How can you improve your concentration?
Sarah Petra SchumacherYou want to improve your concentration but find the topic boring and prefer to be entertained by social media videos? Then you've come to the right place. Because in this article, you'll learn the playful way to focus. Discover why mini golf is the most effective concentration training you haven't tried yet, and how you can use it for yourself.
This article was written by One Putt Minigolf.
- The Minigolf Equipment Provider for Pros and Beginners -
Photo: Thomas Engesser
“As a 6-time Mini Golf World Champion, I've learned that I can train my concentration like a muscle or a specific stroke technique. With 20 years of competition experience and constant collaboration with sports psychologists, I've managed to improve my focus and concentration, which not only helped me boost my performance as a top athlete but also assists me in everyday life, when studying, or in meetings."
— Sarah Schumacher
Table of Contents
Why is our concentration suffering so much today?
Smartphones, social media, constant noise... our attention span has dramatically changed in recent years. I myself know the feeling of working on something, like this blog, and suddenly things pop up everywhere, like the urge to quickly check if a message has arrived, or another sudden thought that distracts me.
Studies show that the average adult today finds it harder to dedicate themselves to one task for more than a few minutes. The consequences are procrastination, forgetfulness, the feeling of never really getting anything done, and usually a bad conscience for not having done what one intended.
The good news is: Concentration can be trained, just like endurance or strength. You don't have to meditate or study for hours. There's a much nicer and more fun way.
“Focus doesn't come naturally. But if you train it playfully, you almost forget you're working."
6 proven methods to improve concentration
Before we dive deeper into the world of mini golf, let's look at the scientifically proven fundamental principles, and you'll notice that mini golf elegantly combines them all.
Repetition & Automation
The brain solidifies skills through repetition. If you practice a movement hundreds of times, you'll eventually perform it effortlessly – this applies to playing the piano just as much as to the perfect mini golf shot.
One-Point Focus
Multitasking is a myth. Learning to fixate on a single point and block out everything else dramatically increases your performance.
Mindfulness & Presence
Living in the moment, not in the past or future, is the basis of deep concentration. Minimalist stimuli help the mind to gather itself.
Recovery & Sleep
Concentration requires a well-rested mind. Regular exercise in the fresh air improves sleep quality and thus cognitive performance.
Movement & Dopamine
Exercise releases neurotransmitters that boost motivation and focus. Even moderate physical activity is enough to noticeably improve concentration.
Playful Learning
We learn what we enjoy faster and more deeply. Stress levels decrease, motivation increases – ideal conditions for true mental growth.
Mini Golf: The underestimated brain training
The concentration ability that helps me in all areas of my life today, I largely developed on the mini golf course. Stroke by stroke, hole by hole, tournament by tournament.
The cool thing is that with mini golf, you can not only improve your concentration skills, but your improved concentration skills will also make you better at mini golf. In the next sections, I'll show you how.
🔁 Repetition & Automation: The same stroke again and again
In competition, doubts sap valuable energy. Hesitation, overthinking, thoughts like "Hopefully it works this time" hold you back. If you want to perform at the highest level, every stroke must be so deeply ingrained that it is no longer consciously executed, but happens automatically.
This is the core of my training and one of the secrets behind my six world championship titles: repetition until automation. I hit the same putt what feels like hundreds of times. Not because I haven't mastered it, but so that my body eventually knows it so well that my mind completely disappears from the equation. No pondering angles, force, or technique. The body just knows.
Sports psychologists call this "muscle memory." And it is precisely this mechanism that can be trained. On the mini golf course, you practice it with every game, completely unconsciously: you repeat, you refine, you automate. And eventually the stroke is perfected – not because you force it, but because you simply can do it.
Learning this kind of automation in one area will make it easier for you to apply it in other areas as well, for example, when performing various tasks in everyday life or at work.
🎯 One-Point Focus: Full focus on the stroke
Mini golf automatically trains you to control your focus, because with every shot you have to recollect, reorient, and refocus.
Imagine focus like light: a floodlight illuminates a large area at once. This corresponds to a broad focus, where you take in and process a lot of information simultaneously – ideal when you're getting an overview or planning strategically. A spotlight, on the other hand, concentrates the light on a single point. Tunnel vision. Full attention on exactly one thing: the ball, the stroke, the task before you.
Mindfulness doesn't mean always being in spotlight mode. It means consciously controlling your own focus and knowing when you need to think broadly and when to narrow it down.
In mini golf, I experience this constantly: when I stand at the tee and prepare my shot, I switch into spotlight mode. Only the ball exists. Only this one moment. In the minutes in between – watching, talking to teammates – my focus widens again. This constant, unconscious switching between the two modes is pure mental training.
Over time, the brain learns to operate this switch in everyday life as well: in meetings, while studying, in stressful situations. You become calmer, more present, and eventually you reach the state that athletes call flow: focused, clear, and completely in the moment. This leads to an overlap and a suitable transition to the next point.
🧘 Mindfulness & Presence: Stay completely with your game
Mindfulness means being fully in the here and now. Without drifting off, without brooding, without your phone in the back of your mind. That's exactly what mini golf demands of you with every single stroke.
When you're at the tee, only that one moment counts. The course in front of you, the ball, your posture. You have to be able to put what happened before behind you. Just as little should you worry too much about the future. If you're not in the moment, you often miss your goal.
I experience this constantly in mini golf. It's difficult to stay in the moment if you're still annoyed about the previous missed shot or already thinking four holes ahead about your often challenging obstacle.
The beauty is that mini golf allows you to playfully learn how to deal with these challenges, so you can apply the techniques in your daily life as well. You can react more calmly in stressful situations, listen more attentively in conversations, and get less lost in thought loops.
😴 Recovery & Sleep: through time in the fresh air
Good sleep and genuine recovery are the foundation of all concentration. If your own batteries aren't charged, no amount of training in the world will help. And this is exactly where mini golf plays an underestimated role.
Since mini golf usually takes place outdoors, in a quiet, often green environment, this can have a positive effect on your recovery and sleep. Daylight regulates your internal clock. Those who spend regular time outdoors demonstrably sleep better and deeper. Those who sleep well concentrate better. And those who concentrate better, in turn, play mini golf with more focus.
🏃 Movement & Dopamine: Motivation through small successes
Mini golf is a mental sport with light, rhythmic activity that reduces stress hormones without creating additional tension. If you, like me, train on the mini golf course from morning to evening for a week and a half during some competition preparations, you'll feel it more in your body. Generally, however, mini golf is not a sport that makes you sweat physically. This means that mini golf is a great activity for in-between, which doesn't exhaust you, but balances you out and, if necessary, replenishes your energy reserves.
In addition, your brain releases dopamine every time you sink the ball into the hole. This neurotransmitter is not only responsible for feeling good, but is also directly linked to motivation, focus, and learning ability. When you're out with friends or family, you can even share these moments of happiness with each other.
In mini golf, you typically have 18 holes with obstacles to overcome. This means you have 18 opportunities to celebrate another success after mastering another obstacle. Real, well-deserved reward moments that condition your brain in a healthy way.
⛳️Playful Learning: more progress through fun in the game
Millions of people worldwide play mini golf every year. Most of them not for the training effect, but simply because it's fun. And that is the decisive advantage.
What brings us joy, we learn faster, deeper and more sustainably. The brain in game mode is more receptive, more open and more motivated. Even if you haven't noticed it yet, mini golf offers you optimal conditions to improve your concentration, as explained in the sections above.
It would be dishonest to say that mini golf is always just light and cheerful. Anyone who has ever been to a mini golf course also knows frustration, ambition, and moments where discipline is required. But even that is part of the learning process, because those who learn to deal with setbacks without losing the joy of the game train one of the most valuable mental skills of all.
I myself have experienced this repeatedly at German championships and world championships: My best results did not come in the moments when I was most grim, but when the joy of the game was in the foreground. Performance and joy are not mutually exclusive. They are interdependent.
Tips for your direct application: How to specifically train your concentration with mini golf
You don't have to become a world champion to benefit from the mental advantages of mini golf. Here is my step-by-step method for beginners:
Start without pressure of expectation
Just go and play for the first time. No goals, no scorecards, just observe how the club, ball, and course feel. This trains your perception without overwhelming it.
Choose a hole and repeat
Pick a hole and play it over and over. Observe what changes. This conscious focus on a single moment trains your concentration like a mental weight.
Breathe consciously before each stroke
Three deep breaths before the shot. Sounds simple, but it's one of the most powerful focus techniques in sports. You calm your nervous system and bring your mind into the moment.
Visualize the ball's path
Look at the line from the club to the hole before you strike. This mental imagery not only strengthens concentration but is also a classic tool in high-performance sports.
Make it a routine
Play mini golf once a week. After six to eight weeks, you'll notice how not only your game improves, but also how you can perceive effects in everyday life. Like a muscle, concentration needs patience and consistency to grow.
You win far beyond the course
The experiences I've gained on the mini-golf course, in training, and at competitions have had a significant impact on my concentration in everyday life, whether it was in school during exams, later in university during tests, at work, or in other daily situations.
Concentration is a universal skill. If you learn to stay focused on a mini-golf course despite wind, noise, and an audience, and execute a precise shot, you can do the same in an open-plan office, while studying, or during a difficult conversation.
And the best side effect: It's fun.
“On the mini golf course, you don't just learn to sink a ball. You learn to guide your own mind."
Ready to train your focus?
Whether alone, with friends, or with family, head to the mini golf course and get started. For even more fun and precision in your game, you'll find everything you need on the mini golf course in our online shop: mini golf balls, clubs, and accessories to make even better progress.
This article was written by One Putt Minigolf.
- The Minigolf Equipment Provider for Pros and Beginners -