Golf is a difficult game.
It seems to change day-to-day, hole-to-hole, and even swing-to-swing.
At times, the game can seem relatively simple, while at others it can be the most infuriating experience imaginable.
Knowing all of this, the key to being a better golfer isn’t about maintaining your game when it feels simple, but instead you need to change your game when it is feeling bad.
You may have heard the term “bounce back” used on television.
What this is referring to is the player’s ability to make a good score on a hole, immediately after struggling on the hole before. For example, when a tour player makes a bogey on a hole, they generally try to “bounce back” with a birdie on the next hole.
Stop the bogey train, in other words. For many of you, this example is likely to be a much higher number.
How many times can you recall making a double or triple bogey on a hole, and then following it up with another high score on the next?
I witness this all the time.
Your emotions get the best of you, and you continue to react to what just happened. This needs to change. As you move ahead, you need to challenge yourself to be at your peak focus on the tee box following a bad hole.
By establishing this mindset, you will immediately trigger this focus and create a new opportunity and challenge for yourself on the next hole.
I have always had a rule that I’d never make back-to-back bogeys during a competitive round of golf.
Obviously, this didn’t always work out as I planned. However, by establishing this rule, I was less likely to allow my entire round to crumble based on a bad hole.
Successful golfers can handle the ups and downs that mess with their emotions during a round of golf. Work on your ability to “bounce back” after a bad hole, and you will be rewarded for it at the end of the round.
