Playing your best golf more of the time

2012 has been an interesting year. Things haven’t always gone to plan but like most things, this has resulted in some important lessons.

The big thing has been to follow my gut more and despite what others say, to keep trucking. And this isn’t just in relation to my golf game, but the entire golf biz thing.

Earlier in the year I became so disgruntled that I nearly closed things down. My mind was full of all sorts of crazy ideas and I stopped enjoying content creation. I was going through the motions and definitely wasn’t happy with the direction I was moving in.

What changed?

I snapped out of trying to please everyone else (the so called “experts” mostly) and doing what I really wanted. The last few months has seen the return of my mojo.

– the golf lessons are getting better
– I’m enjoying writing more than ever
– connecting to more serious golfers from all corners of the globe
– learning more
– having more fun

Basically, I’m doing what I want. And it feels good. The culmination of all this was having the guts to step up to the plate and create my own golf learning facility. I can hardly wait as this has been a dream for many years – it’s also going to allow me to create even better content and work with a select few golfers at a deeper level.

Today I played golf Damian Shutie. Like me, he had a reaslisation a while back and decided to follow his passion – and has created OTG Mag.  It’s a digital golf magazine but it’s not your typical golf publication.

It’s edgier. He pushes the boundaries and he writes in a way that pleases him (not a boss). And I like it. Shutie has worked as a journalist in mainstream media and more recently at a popular golf mag. But he got sick of it. He started OTG around 18 months ago and hasn’t looked back.

He says it has been a tough grind, but he’s through the dip now and 2013 is looking great. The mag comes out weekly with a great summary of the main golf events, plus there’s a monthly edition packed with news, fresh articles and awesome imagery. If you haven’t seen it then please check it out. I personally no longer read the magazines (despite getting them delivered to my door) but I always check out OTG.

Is there a golf lesson in all of this?

Yep, sure is. And the lesson is to play golf in a way that’s meaningful to you. For most this will mean stressing less about your swing and score and learning to hit the ball without fear. This opens up all sorts of possibilities and will more than likely give you something remarkable to talk about. It’s also the best way to actually play better golf more of the time – usually, the worry, stress and over trying just gets in the way.

If you’ve got some time off over Christmas and plan to play, then use the opportunity to explore your game further. Don’t keep score or fuss over your handicap. Tee the ball up, relax and swing like there’s no tomorrow. I’m sure this will give you the impetus to make 2013 your best golfing year yet.

I’d like to thank everyone who has contributed to the blog over the last 12 months and look forward to sharing more lessons and stories with you next. This will most likely be my last post this year (due to the big move) but please feel free to leave your thoughts. Merry Christmas.