Master the Mental Game of Next Level Play
What is the most effective strategy for improving your golf score?
Most golfers have a similar process: practice… play… repeat.
Many of these golfers see slow or little progress.
Why are these golfers stuck in a rut?
What is the missing ingredient of significant improvement?
The often-overlooked aspect causing golfers to plateau is an objective self-evaluation of their game.
Let’s roll out a scenario: You finish a competitive round of golf 6-over-72. It’s pretty much the same as every round you have played in the last several months.
Since you haven’t seen much progress, you feel stuck. So, you go back to your routine of practice rounds and work on your swing mechanics but still feel frustrated with your lack of progress. You can’t understand the reason for your lack of improvement. After all, you are consistently practicing.
In this scenario, there is no doubt you are putting in the work. However, one element has been neglected. You have never examined what was working and what was not working.
For example, what preparation, thoughts, mental strategies, and training techniques have aided your play? What mental, physical, technical, and tactical elements have detracted from your game? What needs to improve for next-level play?
When you examine your performance after each competitive round, you will start to notice trends.
For example, when you were playing well, did you prepare differently? What was your mentality heading into a tournament? What were you focusing on before each shot? What role did emotions play in your performance? What were your practice habits?
Understanding what works provides a roadmap to peak performance and consistent improvement.
Madelene Sagstrom came up just two shots short of her second career LPGA Tour victory at the 2024 Cognizant Founders Cup. Sagstrom held a two-shot lead with nine holes to play before Rose Zhang made a late run, carding four birdies in her last five holes to pull off the victory.
Though disappointed, Sagstrom has taken some positives from her performance and understands precisely what improvements must be made and what elements have helped her play during competitive rounds.
SAGSTROM: “I think I’ve built up a bit of a playbook the last few weeks – really my whole career. We have started really nitpicking what drills work, what thoughts work, and what feelings work. When you play well, it’s easy to forget about it, and you kind of just go with the flow. You really have to sit down and be like, “What is the reason? What are we doing that makes me play well?” I think me and my team – they’re still here – we are going to sit down, and we are going to talk about it, and keep doing good things.”
By performing a deep dive and creating a roadmap for improvement, you will find ways to lift your game to the next level. In addition, keep in mind that progress takes time and dedication, so stay patient and committed to the process.
Create a post-tournament evaluation worksheet to examine your performance.
When you evaluate your physical play, mental game, and practice performance, take notice of trends and how you can make adjustments to improve your game.
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