Tour Tempo Tracks

As an avid golfer and inventor, John Novosel frequently studied film footage of the Tour Pros, searching for the secret that they used to make their effortless looking swings produce so much power. One day, Novosel made a startling discovery - regardless of their style or form, all tour players have a precise, identical rhythm: 3 to 1. Novosel then devised a way for his students to duplicate this tempo by listening to a series of specially mastered tones as they hit balls. He watched in amazement as their shots showed instant and dramatic improvement. Encouraged by the success of the tones, John then started to explore other ways that could be helpful to his students to integrate the tempo of the Tour Pros into their golf swings. He believed that music that had the 3:1 ratio programmed into it would be a tremendous help in doing this. When he found out how well the music worked to improve his and his students' games, he incorporated the 3:1 ratio of TOUR TEMPO into the TRACKS on these revolutionary CD's.

Understanding the Tour Tempo Tracks

The TRACKS can be used anytime and anywhere. Volume II of the TOUR TEMPO TRACKS CD series is a combination of 2 CD's that contain 30 songs and approximately 2 hours of music. The first CD is an eclectic mix of country, blues, reggae, rock, jazz, and pop. Each track has a Part II, the Part II is a basic version that enables the listener to more readily identify the 3 Tones. In addition, this new and improved version also includes a bonus Alpha Wave CD comprised of revolutionary relaxation music called TOUR TEMPO FOCUS TRACKS. Each FOCUS TRACK contains the TONES of TOUR TEMPO and each TRACK has a Part II. On Part II, Alpha Waves have been embedded in the music to get your brain into an optimum state for concentration.

"How Alpha Waves can help YOUR golf game."

A history of Alpha Waves

In 1924, Dr. Hans Berger of Austria made the first human EEG recording and called it Electroenkephalogram. Using the EEG he was also the first to describe the different waves or rhythms which were present in the normal and abnormal brain, such as the alpha wave rhythm (8-12 Hz). ( EEG is an acronym for Electroencephalograph - This is a recording ("graph") of electrical signals ("electro") from the brain ("encephalo").
Basically his research has evolved into the findings that our brains emit different frequency wavelengths depending upon what task it is accomplishing at the time. (A frequency is the number of times a wave repeats itself within a second.)

For example, there are four main classes of brainwaves:

BETA (13-30Hz) are described as wakefulness, left brained activity. Normally in Beta our eyes are open and we are consciously thinking about analytical problem solving, judgment, decision making, and the processing of information concerning the world around us. Left Brain thinking.

ALPHA (8-12 Hz) Good healthy alpha wave production promotes mental resourcefulness, aids in the ability to coordinate tasks, and enhances your overall sense of relaxation. In this state you can move quickly and efficiently to accomplish whatever task is at hand. When Alpha Waves predominate, most people feel at ease and calm. Alpha appears to bridge the conscious to the subconscious, and is normally defined by athletes as "being in the Zone". It was aptly described in the movie "The Last Dragon" as being that state where the spirit controls the movements of the body, as opposed to conscious (Left Brain) thought controlling them. I believe that the best golf that I have ever played has occurred in this mental state - Right and integrated Brain thinking.

THETA (4-8 Hz) It is seen in connection with creativity, intuition, daydreaming, and fantasizing.

DELTA (less than 4 Hz) The lowest frequencies are delta. These are less than 4 Hz and occur in deep sleep. It reflects the unconscious mind.

BB or Binaural Beats

Binaural Beats are also embedded into the FOCUS TRACKS CD. Binaural Beats were discovered in 1839 by a German experimenter, H. W. Dove. When signals of two different frequencies are presented, one to each ear, the brain detects phase differences between these signals. This perception results in the brain perceiving a third beat that is a combination of the first two.

The difference between the signals waxes and wanes as the two different input frequencies mesh in and out of phase. As a result of these constantly increasing and decreasing differences, an amplitude-modulated standing wave -the binaural beat- is heard.

These beats are believed to contribute to the cross-lateralization of the left and right brains. And it appears that the binaural beats contribute to the hemispheric synchronization evidenced in meditative states of consciousness.

When both hemispheres of the brain are entrained to the same frequency, brain function is also enhanced. Evidence suggests that the binaural beats are generated in the brainstem’s superior olivary nucleus, the first site of contralateral integration in the auditory system (Oster, 1973). The key word here is integration, as we want our right and left brains integrated to the task at hand.

One of the many causes of "coming over the top" is the predominance of the logical, analytical left brain activity that most golfers engage in during their daily working lives.

Left brain thinking processes are:
Logical, Analytical, Quantitative, Fact based, Planned, Organized, Detailed & Sequential.
Right brain thinking processes are:
Holistic, Intuitive, Synthesizing, Integrating, Emotional, Interpersonal, Feeling-based & Kinesthetic.
For example, research has shown that accountants, lawyers, engineers, bankers and bureaucrats tend to be predominantly left brained, whereas writers, artists, musicians and entrepreneurs tend to be predominantly right brained.

Why does Left Brain Activity cause the OTT move?

It's because of the way that the body is "hardwired." Our brains are divided into two hemispheres, Left and Right. Each is the size of your fist. They are connected by a bundle of nerves called the Corpus Callosum. As an adult moves their body, the Left Brain controls the Right arm and shoulder, and the left leg and hip. This Left Brain - right upper side connection, when brought into the swing at the wrong point, causes the "over the Top" move we are all so familiar with. The more that you use your left brain in daily activities, the stronger that move becomes.

What our SPEEDBALL® research has shown to be true is that Tour Pros and single digit handicappers can swing the golf club with very good motion with the left arm only (controlled by the Right Side of the Brain), but higher handicap golfers can hardly take the club back with their left arms. Our goal with TOUR TEMPO® training is to balance off both sides of the brain so that they function as one. ( THE ZONE) This CD collection is another effort towards attaining that goal. Let us know how it works for you.

What scientific proof do you have that the TOUR TEMPO® TRACKS CD's will improve my golf game?

A six year doctoral research paper carried out by Dr. C.I. Karageorghis, Ph.D., an accredited Sport and Exercise Psychologist from Brunel University, UK, revealed that music can be beneficial to sports performance and exercise. He found that the synchronization of music with exercise consistently demonstrated increased levels of work out put among exercise participants and that, in relation to the previous point, the rhythmical qualities of music also emulate patterns of physical skills; therefore, he concluded that music can enhance the acquisition of motor skills and create a better learning environment. He found that there was evidence from both gymnastics and swimming to support his findings. (Chen, 1985, Jernberg,1981)

In his most recent research (Karageorghis & Terry, 1998), he has revealed an interesting link between music and the attainment of a flow state during exercise. Flow involves an altered state of awareness during physical activity in which the mind and body function on 'auto-pilot' with minimal conscious effort. Some coaches refer to this as "in the zone"; it is an almost trance-like or hypnotic state.

This "Flow" has been associated with optimal psychological states and represents complete 'enjoyment of' and immersion in physical activity.

He also found that there were three additional considerations when selecting the music to be used:
1. Variety in the music tends to maintain the athlete's interest in the activity.
2. The volume of the music should not be obscured by the surrounding environment.
3. If synchronizing music with exercise, the tempo must concur with the preferred work rate.

Dr. Costas Karageorghis is a BASES accredited scientific support and research sport and exercise psychologist. He is a member of the British Olympic Association Psychology Advisory Group and lextures in sport psychology at Brunel University's Department of Sport Sciences.

Editor's note from John Novosel :
(Using music to help access the "ZONE" is exactly what is described in Dr. Karageorghis's research and is a by-product of using the TOUR TEMPO® TRACKS CD while practicing and playing golf. Last fall, my coauthor, John Garrity, and I played his home course here in Kansas City. John was a little off tempo as we progressed through the round and he was getting inconsistent and off target results from his driver. We had him put on the headphones and listen to the TRACKS. In short order, he started to nail his drives down the middle, varying in length from 270 to 310 yards. Other golfers have reported the same type of results when using the TRACKS CD.

Another factor involved is that participants in Dr. K's studies got optimal results when there was a variety of musical choices from which to select. That's the reason that we have the 20 different Tracks on the CD. And, most important of all, since TOUR TEMPO® is a fundamental of the golf swing, you are exactly meeting Dr. K's 3rd point of synchronizing the tempo and preferred work rate - exactly.

In addition, we have received questions regarding the legality (USGA-wise) of using the TONES and/or TRACKS during a round. If you're in a situation where USGA rules apply, it is not legal to use the TONES or the TRACKS. Example would be turning the score in for handicap purposes or if it's a USGA sanctioned event.