What Makes A Golfer – GREAT?!

On February 4th we explored what makes a golfer (or a person) ‘GREAT’ in our Mental Coaching Class at GPC. Juniors were asked to get up in front of their peers and talk about what makes them great, as a golfer and as a person. The exercise itself proved to be a struggle for most all of us.
Last week in our Mental Game update we learned that trusting the struggle can make all the difference. It supports us in enjoying the journey and helps us maintain an open mind that’s ready to learn, grow, and adapt. Trusting the struggle keeps us in a mental and emotional state that’s optimal for peak performance and tapping into a state of flow. So, what did our Juniors learn when they had the opportunity to face struggle and observe others struggling in our latest Mental Game exercise?
In their words, “When you’re struggling, it’s important to know others are struggling too.” Sometimes it’s easy to get caught up in a self-centered point of view and beat ourselves up mentally when we’re struggling, but if we look around, we can easily see we’re not alone. Every player out there on the course is facing their own struggles too. Regardless that golf may be an individual sport, our competitors are out there facing their own respective battles. Knowing that we all must be resilient enough to stick with it and overcome our challenges helps us to embrace the struggle. It helps us to know that we’re part of something greater than ourselves when we get to play beside others who are embracing their struggles and overcoming too.
Getting up in front of our peers and sharing what makes us great led our Juniors to share all sorts of accolades, virtues, and things about themselves that they thought made them special. Yet, in the end, we learned it’s not about the titles or the wins, it’s not about how many friends we have or the attributes that make us a good person. Being great as a golfer is more about who you are. Your willingness to stay in the game and to see others not just as your competitors, but as people who are doing their best to get better at their game…just like you! It’s about the willingness to embrace your own struggle, just as much as it is the willingness to embrace the fact that others are struggling also.
Embracing our own struggles helps us to support others who are struggling and together we rise!