A major part of knowing how to access the zone is knowing why you're not presently in it. By identifying where you are in a particular situation or activity, you can pick the appropriate "switch," strengthen the specific area of present involvement, and move immediately into a mode conducive to peak performance of that particular activity.

Let me give you a real-life, practical example of this process in action. In November of 1997, I was in the final round of the Regional PGA Senior Tour Qualifying Tournament in San Antonio, Texas. We had seventy-eight players competing for just twelve spots to advance to the finals in Florida. If you fail to advance from the regionals, you have to wait a whole year to try again, so the pressure of those four rounds is enormous.

I had shot 72-76-69 the first three rounds and had to shoot par 72 the last day to qualify. When you have to shoot par on a very difficult golf course, against tough competition, on a cold and windy day, the pressure can be stifling. Standing on the fifteenth tee, I was even par for the day, fighting to hold on. Fifteen at Fair Oaks Ranch is the hardest hole on the course--450 yards, par four, into the wind, a very narrow fairway, big trouble on both sides, water right in front of the green that stretches all the way across the fairway, and a small, hard green that you're firing at with a middle to long iron, if you smash a perfect drive. There is absolutely no room for error.

As we waited (fortunately for me) for the group ahead to clear, I quickly put my "zone training" to work. First, I took a few deep, slow breaths, to cleanse and energize the brain. Then I assessed my needs. I needed to calm down, I needed to energize, and I needed to focus on my present goal--not the goal of qualifying, or shooting 72, but getting this drive into the fairway, with really good distance.

To calm down, I immediately did some "one-point" focusing, which results in instant centering and balancing. For instant energy, I turned to the trees around the teeing area. I quickly found a large tree that had grown beautiful and graceful throughout many years. I thought of how many years that tree had been there and tried to siphon off some of its awesome energy. I sensed its connection to the earth and how stable it was. And looking at its branches and leaves, I thought of how much life it supported and the shelter it provided. So I literally drew energy from that tree, from nature.

Now feeling centered and energized, I shifted my attention to focusing on my present goal, that of playing an exceptional tee shot. First, I visually found a target area, pictured a drive flying down the fairway to that area, and thought of how many thousands of times I've produced that very shot on the practice tee. Then I said to myself, "Just hit that drive one more time."

By using involvement in the moment (complete attention to the present goal), positive visualization, and positive expectations, I left no room for negative thoughts to enter and was able to take advantage of my calm, energized state. And then I lined up and swung. The entire process took less than sixty seconds, and most zoning techniques take even less time, sometimes only a few seconds.

The drive that I played there on fifteen was possibly the best of the week, long and dead straight. It ended up about 270 yards down the fairway, in the geometrical center. It was perfect. If I'd had to hit that drive twenty years ago, before I knew about these techniques, there's no telling where it would have ended up. The best part of it was that the confidence that I gained after that drive carried me through the rest of the round. I parred fifteen and sixteen, birdied seventeen, and parred eighteen, for a 71 that enabled me to finish in fifth place alone, easily qualifying for the finals.

From EXPLORING THE ZONE by Larry Miller.  Copyright (c) 2001 by Larry Miller.  All rights reserved. Reproduced with permission from Larry Miller.