golfthoughts

In my corner of the world people have moved on from the game of golf for the season. We had our first snow last week, there’s frost on the ground in the mornings, and last night I walked into my garage barefoot and thought I was going to lose my foot. It was cold! But we haven’t forgotten the most recent summer of golf here in the Inland Northwest. It was a beautiful season, filled with mostly sunny days, few rainy days, and lot’s of great memories. I’m not a pro, but I do consider myself a pretty good amateur, and over the next few months I hope to share my wisdom with you when it comes to keeping your head in the game. For most amateurs, that is the hardest thing to do when playing in a competitive match. Thanks to my four years on the high school golf team, two-team State championships, three US Open qualifying rounds, and one Public Links qualifying round I have been through my share of competitive golf, and I’ve learned how to handle those pressures.   Before I get to that, I thought I’d share the story of my last day on the golf course this year. It was a fantastic finish to a pretty great season.  At my home course, The Highlands in Post Falls, ID, we compete throughout the season with men’s clubs from three other area courses up and down the highway for the Highway 41 Cup. One round is played at each of the 4 courses at different times throughout the summer. Prairie Falls, Stoneridge, and Twin Lakes all had their eyes on my club this year because we’d won the cup the previous year, and after three rounds we were poised to win it again. The final of the four rounds was at Prairie Falls, a course I’d previously been a member of, so I felt a little bit of a homefield advantage heading into the round. After carding birdies on three of the first four holes I felt like I was well on my way to a new personal best.  I’d been having trouble with my driver earlier in the season, but after a friend pointed out that I was letting the ball creep back in my stance, I all of a sudden became a monster driver. On this day I was pounding tee shots over 330 yards with ease, and my short irons were working well enough that I was able to stay under par, or close to it, for most of the round. Unfortunately I finished double-bogey-double and ended up shooting a 74, but I was still proud of the score I posted. I ended up finishing in the top-5, which qualified me for the Race Horse later in the day. The rest of my team, however, did not have as good a day as I did, and we ended up in second place overall in the Cup standings.The good news for me, though, was that I had a chance to go win some money in the Race Horse. With all bets being placed and a large crowd following us around for four holes, my partner and I were able to come away with the win, thanks in part to my performance in a chip-off on the final hole. The crowd erupted, especially those who had placed their bets on our team.I’m not telling you this to brag about how good I am. I definitely have my flaws. I am not a very good putter, but I do have a solution for that, which i will also get into in later postings. But I never count myself out of a round thanks to my tough mental game, and you can be the same way too. I’ll help you get there.Stay tuned… 

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