Your Best Golf Season is This One!
Another golf season is upon us. We are shaking off the winter rust and getting ready to tee it up outside for the season. Some of us are optimistic that the winter work we put in is going to pay off, and this year will be the year of your lowest score, best drive, first hole in one, or any other dreams you have. Others are nervous that they haven’t put in the work this year and it’s time to cram in that last minute practice to prepare. No matter what you have done, there are 2 things that everyone can do, right now, that will give you the best chance to reach new heights with your golf game this season!
Goal Setting
How could you possibly achieve greatness if you haven’t even defined what that means for yourself? No matter what skill level you’re at, you must set goals each year! Settings these goals should be enjoyable but how you set your goals is important to help you achieve them.
First, we should define the two types of goals I’d like us to work with. The first is outcome goals. This is a goal that can be measured statistically. Examples of this would be; I am going to lower my handicap to (x), I am going to win my Club Championship, I am going to win a tournament, or beat a certain friend I never have. These goals are motivators, something to make you want to get out of bed in the morning, spend that extra time at the course working on your game. This goal should be, as Jim Collins wrote in ‘Built to Last’ A Big Harry Audacious Goal.
Now that we have something to strive toward, we need a roadmap to get there, and that’s where process goals come into play. The best part about setting process goals, is they are completely under your control. Examples of process goals would be; evaluate each round after playing and write down my areas for improvement, practice my putting 5 hours per week, set a goal for each round of golf I play, etc. The idea of these process goals is that if you complete them, that will give you the best chance to reach your Big Harry Audacious Outcome Goal!
Write these goals down, and look at them frequently. This is the best way to stay on the right track!
Affirmations
Personally, I have had great success with writing down affirmations in my life. The way I like to do affirmations is write down a phrase every day 5-10 times on a piece of paper. Writing it down on paper, rather than typing on a computer or your phone, is much more effective! Affirmations provide you with emotional support and encouragement to do the right thing each day, so you get closer to your goals. Simply put, if you just write down your goal 5 times each day, you will have that on the top of your mind and plan your day around reaching your goal. Here is a simple format for your affirmation: I [FULL NAME] will [Big Harry Audacious Goal]. Simple, that’s it!
Setting goals is a good practice to get into for all facets of life. Use this time to set goals for the season ahead and make this season a success. One last piece of advice, is make sure your goals follow the SMART acronym. Specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time based. We all know that playing golf is much more fun when we’re playing well!