How to golf like you’re in the World Cup

Today I played golf like I was Argentina in the World Cup, and for 8 out of 9 holes, it went great. Here are the stats for the World Cup game this morning.

Watching the game, you got the feeling it was only a matter of time for Argentina. They kept taking shots, a lot more shots than Switzerland, and eventually, very near the end of overtime, they scored.

Today, I was patient. When I missed the green in regulation for the first 4 holes, I made sure I got on the green, had a go at the par putt, and took the bogey and moved on. Bogey’s are not going to hurt you. From my last blog post, I kept the relaxed shot by shot focus I figured out on the final 4 holes Saturday. Golf was enjoyable, and not a difficult workout. On the 5th hole today (par 5, 14th), my pitch shot stopped about 1 foot from the cup for a tap-in birdie. I parred 3 out of the last 4 holes, all of which I was on in regulation. I lost focus for the drive on 16th, topped 30 yards straight ahead, and left my 4th shot lag putt 5 foot above the hole, which then led to a double-bogey 6. The point today was staying patient like Argentina, and I was patient and finally a birdie and pars started to happen. This is how I’ll break 80. One lost moment of shot-by-shot focus on the 16th tee, and not ensuring I was past the hole on that lag putt, cost me a chance for a good score. Not long ago, I would have been ecstatic for a 41, but today is was a little disappointing, but not difficult to achieve.