I once heard a story about Jack Nicklaus' reaction to a missed putt. A fan, the story goes, said to Jack after missed a short putt, "Sorry you missed that one, Jack." Jack's response was: "I didn't miss the putt. It just didn't go in."
Jack was right. He hit the line and speed he wanted, so in his mind everything was fine. This mental approach protected his self-image and allowed him to move on without dwelling on it like many of us do after missing a short putt. By doing so, he prevented the miss from affecting his self-confidence on future putts. In other words, he just let it go!
Getting mad at yourself over a lack of performance is non-productive and can erode your confidence. The human body is not a machine. Some days it works better that others, and for many different reasons.
So when you see yourself starting to get mad or losing your focus, think to yourself, "I did the best I could, given all the circumstances," and let it end there.
My point is simple: Stop putting yourself down.
Think about the things you are telling yourself on the course. Ever heard the expression, "What you eat, you are?" Well, "what you think, you are."
Everything you tell yourself is programming, so make it productive. Choose carefully what you think about. Don't work against yourself.
Most negative dialogue is a bad habit that you can change. You start first by listening to what you are telling yourself, recognizing the negative and working to put an end to the negative. Once you start, it's easy to change your internal dialogue to focus on the things you want to achieve.
Here's an example:
The old you: "I hate chip shots." Or, "I always chunk my chip shots."
The instant you hear yourself starting up the negative stuff, say to yourself, "stop," and don't allow yourself to finish the negative thought. Now change that negative into something productive.
The new you: "I want to get this chip close." Or, "I am going to make this."
Tell yourself what you want to do. Whether you make a good chip is not the point. What is the point is that over the long run, your new, positive dialogue will take you to a new level of play throughout the whole game.


"Why are there no worms in any of my divots caddy?" Probably all hiding under the ball, sir.