I have never played a round of golf where I did not think I had unfinished business on the golf course. Yup, even breaking par I thought that I could have shot a lower score. As my friend Kevin reads this article, I know he feels the same way….most of the time. 😉 Although I think I can always do better I wonder if this is really true. Each round of golf is a unique experience because I have never hit the same 75 strokes from the same position ever! After thousands for rounds, every round played out differently and needed to be navigated like it was my first round. This is the fun of golf and I hope that the feeling of unfinished business never changes.

Every golfer feels they left strokes on the course. Whether we do not strike our driver just right on a particular hole or we chip the ball just outside our gimmie range, there will always be an opportunity to lower our golf score…..that we missed. This universal feeling is one of the keys to great golf. We always feel that we can shoot a lower score. I have played many rounds in and out of competition that left me wanting. I am not talking about the rounds where we shoot higher than our handicap; that is a no brainer. I am talking about those rounds that skirt the edges of greatness.

I am not talking about those rounds where I hit very knowingly poor shot. For instance doubling the last hole at Osprey Links Golf Course when I was sitting one under on the 18th tee. Yeah, pulling my ball into the woods was definitely a poor shot, yet it is still not the situation I am seeing in my mind.

The rounds where we play well, do not have any horrible shots, and I miss a makeable eight foot putt. Or I leave my GIR shot 20 feet from the hole on an easy approach. Or I push my ball in the first cut on the fairway off the tee. These are generally acceptable shots in golf, but my mind reels with the feeling that I have left unfinished business when the round was over. Golf offers a myriad of situations were we felt we should have shoot better! It is a feeling that is universal to all golfers.

I am not sure there is a fix for this mental conundrum. Any golfer that is on the journey for lower golf scores innately feels this void of success. As I continue to play in the back nine of my journey, the feeling of unfinished business is still as strong as ever. I like having this feeling because it tells me that I am still hungry to improve my game.

Do you generally feel you have unfinished business on the golf course?

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