by Michael Riggs, M.Ed.
The mornings are losing their chill and the afternoon sun has begun to caress your face with the gentle reminder that the long awaited season of golf is just around the corner. The memories of last year and all its glory — the soft fading drives into tree-lined fairways, the magical bunker shots saving par, and the double-breaking putts that somehow found their way into the bottom of the cup – renew your passion to play again. The sweet smell of freshly cut greens lures us back to the course for another year of trials and triumphs. The spell of the game has, once again, been cast upon us.
“Next up on tee number one, the Weber foursome. Good luck, gentlemen and ladies.”
Each spring we, as players, renew our vow to get our game into the shape that we know it belongs. This is the year we go from good to great. But, where does that quest begin? The range once per week? The floor mat each morning to keep us trim and flexible? The pro shop for a new putter? The magazine rack to brush up on our attitude and mental game?
Your first stop this year must begin in a different place… the mirror.
Take a good, long look. Ask yourself one simple question, “To really improve my game, If I were to do just one thing religiously this year with total commitment and without waver, what would it be?” Before you walk away from your own gaze, answer yourself. Maybe your answer is to practice weekly. Or, maybe your reply is to join the next flight up at your club to better challenge yourself. Or, your response could be to refuse to beat yourself down on the course after a missed putt.
You see, no matter what your answer is, it must be your answer – your truth. For, if there is a singular power the game has over each of us, it is, for sure, the power to expose us to ourselves and ultimately, bring us to our own truth.
S² Tip
Pick one thing – just one thing – that you will do from today until your last putt of the season to become your best… then stick to that commitment as if your game depended upon it.
Success Story
Hats off to the University of Northern Colorado women’s golf team and head coach Brandon White in capturing their first Big Sky Conference title.
In Another’s Words…
“Look well into thyself; there is a source which will always spring up if thou wilt always search there.”
— Marcus Aurelius, philosopher