PLAYING MORE GOLF: Just do it!

No doubt about it, golf can be challenging.

Generally speaking, a round of golf can be quite humbling.  Filled with scoring highs and lows, lost balls, other on-course frustrations and bigger-than-desired numbers on the scorecard, many golfers feel that they aren’t good enough.

When I hear this comment from golfers – particularly female golfers – my immediate response to them is, “Not good enough for what?”

Not good enough to play many of the beautiful courses around your local area?

Not good enough to participate in a local golf league?

Not good enough to go on an amazing golf trip to an awesome destination with other golfers?

In my experiences as a golf teaching professional, the most common concerns voiced by female students are related to score-related issues. Many often express concern because they may not hit the ball as far as others.  Others worry about their short game.  Some experience anxiety while others watch them tee off.

Letting you in on a little secret…

One of the awesome things about golf is that basically all of the gear that’s available to the world’s greatest golfers is also available to us.  Clubs.  Clothes.  Shoes.  For sure, we can look just like a touring pro while out on the greens!

And for most golfers, that’s where the similarities end.

“45% of all golfers average more than 100 strokes per round,” according to the National Golf Foundation.

What score does that equate to out on a typical 18-hole, par-72 course?  In general, that would translate into double-bogeys on each hole during the round.  That’s 108.

Despite efforts to assure golfers that they are perfectly well equipped to participate in all aspects of the global golf community, I realized some need more convincing!

To help these ladies see that mishits, chunks and skulls are common on the fairways for most recreational golfers, I began taking them out onto the course to discreetly observe and see it for themselves.

After a bit of shock and a few moments of surprise, most experience tremendous relief and excitement.  Feeling liberated, most say something like “OMG – I’m not as bad as I thought!” 

No, you’re not.

Most of us will always want to be a little bit better at most everything we do in life.  Golf is no exception. But instead of waiting, let’s enjoy the journey.  That doesn’t mean that we don’t keep practicing or abandon our instruction programs.

Instead, it simply means that we make it a point to begin enjoying golf and all that it offers to those of us fortunate to be a part of it.  Beautiful, natural surroundings. Fun.  Friendships. And so much more.

Play more golf.  Just do it!

#LetsGolf #GrowTheGame

6 Comments

  1. Patty Penn on October 3, 2018 at 10:19 am

    Wonderful article! It is the level of expectation that tends to disappoint newer golfers, until someone breaks down the scorecards and enlightens them on the reasonable results. This also helps with goal setting, hole by hole.

    This is what I do when a golfer tells me how bad their game was. I go through and point out blow up holes and set new objectives to overcome it next time.

    • Greta Anderson on October 4, 2018 at 10:38 am

      Thanks for sharing those strategies, Patty! Yep, further analysis of the scorecard is often very revealing for (newer) golfers, so it’s a great tool for helping golfers gain a more accurate assessment of how they arrived at that score.

  2. Gina McAdoo on October 4, 2018 at 6:34 pm

    Enjoyed the article Greta. Gives hope to a newbie like me. Look forward to seeing you on the course soon.

    • Greta Anderson on October 4, 2018 at 6:46 pm

      Hi Gina! Thanks for your kind words. Remember this: EVERY new golfer (regardless of their current skill level) was once a new golfer. So, I look forward to seeing you out on the course soon! 😊

  3. Nofiu Akano, PGA Associates on October 6, 2018 at 2:14 am

    Great job Dr. You said it all in one article. Not good enough…. Just do it. Enjoy the most manicure environment called the golf course! Keep the great job going.

    • Greta Anderson on October 6, 2018 at 6:03 pm

      Thank you for your kind words. Let’s all keep encouraging everyone we know to get out and enjoy this beautiful game. Now is the perfect time!!

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