If you’ve played or watched much competitive golf you’ve probably witnessed something like this. A golfer is playing extremely well and maybe leading the tournament. But all of a sudden a usually consistent drive goes astray, a putt lips out of the cup, or any number of things begin that ultimately unravels this terrific round.
Or maybe on a personal level you’ve found yourself playing a great round of golf…maybe your best ever. The thought crosses your mind at some point in the round that “hey, I’m doing good here…if I keep this up, I’ll shoot the best round of my life!” And then, unexplicably, the wheels start to come off.
I won’t go through the gory details since we’ve all experienced something like this.
Back when I, like every pro, had to go through the PGA playability testing, I watched many very solid golfers, whither under the pressure of having to shoot lower than a target score through 36 holes of golf in one day.
One of my best friends, and a fellow assistant at the time, had the ability to shoot par, and he might be in range to qualify but time and time again, on the 27th hole he would decide he had to shoot this or that to make it.
Usually the last nine holes didn’t go very well. And while someone on the tours might have the ability to set a goal for a targeted score to win, most of us don’t have that level of confidence or talent on a day to day basis, particularly while under pressure.
Even the pros aren’t immune to affects of letting their mind look too far ahead or dwell too much on the past.
When a player has done well or held things together they often say, “I was very patient out there today”. And they’re rightly proud of doing that. But what does it mean to “be patient”?
By my definition, a player like this has done well at playing in the moment, at least on that particular day. A more well known commentary would be that they played one shot at a time.
One of the easiest things to do in golf is to let your mind wander. Unlike many reactive sports, there’s plenty of time between shots to think…and this idle time isn’t always good. How many times have you looked back at a bad shot, maybe a hole or two ago, while you’re getting ready to tee the ball up and play another one?
Or like my friend, how often have you had a great round going, your just cruising a long with just a few holes left to play and you realize you”re burning it up. You think about how great your final score might be and say, wow, if I could just do this or that, I’ll make it.
And then the wheels fall off the wagon.
Don’t beat yourself up over all of this because the truth is, we all do it or have done it at some point.
More than anything, we have to learn and train ourselves to play in the moment.
Now…right now…is all that really matters and if you’re on the golf course, “now” is all you’ve got. Past holes, past shots are history. You can’t do a thing to change any of it if they resulted in bad shots and a higher than expected stroke count. Whatever you’ve got up to this point in terms of your score…is what it is.
The holes you have yet to play are totally unrelated to where ever you are right now on the course. And to project your attention on anything forward in time while playing is likely not going to help produce the results you want anyway.
So if the past and the future don’t support your current moment…why worry about them?
Keep in mind this doesn’t address the idea that if you’ve played well up to this point, you might very well have momentum on your side…and when that wave is riding high…I suggest you ride it.
To a point.
There is an energy to momentum and it’s a wonderful thing to experience but it’s also been said that the higher you fly, the harder you might fall. Momentum can be a two way street and when it fades, it’s important not to let things fall away on the opposite side of the spectrum.
For most of us, a more even level of energy is probably better. No super highs, no deep lows, just a nice steady level that allows you to stay focused on the shot and the moment at hand.
In contrast to my friend who always looked ahead with nine holes yet to play, I learned early on that more than anything for me to be able to play under any pressure at all, it was going to be important not get ahead of myself, or look back.
So for my PGA playability test, I set out with one goal in mind. It didn’t relate to any score but to the idea that I would do my best on that day, to play each shot in the moment. I wouldn’t look back and I wouldn’t look forward.
It was challenging but after the first 18 holes I realized it was working. I was easily on track to make it, and while I could have spent a lot of time thinking about that, I simply noted it, ate a small lunch, and then proceeded to continue with my plan for the final round.
As in any round, there were some mistakes and poor shots, but if you remain committed to the idea of playing each shot individually, the mistakes don’t retain much energy. And when it was all over, I came to the 36th hole with many shots to spare.
And like the tournament winner who said, “I was patient out there today”, I felt the same level of satisfaction.
I want you to experience that too.
So for your next round, whether for fun or in competition. Make a commitment to not worry about the score, or about the inevitable mistakes that will come up. Make your mind up to play every shot independently and to the best of your ability. Give each it’s due, then let it go and move on to the next one.
You may find that shot by shot, when all is said and done, you will have just played the best round of your life.
Popularity: 39% [?]
No related posts.
0 Comments
Add your Comment!