Get Julie Elion’s new book Mastering Your Mental Game (link to Amazon) On this episode we’ve got THE Julie Elion. Most notably the mental performance coach for Wyndham Clark. She’s also the author of her new book Mastering Your Mental Game, which is excellent. So the timing of this one was pretty dang cool with Wyndham just winning the U.S. Open last week. We of course talk a lot about Wyndham and how he handles the adversity of the crowd and seemingly the whole world being against him. And we discuss how Wyndham and other tour players improve their mental resilience, emotional regulation, and other very accessible and normal practices golfers can do to perform better under pressure. By the end of this episode I’m confident you’ll be able to reframe your nerves, handle anger better, and develop mental habits that give you the best chance to succeed more often. ----- Timestamps & Topics: 0:00 - Intro: Listen to Josh’s new podcast Project Mid-Am: A Golfer’s Journey on Apple or Spotify 2:36 - The Nerve-wracking Experience of Coaching Wyndham Clark 9:04 - Why Honesty and Self-Awareness is Important for Golfers 16:09 - ⛳️ The Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. 17:46 - How to Get Over Other People’s Opinions, Embarrassment, and Needing Others’ Approval 21:13 - Wyndham, Anger, Trauma, and Responding Better in Difficult Moments 31:10 - 🏌️♂️ Basic and Custom Practice Plans - Practice made simple, intentional, and accountable. 33:35 - Get Comfortable With the Discomfort of an Important Round of Golf 39:27 - Playing Tentative, Guidey, and Scared: How to Play with Freedom 49:39 - 🎯 Shot Pattern - Course Management Made Easy - Start a free trial and get 20% off by using the discount code 'MENTALGOLFSHOW' or click this link to go straight there. 51:37 - How to Do a Postmortem Of a Round of Golf 58:57 - Why You Should Be Prioritizing Your Mental Game 1:07:12 - Julie Elion: Mastering Your Mental Game (Amazon book link) ----- Mentioned in this episode: ⛳️ The Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. 🏌️♂️ Basic and Custom Practice Plans - Practice made simple, intentional, and accountable. 🎯 Shot Pattern - Course Management Made Easy - Start a free trial and get 20% off by using the discount code 'MENTALGOLFSHOW' or click this link to go straight there. ----- Josh's stuff: 📊 FREE Mental Game Assessment: app.joshnicholsgolf.com/assessment - identify your mental strengths and areas for mental game improvement. 🏌️♂️ Basic and Custom Practice Plans - Practice made simple, intentional, and accountable. 👨🏻🏫 1-on-1 Mental Coaching with Josh: Visit joshnicholsgolf.com/coaching to see plans and pricing to work with Josh on your mental game. Or send an email to josh@joshnicholsgolf.com. 🎓 The Perfect Pre-Shot Routine digital course - Dial in your pre-shot routine, play your best golf. 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at **joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter.** ----- Other podcast partners: ⛳️ PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. 🏋️♂️ FREE Golf Workout - Nerd Fitness - Get the Free MVP Golf Workout from Nerd Fitness here! 🍀 Fairways & Fundays - Ireland Golf Tours - Named World’s Best Golf Tour Operator at the World Golf Awards in 2024 and 2025! If you’re interested in going on a golf trip to Ireland, send me an email and I’ll get you set up with them - josh@joshnicholsgolf.com ----- 🔥 🧈 Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here. ----- Key takeaways: Winning the Day Mentally: Before a tournament, Julie focuses her clients on winning the day mentally rather than fixating on the scoreboard outcome, because executing mental goals consistently is what leads to winning. Name Your Feelings: Rather than pushing emotions aside or forcing positivity, Julie coaches players to identify and name what they're feeling — anger, frustration, nerves — before redirecting to their goals. Excavating Your Mental History: Effective mental performance coaching requires digging into a player's personal history, including family dynamics, coaching relationships, and past experiences, to uncover what's holding them back on the course. Coping Mechanisms That No Longer Serve You: Habits developed to handle stress in childhood may actually be working against performance as an adult, making self-awareness a critical first step in mental game improvement. The Pre-Shot Routine as an Anchor: A consistent pre-shot routine acts like comfort food for the mind — something familiar and calming that players can return to no matter how chaotic the environment gets. Reframing Nerves as Inner Applause: Instead of fighting first-tee nerves, players can reframe that physiological response as excitement and readiness rather than a threat to performance. There's No "Don't" in Golf: Borrowed from caddy Fluff Cowan, this principle reinforces that players should direct their focus toward where they want to go, not away from where they don't. Till the Soil Before Competition: Just like gardening requires soil preparation, performing well in competition requires deliberate mental preparation the night before — including brain drain journaling, box breathing, and honest self-assessment. The Mental Scorecard: Tracking a commitment or engagement score hole-by-hole alongside the traditional scorecard helps players identify patterns in when and why their mental game breaks down. Vulnerability Is the Real Role Model: Wyndham Clark's public journey with anger management demonstrates that the most powerful form of role modeling isn't perfection — it's openly committing to doing the inner work. ----- Top 5 episodes of The Mental Golf Show: Mike & Eli of Chasing Scratch - Letting Scratch Happen How to Trust Your Swing even when things are Going Wrong Golf Thought Thursday: The Easiest (and Hardest) Way to Play Better Golf Lean Into Your Golf Personality with John Weir (creator of Mental Golf Type) How to Juggle Golf and Life with Andy Walker and Steve Hinks
