The Game: 3rd Hole

By Doug Swanson

Most of sport is about enjoying the journey and accepting the challenge of having to redefine the journey from time to time (from shot to shot). Being the journey and redefining it as we go requires us to COMMIT! I believe we often fool ourselves into thinking we have committed, but in reality we have only half-heartedly begun, and so we frequently find ourselves starting-over, again and again. If we begin with a committed start, then it is just a matter of reminding ourselves to redefine the journey. A committed start then only requires us to manage the events of the journey - be an events manager!

In any case, BEGINNING is always the hardest part. We struggle with beginnings. Is it because we are afraid to commit? Are we afraid that if we commit, we will not have the resolve to carry it through? Are we good enough may be our question. Are we afraid to commit because we may discover that we are not good enough? Is it about our abilities or inabilities? When we ask these questions it seems we are really asking ourselves to be clairvoyant - to be seers, to be able to predict the future … which of course we cannot do. Starting seems to me to be

1. A matter of choosing to do what the heart passions for, and
2. Committing to the adventure, NOT THE OUTCOME.

The outcome is very often out of our control. What we do control, though, are the processes, the tasks, and the activities that we think can produce the outcomes we want.

I think the mind is the biggest barrier. Think of the quote: "Barriers are the things we look at when we take our eyes off of our goal". I don't know who the author of the quote is, but the words will resonate in the most difficult situations that you will face in life. I often speak of demons as the biggest barrier we face. Demons are the thoughts that discourage us from our tasks. The demons are the negative appraisals that we have of ourselves and they come to us in our most difficult times. It seems to me that the demons wait in the rushes of the bog until we get into the bog...then they exert their horrible, awesome power!

The demons arrive whenever we start something new, or commit to something we have been "playing" with. Instead of focusing on what we need to do to pursue the dream (get to the flag), we focus too much on where we want to be (at the flag). The demons then jump out at you and clarify all too clearly the difficulty of the task you have undertaken (you are reminded of how you hate water hazards, or long holes, or traps on the left). If we refocus on what we are doing and what we will do (take our shot) and move our thoughts away from where we want to be, the demons lose their power. When we put ourselves into the only task we can do (the immediate and present task) we move ourselves toward our goal and we can focus comfortably on the challenge before us! The demon has no power except when he distracts us by having us pay attention to those things we cannot control. It is not the shot that is before us that scares us so; it is the long range challenge! If we are looking at the gulf between where we are and where we want to be, we scare ourselves! When we are scared the demons return. We will be more successful if we briefly "peek" at the dream, and then get back to the basics - what can I do now?

Small steps forward, one in front of the other. Be the task you need to be now, to be the athlete you are now.

The first flag should remind us that this is a new opportunity to create the journey; it is another chance to manage the complexity of our lives. We should use the image of the flag on each hole to wake us up to the task of being in the present - be the shot that is immediately before you. The flag sets us on our journey. A Canadian flag (a real flag or pewter flag) attached to your keys would be a great symbol, eh?

Remind yourself of how the flag releases you and your awesome power when your game begins. Let the flag bring you to your best each day. It can set us on track; it can be the catalyst for our game of life! Our game has many flags … each one can cue us to our task.

The Brent Morrison Golf Academy is located at Pheasant Glen Golf Resort, 1025 Qualicum Road, Qualicum Beach, B.C. V9K 1M5. (250) 752-8786. For more information on instruction programs for adults and juniors, contact the Academy office.

« Back