The game of golf has given me tremendous opportunities in my life.
I was able to attend a fabulous school (Northwestern University, in the Big Ten Conference) on a golf scholarship. I got to play the game for a living (professionally) in my 20’s. I’ve been able to play some of the most desirable and exclusive golf courses in the country, and I’ve met some of my best friends through this great game.
I still play golf whenever I can, though with the demands of running a business, and two young children, that’s not nearly as often as I’d like. And I still compete in a few amateur golf tournaments each year. Last year, I was able to win my club championship at a truly great golf club (Olympia Fields Country Club, near Chicago). It was literally a dream come true, and as I get ready to defend that title I wanted to share my thoughts on competing, especially when you’re nowhere near the player you used to be.
As the great Bobby Jones once said, “golf and tournament golf are two very different things”. He was 100% correct. It’s a lot easier to play well on your home golf course, with your buddies and with nothing on the line, than it is to perform well under the pressure of a tournament. There are no gimmes in a tournament. No mulligans or do-overs. You count each shot, and you feel the pressure to perform. That’s called nerves, and when you’re not playing much tournament golf, it’s easy to let those nerves get the best of you.
For my part, I know that my game will not be at peak form. I just don’t have the time to play and practice like I used to. And since I’m not playing many tournaments, I know that my mind isn’t going to be accustomed to handling the pressure of tournament golf. After all, I’m not doing it week in and week out, like I used to. So how do I get myself ready to compete, to the best of my (limited) ability?
First things first. I prioritize what little practice time I have. That means in the week before an event, I’ll dedicate most of my limited practice time to three areas. 1. Getting my tee shots in play. 2. Being efficient around the greens. 3. Making my short putts.
If I can get my tee shots in the fairway (item # 1), that usually means I’ll have a good opportunity to hit the green in regulation. And if I don’t, I can usually get it around the green, where I have a good opportunity to get it up and down and save a stroke (item # 2). And once I hit that chip shot or bunker shot near the hole, I’ll need to make the short putt for par (item # 3). If I can do those things, I’ll have a chance to post a solid score.
The second part of preparing for tournament play is learning to accept mediocrity on the course. This is much harder than the physical aspects I mentioned above. I’m not nearly the golfer I used to be, which means I’m going to make a lot more mistakes under pressure. It also means that I’m not going to shoot the scores that I was accustomed to shooting in my younger days. Accordingly, I will have to accept my bad shots and not hold myself to the exacting standards that governed my thought process when I was younger. And I have to do all of this while convincing myself that I still belong in competitive golf tournaments. That’s a tough juggling act to pull off.
It’s not easy to put yourself out there, in the heat of competition, when you know you’re playing from behind. Many of the guys I now compete against are younger, fitter, longer off the tee, and have more time to play and practice. Some of them play 3 or 4 times (or more) as many tournaments as I do, which gives them a huge competitive advantage. But I still love the game and I still love to compete, so even with my limited skill set, it’s worth it.
Here’s to hoping I have a few more good tournaments left in the old body…