One game. Two scores?

We all know golf is about who posts the lowest score walking off the 18th green. But what if there’s another score that’s just as important? Whether you call it focus, discipline, process, positivity, commitment, or some combination, your mental performance is vital to developing high-level mastery of golf. Let’s explore some examples.

You’re a few holes in and already over par. Your swing feels great, contact is solid, but you’re getting frustrated because you keep finding trouble by the smallest of margins — clipping a creek off the tee, short-sided chasing a tucked pin, a deep greenside bunker. A swing adjustment seems prudent when suddenly it hits you, your target selection has been way too aggressive.

Even though we’re swinging confidently, we have to recognize that dispersion doesn’t simply go away. We can’t “throw darts” on command. Poor decisions are what’s costing us. With the culprit identified, we’re free to make an easy adjustment to smarter targets rather than tinker with a great swing mid-round.

You’ve cleaned up your target selection and are on the back nine facing a reachable par 5. You stand over a long but manageable approach to get on in two. The devil on your shoulder whispers about closing with a few birdies and possibly shoot a personal best. Worry about missing the green and making an easy 4 suddenly lurks. In the cloud of doubt, a mishit lands in the greenside rough. Trying to get one close, you decelerate on a half-hearted flop and still don’t make the green. A rushed 2nd chip leaves an awkward 10-footer. Mad about getting too cute with the 1st and too quick with the 2nd, the 10-footer runs 4-feet past. In a last-ditch effort to salvage the situation, you baby the 4-footer and lip out. You’ve suddenly made a bogey when you expected a birdie. The mind is undoubtedly spiraling, and likely in flames. Unfortunately, negativity and lack of commitment just cost you a scoring opportunity.

We’ve all faced these situations, and they prove that non-technical elements play a pivotal role in scoring. How do we diagnose these issues? It’s easy. Score them. The next time you play, add lines to your scorecard for bad decisions, negative thoughts, lack of commitment, lack of concentration, lack of pre-shot checklist, or any other mental game areas where you want to test yourself. Each time you fail in one of these areas, write a tally. This highly powerful tool illuminates weaknesses that we might not even be aware of and is a must-try for all golfers looking to elevate their games. Keep in mind there’s no perfect score here. The purpose is to highlight where you struggle most and over time achieve a simple goal: reduce the tallies.