Fighting to Stay Relevant in Golf

/ The Grateful Golfer

Watching the AT&T Pebble Beach golf tournament, I can see many players fighting desperately to keep afloat. The elements are at an unplayable point sometimes, yet there they are trudging along. The amateurs have just as much moxie as the wind and rain tear at the many glitches of their golf swing.

jim-in-rain

The challenge for most of these players is to remain relevant enough to make the cut and hopefully take home a payday worth all their toils. During the first two days, the weather at Pebble Beach was the great equalizer because some top golfers faltered and some unknowns rose the top of the leaderboard.

How does one stay relevant in golf? Do they have a secret code or system that allows them to put the poor influences out of their mind? Are they mentally tough or do they adopt a devil-may-care attitude? Inquiring minds want to know!

I have played in conditions like the Pebble Beach. It has rained so much that the course was borderline unplayable. After the second hole, all my attempts to remain dry were hopeless, yet I had to continue or withdraw from the tournament.

For me, that last statement speaks volumes for most competitive golfers! The word ‘withdraw’ is not in my vocabulary! It is such a foreign concept, that moving forward and continuing is the only course of action. It is the first step of being relevant when everything points to retreating.

After that, my plan stays fluid. I find shelter when I can, I stay under my umbrella as much as possible, and I concentrate on my game with more focus. It is challenging, however once we accept that we are staying, and then the rest becomes a game of Tetris; moving the pieces of my game to find the difficult situation.

It is challenging to remain relevant in golf during adverse times. It takes a tremendous amount of effort to keep putting one foot in front of another. However, after completing a round like that, regardless of the results, is truly rewarding. It is just another thing to keep you coming back!

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!

8 thoughts on “Fighting to Stay Relevant in Golf”

  2. Jim, I have the secret to staying relevant; rain gloves! In all seriousness, a good pair allows you to play without worrying about keeping your grips dry. The wetter it gets, the tackier the rain gloves become. I learned this while playing in a week full of torrential downpours in Myrtle Beach. It’s cool as long as you don’t mind getting wet yourself.

    Thanks,

    Brian

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  3. I don’t let weather chase me off the course generally. Of course, that’s easier done in Florida than it is in snow country. But still, these guys have it easy compared to some of the days I have played. I’ll play with a hurricane brushing the coast if they’ll let me on the course. I learned to play on a par three course and playing in the breeze made the ball turn before I had learned how to do i on my own and I enjoyed the added challenge. I still do.

    Lightening might move me off the course for a while but it has to be close and a rain storm has to be coming down so hard that you can’t see anymore. I wear glasses and if it’s blowing rain sideways and I can’t keep them dry that makes it a bit tough. Of course, those are generally summer things. They don’t last all day and while they dump a ton of water on you every second or two, it feels better than the 90 degree heat and humidity that will follow it. So I keep playing until I can’t see the ball anymore.

    I count it as paying my dues to the golf gods and hope for a little luck to get through it. And I always have my rain suit and an extra dry towel in my bag so I’m prepared for it too.

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