What is PRESSURE?

With at least 4 (and possibly 7) promotions for the 2020-2021 season, many of us will be playing at levels at which we have never played. This raises the questions of skill levels and “performance under pressure”.

Pressure can be defined as “The act or effect of exerting strain, stress, or tension on someone”.

It is timely to remember the 5 Cs: 

· CONSISTENCY

· CONTROL

· CONCENTRATION

· CONFIDENCE

· COMITTMENT

There is not 1 of us who hasn’t put down a world class bowl. The difference between the divisions is that those in the higher grades, do it more often. The higher the grade, the more often it happens!

I would venture to suggest that the higher-grade players also have higher levels in each of the 5 Cs.

Dedicated practice to improve the first 3 will result in the Confidence to Commit to the shot and SUCCESS

A draw shot to the jack is exactly the same shot whether you are 5 down or 5 up. Only the consequences of failure are different and it is fear of failure that creates “stress”.

The more you can increase your levels of the 5 Cs, the more chance you have of making the crucial shots. The trick is to relax, take a deep breath and play the shot with CONFIDENCE and COMITTMENT.

Don’t beat yourself up if you don’t succeed, the sun will still come up tomorrow