Golf is an amazing sport because of the countless possibilities each hole offers every time we play it. If you play a hole 100 times, the variables of wind, distance, and tee block placement make that hole dead easy or crazy difficult! Most course superintendents take pride in setting up each hole so all players get the maximum enjoyment out of their time on the links. However, every once in a while a hole slips through the cracks and this happens!
Discussion
Unacceptable Behaviour in Golf
Golf is a game of etiquette, professionalism, good manners, and fair play. Or at least I think it is! Over the past while, I have notice a change in what is considered acceptable behavior on the golf course. An increase of professional players throwing their clubs in the water, purposely breaking their clubs, and flopping their clubs out of their hands at the end of a swing seems to be growing in frequency.
Understanding Great Golfers
- What makes great golfers great?
- What makes élite golfers, élite?
- What makes superstar golfers, unstoppable?
Belief is a powerful ally!
I have thought about these and other questions regularly. I often wonder why some players seem to totally dominate their respective opponents. This unique situation is not restricted to the professions, but happens in amateur events as well.
Yes, skill has something to do with the answer for sure, but let us assume for a moment that with all physical skills being relatively equal; what is that edge that repeated winners routinely display?
After much thought, I have concluded that the one quality above others that separates champions from the rest is belief. It really is as simple as that; they believe!
- They believe that their swing will happen the same every time.
- They believe that when they decide on a shot, they can make it.
- They believe that they have the skills to succeed.
- They believe that they are the best.
- They believe that they can win all the time.
- They just believe!
I realize that this might be an understatement, but belief is an extremely powerful ally. It is there when you are struggling and can lift you out of the quagmire of self-doubt. Belief can help frame success before you tee it up. Belief builds confidence that can defeat your opponent at any time during a match. Belief can build a foundation for great golf and can help produce low scores.
Does all of this sound simple. Well, it is! Except there is one important action that we must take to make sure belief flourishes in our golf game. Are you ready?
We have to accept belief. We need to whole-heartedly accept what belief is laying down! Removing or changing doubt to belief will immediately change your golf game. Great things will happen if we only believe!
Earlier when I said it was simple….well, maybe believing poses more challenges to our golf game then we expect. I am sure you have heard, “if the belief is strong enough, anything can happen”. This is true.
What happens if the belief is great; we look for ways to improve our game; we see the changes that will make us better; we start to make positive changes and then we start to belief even more! What a great golf cycle.
The great players of golf all have a strong belief that they can always win. They believe they will have their best game every time they stride to the first tee. They just believe.
Belief is a great ally; if we let it into our game!
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!
Top Golf Articles of 2015 from The Grateful Golfer
Many golfing blogs I follow presented their top 5 or 10 posts of 2015. I have enjoyed everyone of them! They were interesting, funny, informative, and helped motivate me to be a better golfer! I am grateful for their efforts and appreciate the amount of time they spend spreading the golfing word!
2015 was a very successful year for The Grateful Golfer! Everyday I was overwhelmed by the positive comments and helpful advice I receive from The Grateful Golfer Community! Needless to say, I grateful for all the positive interaction with like-minded golfing fans. For those who might have missed the most popular posts of 2015, here are the top 6:
- Golf Grip – Strong, Weak or Neutral
- The Best Golf Swing Ever!
- Double Hit in Golf – Rule 14.4
- Ball Position in Your Golf Stance
- The Mental Challenges of I “Can’t” in Golf
- Put on the Clock in Golf
There is no real pattern or trend to the types of articles; nor do the timelines match up; I guess on any given day, we never know what is going to interest the readers!
Thanks for all the support last year, I hope to continue to entertain, share, and kibitz with you about golf even more in 2016!
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!
Want Low Scores in Golf?
We all want low scores in golf! There are very few players I know who does not want to play better every time they hit the links. Regardless of skill level, most golfers face the real challenge of using our time wisely to develop positive habits that will consistently improve our golf game and produce low scores.
What do you practice the most, thinking it will produce lower golf scores? When you first arrive at the course do you grab a bucket of balls and off the range you go; do you grab your wedge and hit a couple of balls before sprinting to the first tee; or do you grab your putter, hit couple 15 foot putts to get the feel back, then off to the range or first tee? I routinely see these and other less productive habits at my local course, and unfortunately, I am guilty of some of them from time to time. So what to do?
Lately, I have asked the golfing masses a series of questions about various golfing issues. Most of the time, the answers are in line with my approach to golf. Yet, now and then I am reminded about how to succeed at golf. As a result of a recent question, I was reminded of a lesson I never get tired of learning:
As you can see over 70% of the respondents have an awesome short game when they shoot low scores. I am not surprised because I have always said that to score low, it is important to have a consistent, focused and confident short game.
As I look back at the latter half of 2015, I remember practicing my short game less and hitting the range more. Do not get me wrong, range work is important, but practicing my short game is critical to low scores. I guess I was talking the talk, but forgetting to walk the walk! So I want to thank those who took the time to answer my question and reminded me to focus in 2016 to shoot low golf scores!
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!
The Grateful Golfer 