Every sport has it.  A pre-event routine.  The pre-event routine is supposed to prepare the athlete for the ensuing sporting event.  To functionally loosen him up for the impending, physically demanding event.  Does your golf pre-game routine prepare you for 18 holes of golf?  Or does it drain you of energy before stepping onto the first tee?

When I was an avid runner every race was preceded by 99 percent of the participants doing toe-touchers, turkey trots across the parking lot, calf stretches (you know, the one where you attempt to push the wall as if it's going to move), standing quad stretches and of course, standing trunk twists.

Were we really preparing for the race?  Or is it more likely that we were actually just trying to contain our nervous jitters as the start time drew nearer?

Even for non-tournament events, the weekend outing with friends, no hole rattles the nerves more than the first tee.  There's just something about it.  Maybe it's the promise of a great scoring day...  A personal best.  Maybe it's the one or two groups behind you, your uninvited personal gallery, who might be sizing up your swing.  Whatever the real reason, the first hole is always the most anxiety laden hole on the course.

How many times have you witnessed your golf buddies stretching by attempting to bounce their club across their shoe laces by bending at the hip with straight legs?  Even though everyone knows bouncy stretches leads to ballistic pulls, too many golfers still do them.

Another favorite stretch for the first tee experience is to hold the driver behind the neck and rotate the torso to the left and right?  It's a good stretch because it's at least a rotational type of movement.  Unfortunately it still has that ballistic component and does little to mimic the golf swing because the body is in an upright position.

Like the runners, most golfers stretching routines are little more then dissipation of nervous energy.  In fact, the only time most golfers perform any of those stretches is when they are on the first tee.  Here are some guidelines to preparing your body and mind for an injury free round of golf.

1. Give yourself plenty of time to relax.  Don't arrive late, rush into the pro shop to pay your greens fees, throw your clubs into the golf cart, and rush off to the first tee all flustered and expect to have a good day.  It can happen, but you're not setting yourself up for it.
2. Keep your pre-game routine simple.  Most golfers want to play.  Not stretch.  Not exercise.  The routine must be made simple and repeatable so it can be just that... a routine.
3. Perform the stretches in the same sequence every time.  Devise a checklist approach such as working the big muscle groups first and working your way down to the smaller muscles.  Another approach is to start from you head and down to your toes.
4. Hold each stretch at least 20 seconds.  This will give your body the necessary time to relax the muscles and surrounding soft tissue.  Don't hold the stretch much longer than 30 seconds... the benefit will not justify the additional time.
5. To get the most out of your routine, perform each stretch at least two times.  The first time is soft tissue preparation.  The second time around the muscle is getting used to the idea of elongation.
6. If it hurts you're going too far.  The stretch should not be painful in any way.  Back off and relax into the stretch.  Good breathing techniques really help here.
7. The obvious one... don't bounce.  Ballistic stretches can only lead to pain, pain and more pain. 
8. Don't limit your stretching to the first tee.  Incorporate your stretches into your game.  At the turn.  And most importantly... AFTER the round.

Preparing for your round of golf should be more than just releasing nervous energy.  It should have a purpose:  To prepare the body for the dynamic golf swing... And to prevent injury. 

What stretches should you actually do?  Flexibility is a quirky topic.  Flexibility in one joint does not necessarily imply flexibility in all joints.  To really determine which joints are tight requires a comprehensive range of motion assessment.  Then and only then can you determine which joints really need to be targeted in your pre-game routine.

There are also a core set of stretches that all golfers should perform.  These stretches will have direct carryover to the game itself, regardless of the individual player's flexibility.

Next month we'll highlight specific golf stretches that you can build into your own pre-game routine.  In the meantime, have confidence in your swing and let the club do the work.