Realistic Expectations
Posted by Double Eagle in Mental Game
Something I think an awful lot of players could stand to work on is management of expectations. This includes me. Big time.
I was watching an episode of Playing Lessons from the Pros on the Golf Channel recently that featured PGA Tour Pro Stewart Cink. At one stage in the show, he was talking about power and about keeping it in the fairway. He remarked something to the effect of (I’m paraphrasing), “Sure I could get it out to 290, but I’d rather hit it out there 270 and be sure I’m in the fairway.” Sorry if I butchered the quote, but it was along those lines.
That made me think of an experience I had a few weeks back.
I was teeing it up on the 5th hole of my home course. The hole is a shortish par four that plays about 350 yards and is suited well for hitting driver. On the tee, I made a good swing, pure center hit. I had my SkyCaddie, so I marked the spot on the tee. When I got to the ball, I checked the distance and it was 291. All I could think was, “Man, only 291?” I remember feeling frustrated.
Last night I relived that moment and wondered, “If 290 is good enough for Stewart Cink when he really wants to go after it, why isn’t it good enough for me?” From a course management perspective, I could have hit a 2-iron and been left with a pitching wedge in to the green, so it’s not like my 291 yard drive left me in trouble.
I’m somewhat of a long hitter, not setting any records, but getting out to 300 yards some of the time is not a problem. Given the circumstances, I’m not really sure that Dalyish distance should be a concern of mine. And beyond that, I’m certainly not sure it should be an expectation. I’m coming off a long layoff, have put on weight, am losing it again, have lost flexibility, etc. The list goes on.
My expectations given the circumstances are way too high. Especially since a 290 yard, center-cut bomb is hardly a duff.
My brother is another good example. It must run in the family. He plays maybe 5 or 10 times a year and never practices. He gets around pretty well, all things considered. But it seems like when we play, he gets frustrated if he’s not striping it or draining putts from all over.
His expectations are unrealistic given his circumstances and I’m always ready to tell him about it. It seems like I’m suffering the same problem. He should be throwing it back in my face.
I think it’s all right to have high expectations prior to a shot. After all, it helps to precisely visualize each shot we are preparing to hit. After we’ve chosen a shot that suits the situation, then we want, and expect, it to come off perfectly. (This assumes our shot selection was realistic in the first place).
It’s after the shot when we need to refer to our longer-term expectations. Those are the ones that tell us how well we should be doing overall, not just in a specific moment.
I feel that if I’m completely honest with myself and keep my expectations reasonable, I’ll make better decisions on the course and won’t be surprised or upset when my shots match my current handicap level. That doesn’t mean that I won’t work hard to raise my expectations. That just means that right now, if I’m honest, I need to bring myself back to reality for a little while.
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