I have been very fortunate as of late to just let things go. I am so different than I was even just six months ago. I wouldn’t get mad that I made a bad shot, but I was definitely be frustrated and/or discouraged, as I was going through a swing change and thought I was never going to figure it out. I was literally terrified every time I stood over the ball, it made the swing very counterproductive, stiff, forced, and mechanical. I have since settled in on my new swing and I’m sure my Coach will continue to tweak it little by little but the big part is done.
With that said, as of recently, I have learned to laugh at myself. I have never done that before until about a month and a half ago. Instead of being frustrated or discouraged because I make a bad shot, I just literally laugh. Laugh hard and out loud. I am sure this has helped me let the shot be that shot and move onto the next. I am not bringing tension or anger to the next shot, and as they say, laughter is the best medicine. It really seems to wok well. The next time you guys make a shot that would normally frustrate you, or make you upset, just laugh at yourself. Laugh hard at yourself, see if it helps you “let the shot go!” I hope you will all be surprised.
See Hatton, Tyrell - when he’s not throwing clubs at bad shots, he’s laughing/mocking himself
I think sometimes it’s better to vent the anger quickly and then go back to a positive mental state… ideally you always stay positive but trying to force yourself into being positive when you are angry can also create issues.
Not to get too deep into the weeds, but…
One idea that I’ve seen in a couple of contexts is that great players often disassociate themselves from bad shots. You see this on Tour with guys who, whenever a shot goes bad, there is blame to be assigned to the mudball or the caddie. It seems as though some caddies view this as part of the job description: the player needs to see himself as virtually bulletproof (we all know that lack of confidence standing over a shot is a killer), so if the caddie takes the blame in the moment for the bad shots, the player has (at least in his imagination) never done anything wrong.
Now, this raises questions, especially for me as a parent of a junior golfer. I see this attitude in my son Kirke, who (according to him) virtually never hits a bad shot. He gets bad breaks, but he never did anything to deserve them. This is a fine line; his confidence on the course is amazing. At the same time, I’m not merely raising a golfer; I’m raising a young man. And that “blame everything but me” attitude is totally toxic.
I digress a bit.
But my point here is to agree with @Gisclairj’s point: I have found that laughing at bad shots is an awesome way to get past them, and far better than getting angry. I also think (and this is why I brought it up) that it is psychologically a very effective means of disassociating from the bad shot: if I can laugh, I’m stepping back a bit and noticing the objective absurdity of how bad that shot was. It’s as if you can say, “Whoa! That wasn’t like me! Where did that come from?”
Obviously, it won’t work for everyone, but it’s something I’m trying to incorporate more into my own game and something I’d encourage others to try as well.
Totally agree on this… except I’m raising girls! Laughter is definitely good!
Tough spot for you. I believe that elite athletes or even athletes in general need to have the I can’t do anything wrong attitude while competing. However in the real world that doesn’t work out well at all.
I can’t remember the quote exactly, but Jack Nicklaus always said that you have to be able to laugh at yourself after a dreadful shot. Getting angry (while sometimes impossible to avoid) serves no purpose. It won’t help your game, and after all, it’s just golf!
I love Hatton so much. He’s an every man who plays at a top ten in the world level.
I do! There have been shots where I marvel at where they end up, and I mutter, “That took Skill!” and laugh. Only shot that counts is the one you’re doing NOW!
I like to yell " NO ONE EXPECTS THE SPANISH INQUISITION!!!" after particularly gruesome shots.
Keeps things light for me.
The worse the shot is the more I have to laugh. Missed it by THAT much!!!
HAH!!! Used to love Monty Python … great bits they had!
. I can quote chapter and verse!
Definitely have been working on this, though sometimes it’s still the “quick vent” reaction but then I do move on and focus on the next shot.
I try to do a brief post-shot evaluation and - emphasized - try to learn from my mistakes and store the solutions into the golf memory bank.
We all need to be like Yoda, “there is no try, only do!”
ROTFLMAO!! Wonderful!
I’m getting better at emulating your phenomenal attitude. Last round I smoked a high hook around the corner headed precisely to the cup. Would’ve except it ticked the tree, typically producing a flavorful retort. I turned to my partner laughing, “I did my part, I hit it. What happens after that is the ball’s problem”. We both had a chuckle.
Yes! Sometimes, a shot gets ‘bad luck’ and goes way off - and I feel like the guy in Monty Python that gets slapped with a fish, LOL
And sometimes, it hits the tree- and bounces into the middle of the fairway!
A few years ago came a setpoint. I’d read a quote attributed to Walter Hagen, where he said tha he expected to make seven mistakes per round. I figures that Hagen had a higher standard re golf than I did. So, now when I make a mistake (mis-hit shot, mis-club, etc), I figure that’s one of my seven.
Right now, my game is; a handful of “Wow, that was exactly what I wanted!” shots, a handful of “Where in the hell did that come from?” shots and the majority are playable misses. That’s where I am with my game. At 70, it’s fine with me. I’m not exactly laughing at myself, although a few shots earns some chuckles, but it more a case of acceptance of my game.