Stick to The Process To Play Your Best Golf

Many times, mental coaches for golf, such as myself, recommend “focusing on the process.” But what does this statement actually mean and why do it?

Before and during your rounds, shifting your focus from outcomes—such as your score and the consequences of how you will play—to your process, is key. Your process is a combination of all the actions and routines that you follow to improve outcomes. Examples of this are consistent pre-shot routines or regular putting practice. These activities are all 100% within your control, so placing your focus on them not only means that you are doing the tasks that will improve performance, but it also helps create a more neutral performance state (because what you are focusing on is emotionally neutral).

Why make process your priority?

You want to shoot a good score, I get it. Every competitive player wants to play well and see their name at the top of the leaderboard at the end of the tournament. But the question to ask yourself is: does trying to succeed (or avoid failure) and attain those outcomes and having those thoughts of them before and during play increase the likelihood of you achieving them? My experience from coaching hundreds of players on the mental game would conclude otherwise.

Thinking about the end result and what that will mean for your life (good or bad) only triggers emotions and physiological changes that are not conducive to bringing out your best, mentally and physically, during a shot. The reason, is that you are focusing on something that is uncertain which causes the mind and body to begin preparing for the worst.

When we are more focused on being present to the tasks that we intend to do at that time, we are focused on certainty. This makes the the mind and body calmer, which allows us to give all our attention to what is required to perform well in that phase of the round. This is winning – you are creating the best possible internal state and focusing on what will give you the best chance of your desired outcomes. Too many players are thinking about what the outcome of a shot will mean for them, so they lose focus on the task they need to perform at that moment and they tense up.

What should your process be?

You get to decide your process. You obviously don’t want a huge list of things to do before and during each round, so keep it simple. Your score is a product of how successful you are at being able to stick to your process. What are the 4 most important things for you to remind yourself of that will increase your chances of playing well and enjoying your round?

Do you need to do a better job with your Post Shot Acceptance? Or your Self-talk? Committing to every shot fully? Being grateful as you walk the fairways? Doing a better job of deep belly breathing?

Whatever they are, write them down at the bottom of your scorecard. At the end of each hole, give yourself a check mark for each one you did well, so you’ll have a maximum of 4 check marks per hole (72 will be the highest possible score).

Use this as a tool in practice or in tournaments to keep you focused on your process (not score) and rewarding yourself for doing so. After a while, you’ll make these processes more of a habit under pressure.

When you make winning up to you, you are in control of it. In other words, you can (with 100% certainty) win every round!

It’s not as easy as it sounds…

The challenge of being able to “stick to the process” comes from actually following through on it. Once the round gets under way, it’s very easy to slip back into being score focused and letting yourself react to whatever is happening in the round.

Being disciplined is about fulfilling promises to yourself, which is also a source of confidence and self-trust. To become more processed focused, you’ll need to improve your mindfulness and focus, to reduce mind wandering. There’s a lesson in my mental game training program to help you with this.

As part of your Post Round Review, reflect on how disciplined you were at being able to stick to your process. Evaluate your processes critically: what tweaks can you make that will lead to better outcomes?

To become successful, embrace a process-oriented mindset in your golf journey. By refining your daily routines and systems, you’ll empower yourself to achieve your desired outcomes most effectively.

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