At the end of a year, it is always important to reflect on what was, as well as what could have been.
Missed opportunities in the game of life (and golf) are all too often glazed over with nothing more than a passing comment. Something to ease the pain, I guess.
Not enough weekends out of town with the family as you’d planned, John?
‘I was caught up at work.’
How come you always blank on the 9th hole, Chris?
‘It just doesn’t suit my eye.’
Why can you never string rounds together without having at least one blowout, Ryan?
‘Because I think about the results more than I focus on the shot in front of me.’ (Is what I should say.)
I made a conscious effort going into 2023 to own up to my unforced errors, both on and off the golf course. From having fewer negative thoughts over a challenging tee-shot to slipping so far down a leaderboard that I miss the cut, to not spending enough quality time with my wife and daughter. Wow, that last one was tough to type out.
Each new year always provides us with its own beginning, an opportunity for fresh starts and/or improvements to be made – hopefully effective enough to stand the test of time. My personal priorities now revolve more around my own little family, as the past couple of years have been spent building new venues in Harare for people to get into this amazing game of ours. If you are ever in Harare, or on social media, feel free to check out their Instagram handles in the footnotes.
The year is 2023. How crazy does that sound? Having just realized that I’ve been a journeyman pro for 18 full years, I would really like to share a couple of my personal favourite tips with you. I hope they help!
- Soften up – When you’re over the ball, waggle your club a couple of times and ‘take stock’ of the tension levels in your arms and hands. Almost every golfer I know grips the club too tight, which hurts your rhythm and timing.
- Get wide – On your next trip into the greenside bunker, check whether your stance is wider than your shoulder width. Narrowness in the stance often causes you to get steep and ‘dig’ as opposed to getting wider (in order to shallow out the shaft plane) and achieve more of a thudding ‘splash’ through the sand.
- Make time – Whether you need 30 minutes on the range before your game in order to feel more prepared, or an hour on the clubhouse veranda with your fourball after golf in order to have a beer and unwind – It’s important that you create that time for yourself, as neither great golf nor quality time with close friends will last forever.
Thanks for reading and all the best in 2023!
– This column first appeared in the January 2023 issue of Compleat Golfer magazine.
