Each week I write about my latest golf psychology tips. I’ve talked about winning before but now I’m focusing on SUCCESS.

Contrary to popular belief, a successful shot is not a shot that finishes where you want it to – that is simply a successful outcome. A successful outcome, although heavily under your influence, is not under your control. A successful shot is one where you execute your intention – that is you play the shot wanted to play regardless of its final outcome.

Let me give you some examples:

• Putting - you stroke the perfect putt but you misread the slope it so it misses. Great shot, poor read. Or you read and stroke it perfectly but it hits a spike mark that takes it off line – great shot, just unlucky!
• Driving – you start the ball off on the line you intended but under read the amount of wind – great shot, poor read. Or you read the wind and strike the shot perfectly but it lands in a divot and bounces off line into the rough. Great shot, just unlucky!

This subtle but critical difference has a huge impact on your golf psychology and your scores. Once you send the ball off on the line and speed you intend, your job is done, the rest is in the lap of the gods.

If you genuinely measure success on how well you play the shot, rather than where it finishes, you will significantly raise your chances of playing your best shots, shooting low scores and really enjoying your game. As soon as you measure success by the outcome of each shot, or hole, or round, you place yourself at the mercy of the golf course. Not only will you feel more pressure before shots, you will be less single minded and present over shots, find yourself looking up too soon to see the result and then be relieved or angry depending on where it finishes! How many people do you know that are like this – riding golf’s emotional rollercoaster with fingers crossed? Golf is not a game of stress, yet it can be if you play this way!

If you can relate to this yourself, there is an easier way!

Imagine you are playing the first hole at your golf course. You play the exact shot you wanted to play to the pin, BUT a side wind has picked up and the ball has drifted off target and has landed in a bunker. In the past you may have become angry about the shot but this time you remember that you played the EXACT shot you wanted to play! This shot is a great success! Imagine saying to yourself “Great shot!” and feeling good about executing your intention perfectly!

There is always more to learn in golf, yet it’s important you acknowledge all of your good shots for what they are – a success!

If you would like more help in using golf psychology to score less and enjoy the game more, I’m giving away golf psychology tips through a series of six free audio tipcasts for the toughest parts of the game - sign up for my newsletter now if you would like to receive these.

Love every shot!

Adam Sprackling

Mental Golf Coach