Finding a golfing philosophy that works is a challenging venture. There are only a million different views on how to improve our golf game that I often become overwhelmed by the deluge of possibilities. Through my many years of playing, I have changed tack many times, but there was one core tenet that I kept with unwavering consistency. Probably by accident in the early years, but by design now, my focus on trying to improve one specific item in my golf game has never changed. This simple step has shaped and molded my game into what it is today. With the 2022 golf season a mere six months away, it is time to design my intended golf path for next summer.
As an amateur golfer, I found that my first step to building on my simple philosophy of setting one goal per season started with the decision to improve my golf game. This initial movement might seem counter-intuitive, however you would be surprised at easy it is to talk a good game and never really committing to making substantive changes to our golf game. For me, I found that FEAR of change was my greatest hurdle until I decided that it was time to significantly improve my game.
Interestingly, when I finally took the first mental step of deciding, I had to actually commit to doing something. “Simply having a goal in mind does not achieve success. A goal without a plan is just a wish…and daydreams alone seldom produce results. To move beyond wishful thinking-and produce tangible results-requires specific goals and a well-crafted action plan.” (Stewart Gandolf, CEO)
“A goal without a plan is just a wish” is attributed to WWII hero, French writer Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900 – 1944). There are many versions of this quote, but I thought the last word ‘wish’ hit the nail on the head. I cannot recount how many times I wished my putting or short game or driving was better. I thought to make improvements over the years, but alas many times I did not have any plan to achieve this desire. Hence, it was purely a wish.
Before delving a bit deeper, here is a great video by Andrew Rice. It is a year old and the first 30 seconds talks about COVID, but the rest is in alignment with my golfing philosophy:
I have written a great deal about creating and executing my golf plan. I found that by writing it down, my thoughts become actions. It is a process that works for me very well and I do not see any reason to deviate from my current path. So, over the next while, I will determine the one thing I want to work on, create a plan, and actively pursue it with action items. It really is quite simple and deceptively challenging. Regardless of how you approach your game, having one item you want to improve is the first step to lower golf scores.
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!
The Grateful Golfer 
Well, I think I’m going to add one thing to my list of possible upcoming changes. Besides taking another lesson next month with the driver, I’m seriously thinking about a putter fitting.
The new mallet putter was working great for me. Then it stopped. Today I took the old blade out with me and shot 5 under with it on the home course. A chip in eagle to start the day, 5 birdies all within 10 feet, 2 bogies because I stupidly didn’t tamp down a couple spots on my line because I was too focused on the hole, and lots of easy pars. I’ve only beat that score when they had the covid holes and we were just bouncing them off the cup rather than sinking them. (recording todays round dropped my handicap from 4.9 to 4.0 so I’ll be giving up another stroke to my buddies this weekend, ouch 🤔)
But there were more birdies to be had. I missed at least three because I didn’t get aligned right. The single dot for alignment on the blade just isn’t sufficient for me. And while I love the long alignment line I get on the mallet, I hate the heavy weighting it has. I don’t get the right feel from it or the fine control. I need the best of both worlds to be the best putter I can be I believe. And I think a putter fitting is the way to find what will be the best option for me.
As for changes I do have a couple of rules of the road I try and follow. The main one being give it time. It took me 6 months to burn in the changes from the first lesson I took and through that experience I learned a bit of patience with trying to make my own changes. I’m not like you where I plan out a change really, but once I’ve decided to give something a try, I’ll stick with it for quite a long while because I’ve learned that’s what it takes. Muscle memory doesn’t come fast.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Kevin,
Well there is definitely lots to talk about in your comment. First, a putter fitting is always a good idea. I went through one of sorts (on my own) for my current flat stick and I have been very happy with the results. I will have plenty of opportunities to be fitted where you are, not so much here.
You idea of change is a good one. It definitely takes time and patience to make any change and the stick-to-it-ness is very important. The end results, sometimes from a long process, is what keeps me focused. Sometimes, I change paths to reach my goal, but I get there eventually. The only time I have ever really failed with my change process is when I lost sight of my end goal. That happens from time to time, but such is my journey.
Lastly, congrats on the great score. It is hard to improve on a score like that, but as we golfers all know, there is always room for improvement.
Cheers Jim
LikeLike