Golf Slump

Every athlete can relate to the type of frustration that accompanies a slump. It’s not the type of frustration that stems from not having a clue what you’re doing wrong; it’s the type of frustration that stems from having too many clues. A few months ago, I began to go from shooting in the mid to high 80s to struggling to make it out in the high 90s. This not only showed in my score, but it showed in my game.

Every time I took a swing, it was like I was swinging like a robot. I was no longer really playing golf; I was essentially just trying to go through the motions like it was some type of job. Stay low through the shot. Cup the wrist. No spinning of the hips. Keep the elbow in. Instead of standing over the ball and trusting my natural instincts, I was trying to control every aspect of my game.

The more I thought about my game, the worse I was playing. The worse I was playing, the more frustrated I became. Golf, which had once been a fun and competitive game, had begun to feel like some type of test that I couldn’t seem to pass, no matter how hard I studied.

After one particular bad round, my dad said something to me that, to be honest, didn’t really make sense at the time. He said, “You know, take two weeks off.” But looking back, it’s like the two weeks off was exactly what I needed.

When I came back, I knew right away. I wasn’t thinking about the ball. I wasn’t thinking about my swing. I wasn’t trying to change anything in the middle of the round. I was just seeing the shot and making it. It was simple again.

And the proof is in the pudding, because by the time I finished this round, I shot a 72. It was the best score I had in months.

What had changed? It wasn’t my swing. My swing hadn’t really changed. It was still the same. But what had changed was my mind. I had stopped trying to control everything. I had started to trust the work I had done up to this point.

This experience taught me something much larger than the game of golf. It taught me that sometimes the best way to get better is to take a step back and trust the work you’ve already done.