Ahhh, if only golf could be all green grass, cool blue sky, and warm breezes ruffling our shirt sleeves as the final putt drops in the hole at the end of the day.

Instead, it is one of the most expensive, maddening, challenging games that one can undertake.

It is made worse by the fact that, once some skill is acquired, we may seem doomed to days of shooting a 97, or a 77 .... and never knowing which day will happen when, or feeling in control of the process.

Golf is mental.

Otherwise, what could drive seemingly normal people to throw $300 drivers into a lake, or to curse and vow to never play the game again

Your mental golf game makes or breaks you.

Yet, how many of us get any sport psychology training of ANY kind ... much less mental tips specific to golf?

Very few.

So let's look closer.

From the moment you tee off, golf engages you in multiple battles ... with your own skills and swing thoughts ... with the course and elements ... with your playing partners ... and sometimes the added load of a side game bet.

One part of your game can be outstanding, and another hardly bearable. Then the next time you play, they may switch places.

How do we create some mental order out of the chaos that is the game of golf?

If you have no experience in training your own mind to perform at its peak, you may do well to invest in some basic mental training specific to golf play. There are a wide variety of choices.

There are a wide range of golf mental training programs, ranging from the deadly serious to the hilarious and fun -- and a little bit of everything in-between. Over the next few articles, we will examine what many of them have to offer you.

For instance:

"What Do Tiger and The Tour Pros Know That You Don't? "

"Discover How A Simple, But Little-Known Secret Mental Golf Technique - That Tiger And The Top Tour Players Use - Will Catapult Your Golf Game To The Next Level In Less Than 30 Minutes And Without Practicing"

Sounds good, hmm? "Get better .. tour pros ... no practicing ..."

Look for yourself .. does listening to audio CD's sound like the kind of thing that might help you?

Amazing Golf Mind Audio .... but we're SUPPOSED to practice, right? And try "hard?" Or is there such a thing as TOO much practice? And trying TOO hard .. and getting in your own way?

Hmmmm ...

And then for the fun .. though for some deadly serious aspect of golf side bets, there is Black Ops Golf ... on the surface their whole approach makes you laugh, and you HAVE to see the pictures ... but there is, in fact, actually valid psychological research behind their approach.

What if you CAN actually secretly hypnotize your golfing partners into hacking their ball into the woods and losing bets to you ... while they are wide awake ... without them even knowing it?

Hmmmm .. this golf psychology stuff is interesting ... and confusing. We'll keep investigating ....