Golf Improvement: Don’t forget why you golf!

It’s been about 2 months since I’ve played golf.  Life, kids, and work can take precedence.  So what happened today?  First of all, I had no expectations, no nervousness and no worry about “scoring”.  That helped a lot:   Seven pars, and 5 doubles.  That’s no revelation, I have had good holes in the past too.

What occurred to me is how enjoyable it is.  The weather, the views, the good shots, the friends, friendly competition, and the time away.  There was no time to focus on deadlines at work, financial obligations, debts, relatives in poor health, the upcoming business trip, the headlight that went out on the car, or any other countless daily worries and stresses.

The time away from golf had given me a different perspective.  Golf is FUN!  I had put a lot of focus on improving my game, and improving had became the most important part of golf, and actually playing golf for enjoyment was not as important.  Perhaps that happens to pros too, when they focus too closely and don’t step back and enjoy the game.  Tiger Woods does not look like he’s having fun out there any more.  Perhaps that’s the missing ingredient?

“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.”

Ernest Hemingway

You’ll notice in the “Bad” column below there are a couple of flop shots with my 60 degree wedge.  On the 15th hole at Torrey Pines North, one of those flop shots didn’t get on the green, but left me just off the fringe.  The next fringe chip with my 56 degree holed out for my par.  Having had a break from golf, I didn’t get overly upset about the poor flop shot, and was able to focus on the next shot completely.

Today I met an Orthopedic surgeon, Addie, paired up with us for today’s round of golf.  We talked about sports injuries and he convinced Jonathan and I why we should use a pull cart.  I hit the straightest, longest, purest 5 wood about 240 yards on the 18th hole to get on in regulation after a duck-hook drive and a chunked 2nd shot.

Would I give up the 4 hours today playing golf in exchange to instantly land on the 18th green with a 79 on the scorecard?  Not a chance.

“Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.”

Greg Anderson