In golf, when you are ready to make a shot, do you find yourself over-analyzing and second-guessing yourself? Would you like to be able to let that go and do better on the course? Here's a secret to doing that.

I learned that really important secret from watching the movie, 'Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid.'

Butch Cassidy was auditioning The Sundance Kid for his shooting skills with a pistol. Butch pointed at a target (a tin can) and told Sundance to shoot and hit it. Sundance aimed his pistol, fired and missed the target, several times. Sundance seemed to be uncomfortable, squinting at the end sights of his revolver and second-guessing himself. Butch wasn't impressed.

Then Sundance said that he usually shoots better another way. He put his pistol back in his holster, looked at the target, then quickly drew and fired in one motion, hitting the target over and over. He got the job.

There is a lot in common here with golf. There's a target, a tool and a projectile. The goal is for the projectile to hit the target using the tool.

With Sundance, it was a tin can, a revolver and a bullet.

With a golfer it's the cup (or a blade of grass), a club and the ball.

I see lots of golfers doing the same thing I saw Sundance do in the film. They think too much - about trying to hit the target, trying to hit the ball, about whether they are swinging the club correctly and whether the ball is going to go where they want it to. Sometimes they try to swing the club the way someone else wants them to, instead of what works best for them. They forget that they have the skills, ability and experience to strike the ball to hit the target. The result is they over-analyze, second-guess themselves and miss. This sets up self-limiting beliefs, self-fulfilling prophecies, the yips and slumps.

Here's what you can do to avoid that.

When you are going to hit a golf ball, whether putting or driving, do the following steps:

1. Set your goal. Remember, your goal is not to hit the ball, your goal is for the ball to hit the target.

2. Fix the target in your mind and then stop thinking about it. That might be the cup or a blade of grass.

3. Take a deep breath, exhale, let your skills, ability and experience take over and just let it flow.

This is harnessing the power of your imagination and tapping into that supercomputer between your ears. It's one of the powerful secrets to winning the mental game and getting the competitive edge.