It’s good to be back after a short spell. I’ve used the break to spend some time thinking about my game and what I’d like to achieve. The upshot of my thinking is that I’ve been working too many hours and not doing enough I’ve what I really enjoy doing.
And that is to get out and play golf. Hopefully I can live up to my conviction and play a little bit more and turn my computer off when it really doesn’t need to be on. Time will tell.
The last two weeks I’ve been playing a bit with the young guns around my club. They remind me a lot about how I used to be. Looking for the perfect shot, practising heaps and generally expecting to play well all of the time.
They’re also looking for the fancy tip or swing secret to find their best game. In fact, they’re always searching, not content to put up with what they’ve got and truly enjoy their game.
This got me thinking about my own game. If I’m truly honest my swing skills haven’t changed that much over the journey. The shots I can play today are exactly the same as I could play 10 years ago. There’s absolutely nothing I can do today that I couldn’t do last century.
The big difference today is I can more often than not hit the right shot at the right time. I have minimised the chances of stuffing up. I can play under pressure and don’t get distracted by all the noise.
Here’s the thing.
Great golf requires you to find your shot and keep doing it time after time. It’s almost boring because you’re no longer looking for the secret or magical swing tip. You turn up and play the shot (or shots) you know you can hit.
The young guns were almost surprised at how I play. They were expecting me to have some fancy way of approaching the game and seemed disappointed when I told them otherwise. Fancy fails. Learn to master your way first and then, and only then, should you look elsewhere.
After years of searching for “my way” I’ve still got lots to learn and I’m not about to change anytime soon.
My main point is this. If you’ve been playing for more than a few years the chances are it’s unlikely you’re going to suddenly start hitting the ball better than you do now. You’ve reached your potential, there’s no more magic to be found. Your real success is in learning how to find your real game and then bringing that game to the course. There’s nothing much else you can do.
Enjoy what you’ve got because it really isn’t that bad.