Golf & Style

Have you ever gone to the club and hit a bucket of some of your best shots, then when the round began you stood before your tee shot, lined up your club, took your usual preparation swings, knew exactly how you wanted to stroke it, and shanked the shot so badly you caused the others in your foursome to duck to keep from getting hit? What happened?

In my job I have to face one of the toughest tee shots in life: I stand in front of large groups of people and speak and try to hold their attention with a lot of stories and facts and gestures and when I finish talking, they need to walk away with the tools to be more successful than when they walked in.

Recently I stood before a group of people with a talk that was guaranteed to give them everything they expected. I had done my research and was ready to give a championship message. Instead, when it was over and I sat down I wondered, "What happened?" Fortunately that doesn't happen too often, but I always try to learn from my mistakes, and I can tell you exactly what I did wrong. And it's why we shank shots straight into the woods.

We try too hard. When you swing at a golf ball there are a lot of complex things happening in your body to make that movement successful. One group of muscles gives you the ability to accelerate through your swing. Another group of muscles, at the same time, has to stabilize your whole body so your swing can be fluid. If these opposing groups of muscles aren't working in harmony, and the stabilizing muscles are fighting the accelerator muscles – you "plink", drop the ball right into the water. Or in the case of my speech, cause me to sound about as natural as a 19-year-old on location reporter for Ceska Televize.

How can you relax your way to success on the course? Burn this into your mind forever: You must get rid of the idea that the harder you try, the more intense you struggle to succeed, the better you will play. If you want to focus on something, focus on being the most relaxed and easy-going guy on the course.
You can only do that if you have done the preparation work before you step on the course: take the lessons (never stop learning), hit the buckets, eat well before you play (not load yourself down with three half liters and a pile of junk food) and tell yourself, "I'm going to have a fun time playing one of the greatest sports in the world!" Then you can RELAX and go out and play one of the best rounds of your life.