Dear Coach, I have an athlete who does everything great in practice but in a match is helpless and clueless. Do you have any advice for this athlete? Signed Coach of Choker!
Dear Coach of Choker,
One of my favorite Sports psych friends put it this way, “This player does not have a psychological problem, they have a practice problem!”
So this athlete may quite simply have a case of not being under enough pressure in practice. The more pressure you practice under, the harder you compete. This is why pros play for five dollars in practice or why golfers bet on each hole. This athlete must put themselves under pressure to deal with pressure. In practice-try to win games with perfect passes or kills, not safe shots. I would have this athlete play more tournaments to get tournament tough. I would also observe the athlete closely.
One other thought on this. There are athletes who need counseling. Growing up and hearing you are not worthy makes one want to fulfill that prophesy. Of course that is real amateur psych and there are many more issues that a good Sports Psych person would explore.
One of my favorite questions is, “What are you thinking in this rally?” I ask that question when I sense a hesitation on a shot or a negative thought passing through the athlete’s mind. My goal is to get the athlete to focus on the process; not the outcome.
Off court preparation will lead to success in racquetball nation!
Go get’em tigers!