Golf is Best Taken One Shot at a Time…Here’s Why

Before Sunday, Brooks Koepka did everything right at Augusta National. He hit a lot of fairways, hit plenty of greens, and made enough putts. Prior to Augusta, Brooks played really well at the LIV Golf event. He pounded his high, piercing cut dead down the middle of the fairway and made a lot of big putts inside ten feet.

He came to Augusta National riding high from his recent victory and extremely confident in all facets of his game. Despite entering the final round of the Masters with a two-shot advantage over his playing partner, Spaniard Jon Rahm, Brooks failed in capturing his first green jacket while battling virtually all facets of his game en route to a final round score of 3 over par, 75.

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Meanwhile, Koepka’s playing partner, Jon Rahm, slipped on his first green jacket after shooting a final round 69 while cruising to a four-shot victory over Phil Mickelson and Koepka. Amazingly, Rahm doubled his first hole of the tournament thanks to a four-putt on the 1st green. Rather than opting to hang his head after a gut punch on the first hole of the tournament, Rahm offered us a glimpse into the mind of a champion by making an eagle on his very next hole.

CBS commentator, Trevor Immelmann, referred to Brooks’s game in the final round as being “just a touch off.” In this game, everything can take a turn for the worst after one bad swing, one change in momentum, or one unlucky break. At the same time, one well-struck shot can unlock a series of good shots that can ultimately amount to a long stretch of quality golf.

At some level, the difference between Koepka’s opening round 65 and his closing round 75 may not have been all that much despite the ten-shot differential. In other words, a bad round can quickly follow a good round and vice versa. Sometimes, that’s just the nature of this crazy game. At some level, golfers are best served by practicing acceptance during the most unacceptable of moments.

After firing a disappointing 75 en route to a runner-up finish, Brooks was gracious in defeat during his post-round press conference. “I tried my hardest, gave it my all,” remarked the four-time major champion. Like Rahm, Koepka is willing to put the bad golf behind him. Moreover, they’re both unafraid to lay it all on the line.

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While Rahm and Koepka both play the game under very different circumstances in comparison to the typical amateur, all golfers have individual goals. It doesn’t matter if that personal goal happens to be winning your weekend match, winning the club championship, breaking 80, or qualifying for the US Open.

If you don’t do so already, kick off your golf season by outlining a few goals. It’ll give you some definition and structure in how you approach your weekly rounds and practice routines. Believe me, golf becomes a far more rewarding game after failing/succeeding on the course when we play in pursuit of something. If we don’t have goals, it’s easy to practice without a purpose, to accept mediocrity, and to never feel the satisfaction that accompanies success.

I get it. The initial wave of depression that hits after we fail to reach one of our goals is a really lonely feeling. Failure hurts the most when you lose a big match to that one guy that really pisses you off or fails to qualify for your club championship by a single shot. However, those are the rounds that we learn the most from. Honestly, the only way to really know how your game measures up is by putting yourself in those situations. The more willing you are to put it all on the line, the more you’ll accomplish in the long run.

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Playing well is fun. Playing not so well isn’t so fun. Do yourself a favor and set a few specific goals for the upcoming season, and don’t be discouraged if you fall short of one or all of them. Rest assured that most golfers aren’t even willing to go to that level in order to review or take stock of their game in a straightforward, honest, objective manner.

A lot of golfers like to give themselves putts inside five feet, take the timely mulligan, or hit their “third shot” from their buddy’s ball after pumping their tee ball OB. If that’s you, that’s perfectly fine! However, if you play most of your rounds in this aforementioned more-casual environment while having relatively high expectations of yourself the next time you tee it up in a competitive atmosphere, ultimately, you’re not being fair to yourself. As Ben Hogan once said, “Golf and tournament golf are about as different from one another as baseball and hockey.”

Whatever that competitive environment exists as within your own little world, make it count. Your next great success is right around the corner if you remain calm, stay motivated, and focus on the present moment.

Golfers have access to a ton of useful information on the internet and elsewhere these days. Obviously, there’s a lot to love about the guy who makes triple on the first hole, cracks a beer, and accepts failure after hole number 1. If this is you, crack that beer and accept that you can birdie the next hole rather than hopping aboard the bogey train.

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Take a page out of Koepka’s book in how he internalizes a bad day on the course. Give it your all, no matter what. Having the self-esteem to give it your very best if you’re not used to it at first may seem very daunting in the beginning. Failure sucks, and pressure is virtually unavoidable once we’re willing to accept the terms of our individual goals. Over time, you’ll realize that one, two, or even three bad rounds in a short period of time is no longer something worth overreacting to.

That’s just golf.

Whether you’re trying to either rebound from that awful four-putt or identify the cause of your horrible round, do your best not to overreact. Often, I’ll witness amateurs spending loads of time on the practice green trying to reinvent their putting stroke after one bad round. They’ll either change their grip, change their putter, or change their setup, and maybe they’ll play better the following day. Or, they’ll make the above change/changes and still struggle. If the new claw grip helps you putt better, great!

Continue to use it. What I will say, however, is that putting comes down to confidence. If you think you’re going to make it, you’ll make it. Instead of trying to address the mechanical or technical aspects of your swing/stroke/game, commit to a mental change. On the golf course, especially under tournament conditions, you want to be hyper-aware of your surroundings.

The greens may be faster, the rough may be longer, the pace of play might be slower, and your adrenaline may be through the roof. If you’re trying to navigate a tough external environment by adding the internal stress of certain swing-related thoughts, you’re going to make that round much more difficult than it needs to be in a competitive atmosphere.

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If you find yourself playing well during the week and struggling during your weekend matches, don’t go to the club pro for a swing change. I sure as hell could use the money, but you’ll probably be better served by engaging in more positive self-talk. Lastly, you’ll play your best after you’ve been punched in the gut when you remain committed to your pre-shot routine.

Pick a target, pick a ball flight, step in, and fire. Focus solely on your intent and not what you hope doesn’t happen on the shot’s result. As much as I wish this mode of thinking was something that we could achieve overnight, it requires practice. As I alluded to earlier, the best form of practice comes through experience. In other words, practice by playing and practice by playing the right way.

Hole everything out and approach every shot the same way. One of the most challenging tasks associated with playing golf comes in the form of facing the expectations we put on ourselves. Be better prepared for that environment by always giving it your all on every shot you hit. On the first tee, your sole focus should be on your opening tee shot. At that moment, that’s all you can control.

If your goal is to break 80 during a round where you just pumped your tee shot on 10 OB after shooting 39 on the front, such misfortune often seems like hell on earth. Slow down, take a deep breath, pick a target, and make an aggressive swing on that conservative line for your third shot on that same tee.

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Instead of allowing your mind to jump to “Oh boy, now I’m going to make triple and force myself to play the next 8 holes in 1 over just to shoot 79,” ask yourself one simple question: “Where in the fairway should I put this ball in order to attack the flag?”

Accept that the two-digit numeric value representing your 18-hole score is nothing more than a result that exists as a product of a process or processes. While two different players may shoot the same score for one round, that process for one great player is often more optimal for them in comparison to the lesser player’s process in this example. Simply, one round of golf cannot define who you are as a player. All great players approach a round of golf with the same mindset while also taking one shot at a time.

I know you’ve heard this line before, but have you really approached your game in this manner in all environments? I can promise you that a double bogey in a tournament round feels much different than a double bogey while drinking beers with your buddies on a casual Saturday afternoon. The next time you have a bad hole or make a bad swing, try not to overreact to its existence. Instead of reacting by making a physical swing change, allow your mind to return to your next shot.

While your buddies will continue making bogeys once they make one, you’ll respond to more bogeys with birdies.

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