Zondervan Launches "Golf's Sacred Journey" August 2009 |
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That's where they go to find their game, to a place called Utopia, the both fictional and real-life setting for top sports psychologist Dr. David Cook's book Golf's Sacred Journey: Seven Days at the Links of Utopia What Do Top Golfers Like Tom Lehman Have To Do With A Nine-Hole Golf Course In The Middle Of A Cow Pasture In The Heartland of Texas?
A "goat ranch" golf course encircling an old cemetery (yes, it's really there) sets the stage for Cook's everyman story—a fictional account of a chance meeting between a disheartened golf pro and an unorthodox mentor, a small town rancher with uncommon insight. The young pro, whose daily score is impacted by his emotional highs and lows, is in a funk when he discovers a golf course in the middle of nowhere and encounters old Johnny, whose unusual and memorable golf teachings incorporate lessons using fishing, painting, and flying. Against this backdrop, Cook takes readers step by step through the critical mental aspects of the game, from a confidence-building pre-shot checklist to lessons on instinct over intellect, truth over tradition, excellence over acceptance, and expecting the unexpected. Golf's Sacred Journey is as much a story of faith as it is a forum for Cook's 30-plus years of hands-on experience coaching hundreds of PGA, NBA (World Champion San Antonio Spurs), MLB, and NFL players as well as Olympians and collegiate champions. Named by Golf Digest as one of the top ten mental-game coaches in the game, Cook's ability to create first-rate performers goes well beyond sports. Over the years he's consulted with business leaders from Fortune 100 companies, showing them how to move forward in life. "Golf," says the rancher "is like a Texas two step. Until you feel the music, you ain't nothin' but a step counter." Along with the pro, we learn that feeling the music is about infusing a swing with rhythm, balance, and patience. It's about seeing past the interference to a shot we envision in our minds. It is about emotional control, conviction, and not over thinking. It all boils down to just three tasks: See, Feel, and Trust (S.F.T.). Seeing, the rancher explains, means making the shot deliberate by envisioning what you want to happen—"calling the shot" in terms of shape, target, and trajectory. Feeling is the internalizing of that shot— its rhythm, balance and patience. And trusting is what sports psychologists would call an absence of mechanical control, but what the rancher dubs "letting it happen." "Trust," he adds, "is a decision." But there's more to "S.F.T." than meets the eye as readers discover. Though golf-lovers hell-bent on birdies are drawn to Cook's mental concepts for obvious reasons, they're also finding his ideas very compelling and relevant to any pursuit in life, including the hardest one of all: faith. Like all wise instructors, Cook knows the complexities of the game and understands that ultimately playing golf is not about the score. Success, like a bank account, is never the definition of a person's worth. "Golf," says the author's rancher alter ego, "is an art. And art is not about outcome." Committed to inspiring true purpose and identity, Cook takes us on a faith journey, beyond the links to a place of profound spiritual wisdom, answering the question that his book opens with: How can a game have such an effect on a man's soul? With a foreword by Tom Lehman, British Open Champion and 2006 Ryder Cup Captain. For more information, visit www.linksofutopia.com About Dr. David Cook
Release Date: August, 2009
Praise for Golf's Sacred Journey "All golfers should read Golf's Sacred Journey. It's a book that will change the way you think and the way you live." "Read it. Devour it. Keep it as a reference book. You'll be glad you did. Golf's Sacred Journey is a remarkable and encouraging story with an entirely different approach on how to succeed in your golf game." "This book is full of wisdom that will enhance your game and I believe it just may change your life." "Golf's Sacred Journey has again revealed the wisdom of David Cook as a teacher, coach, and encourager of life. This is one trip you can't afford to miss. Enjoy the journey!" "This book has a simple yet wonderful message that is vital to all of us. I cannot encourage you enough to read this great book." "Golf's Sacred Journey is one of the best golf books I have ever read. It is a must read for anybody, especially golfers. You will not be able to put this book down." |
That's where they go to find their game, to a place called Utopia, the both fictional and real-life setting for top sports psychologist Dr. David Cook's book 
Dr. David Cook is one of the country's top sport and performance psychology consultants having served as mental coach for over 100 PGA Tour players, NBA World Champion San Antonio Spurs (two MVPs David Robinson and Tim Duncan), NFL, MLB, Olympics, and collegiate national championship ranks as well as Fortune 100 business leaders. Dr. Cook speaks around the country and has been the featured speaker at two National PGA Teaching and Coaching Summits. Recognized by Golf Digest as one of the leading mental-game coaches, his work has also appeared in Golf Magazine, Golf Illustrated, and Golf Tips. Dr. Cook also directed the Mindset Academy at the Westin La Cantera Resort in San Antonio, a nationally recognized mental training academy for aspiring competitive golfers from 2001 to 2006. He began his career as the Director of Sport Psychology at the University of Kansas (1984 to 1996) after receiving his PhD from the University of Virginia and studying under sports psychology pioneer, Bob Rotella. He is president of peak performance firm David Cook Consulting Inc. His business clients have included Exxon/Mobil, Sprint, American Express, and many others. He lives with his wife Karen and their two daughters in Fredericksburg in the Texas Hill Country.
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| "I personally couldn’t put this book down. Golf’s Sacred Journey gives you many great insight... |
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