest the hallmarks of warriorship: dignity, confidence, and genuineness.

In Zen Golf you'll learn ways to make your mind an ally instead of an enemy, how to stay calm, avoid mental mistakes, reduce frustration, increase consistency, and lower your scores.

Many of my students feel that the methods of Zen Golf benefit them in other areas of their lives. It is my hope that this book will help you tap into the unconditional confidence that is already there in your heart. May it enable you to ride the ups and downs you encounter with poise, humor, and humility, making the game of golf and the game of life ever more rewarding for yourself and your playing companions.