10 Truths in Golf

Golf teaches you a lot about life.

I think it’s one of the reasons that so many people play the game for their entire life. Like life, golf is always teaching you more and more about yourself. If you listen, you can learn a ton.

Here are 10 truths I’ve learned to help you play better golf.

10. Golf is the Hardest Sport Ever

There is a reason why top athletes from every sport are attracted to golf. It’s because they’re wildly competitive and love the challenge that golf presents. They understand that golf is not like other sports and the difficulty is attractive to competitive people.

That being said, go easy on yourself and your own game as a weekend warrior. Chances are you don’t get to play and practice as much as you’d like. So don’t beat yourself up if you don’t always hit the way you want, it still is the hardest sport out there.

9. Your Swing is a Work in Progress

The crazy thing about golf is that the work is never done. You’re always trying to improve and refine your swing – even if you’re the best player in the world.

Tiger Woods is a perfect example. Despite record setting victories early in his career, he continued to change his swing and has done so ever since.

The point is that the tinkering never ends. Your golf swing is always a work in progress so just accept it.

8. Perfection Doesn’t Exist

The perfect golf swing does not exist. Sure, some PGA Tour pros have basically a perfect swing, but it doesn’t mean that it always leads to amazing scores.

A great example is Rory McIlroy. He’s a smaller than average player, but most would agree his swing is nearly perfect. Despite his size, he’s right up there with Bryson DeChambeau in terms of driving distance too.

With a swing like that, I think he should win every tournament he enters. But he doesn’t because that’s just golf. While the swing is always a work in progress, don’t wait until your swing is perfect until you think you can score well.

You can play your best golf ever with your current swing!

7. Cart Girls Just Want Tips

I just had to say it. Sure, some of them are phenomenal human beings too but at the end of the day, they’re driving that beverage cart to make money.

They don’t really care that much about your new driver or the birdie you just made on the last hole. If you order from them, just give them a good tip for putting up with your stories.

6. Our Expectations Are Unrealistic

Most golfers expect too much from themselves!

For example, how often do you miss a green with a wedge and get mad? Here’s the thing, despite what you may think, PGA Tour pros miss greens with wedges too.

In fact, the average PGA Tour player only hits 65% of greens in regulation. And from 125-150 yards (their wedge distance), they average 23 feet proximity to the hole (if they hit the green).

Needless to say, most of us should reset our expectations. Most of us are just weekend warriors out there to have a good time.

5. Golf is 90% Mental

I know guys with beautiful swings that can barely break 80. A lot of them have good short games too.

So what’s the problem?

Their mental game doesn’t match the rest of their game.

Your mindset plays a massive role in playing your best golf. Here are two perfect examples of changing your mindset:

– Instead of getting mad after a bad shot, ask yourself, “What can I learn from this?”
– Instead of being upset after a few birdie putts don’t drop, say to yourself, “I guess they’ll just go in on the back nine.”

Attitude is everything on the golf course. As the late Payne Stewart said, “A bad attitude is worse than a bad golf swing.”

7. New Clubs Aren’t Usually the Answer

So many of us are quick to blame the clubs for why we suck at golf. But if you took a lie detector test and I asked you if it was the club’s fault or your fault, I think we both know the answer.

Don’t get me wrong, new clubs can absolutely help our game. Playing the right heads with the right shafts makes a huge difference. But for most of us, it’s not life or death so make sure you’re upgrading your swing, not just your equipment.

8. Short Game is the Most Important Part of Golf

If you truly want to get better, reduce your full swing practice by about 80%. Hitting mid-irons on the range all day is far from the best way to practice your game.

Instead, spend time inside 100 yards because that’s where most shots happen each round. You can never be too good around the greens.

9. Find a Putter You Love

Unlike other clubs, you don’t need to replace the putter often. Nor should you either.

Once you find a putter that gives you Tiger-like confidence on the greens, don’t ever get rid of it. While you might need to put it in time out if you’re having a slump, don’t pawn it on Craigslist.

If there was magic once, it can come back.

1. Golf is Life

The similarities between life and golf are astonishing.

As Peter Jacobsen said, “One of the most fascinating things about golf is how it reflects the cycle of life. No matter what you shoot, the next day you have to go back to the first tee and begin all over again and make yourself into something.”

In both, you are tested and must persevere to find real success. In both, you can work hard but not always see the results as fast you want. And with both golf and life, you finally realize they’re both one big experiment to see what works, and what doesn’t.

Don’t take either too seriously, it almost never helps things. But always make sure to enjoy them as you never know what the future holds.

What is the biggest truth you’ve learned in golf?

Let us know in the comments below!