There are going to be times in every round when you find yourself on the other side of a bad hole. Perhaps you made some decisions that went from bad to worse, or just couldn’t catch a break with the conditions. But there you are, facing the important choice of how you will proceed. This might be just the thing to crumble the resolve of a novice golfer, but the seasoned player knows that he can carry this with him the rest of the round, or take a moment to find the silver lining and move on.
The secret lies in the take-aways.
No matter how badly things went, there is always a lesson to be learned from every failure. What separates the good from the great is their ability to quickly extract the valuable information from an experience and let go of the rest. So what should you look for? Here are 3 simple questions to ask yourself, that will enable you to reclaim your power, and finish the round from a position of control:
1. What is the one thing I did right on this hole? Example: I kept my swing nice and easy.
2. What is the biggest lesson I just learned from this experience? Example: When my focus is split, I need to step away to center my thoughts.
3. Where will my thoughts be on the next hole? Example: I will focus my mind on the shot at hand and hitting to my target.
The key is to make sure your statements are positive.
By sandwiching the lesson between two proactive statements, your take-away from a bad hole can be transformed into an effective memory you can call upon the next time you are faced with a similar situation.
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