My first time in contention......and I blew it

[heggis]

Just played a two day comp and after day one sitting two under nett score. I play off 18 and first 9 which I think is the harder 9. I shot a gross 40. So 4 shots under my handicap. The back 9 I shot a 59. Completely blew up. Any tips on how to learn from this? I felt relaxed I excepted my bad shots but I feel I just tried to hard.

[Lihu]

Just played a two day comp and after day one sitting two under nett score. I play off 18 and first 9 which I think is the harder 9. I shot a gross 40. So 4 shots under my handicap. The back 9 I shot a 59. Completely blew up. Any tips on how to learn from this? I felt relaxed I excepted my bad shots but I feel I just tried to hard.

We're pretty much in the same boat and handicap. I also range anywhere from 40 to 47.

However, 59 is really high. What are the details of the round that got you 59?

[heggis]

Lihu. Well I think the fact I just needed to shoot a 46 and I would win my first comp was partly to do with. I tried to stay calm and not mess up and the opposite happened. I can easily play to 18 when not in a competition it seems when I competitive I just can't do it. Closest I came was this weekend.

[Lihu]

Lihu. Well I think the fact I just needed to shoot a 46 and I would win my first comp was partly to do with. I tried to stay calm and not mess up and the opposite happened. I can easily play to 18 when not in a competition it seems when I competitive I just can't do it. Closest I came was this weekend.

Yeah, I know what you mean. The first time I was trying to break 90, I failed. When I realized 4 holes from the end of the round that I could break 90, I blew up two holes and ended with a 92.

My question was intended to ask what were the exact shots that cost you that extra 13 strokes?

[heggis]

Lost balls had a 8,9and 10 all off the tee. Just lost my Rhythm

[tristanhilton85]

http://thesandtrap.com/t/53453/the-mental-game-in-two-words

[Lihu]

[URL=http://thesandtrap.com/t/53453/the-mental-game-in-two-words]http://thesandtrap.com/t/53453/the-mental-game-in-two-words[/URL]

Good link. I think I prefer pressure, but only if I am not over my head. The conscious act of focusing seems to bring out the best in my game.

[Strandly]

Just played a two day comp and after day one sitting two under nett score. I play off 18 and first 9 which I think is the harder 9. I shot a gross 40. So 4 shots under my handicap. The back 9 I shot a 59. Completely blew up. Any tips on how to learn from this? I felt relaxed I excepted my bad shots but I feel I just tried to hard.

Well at least nobody probably thinks your a sandbagger so that's a victory.

[Pretzel]

I personally play a bit better when I have a chance at competing for a good spot (when I'm way back I just start to relax and go more into practice mode unfortunately). But here's my real secret as to why I like playing when the pressure is on:

I'm not nervous, I'm excited!

I'm not worried about messing up, I'm excited because I have a chance to play well. The two feelings are near identical from a physical standpoint (butterflies in the stomach, adrenaline pumping etc.), it's just a matter of how I perceive those signs to decide if I'm nervous or excited.

It also helps if I just focus on the shot at hand versus thinking about a hole or a series of holes. Once I decide where a good spot for my shot to be is and where the acceptable misses are, I don't worry about anything except trying to hit the ball at my target. Keeping a mental image of my target in my head helps a lot for this.

[mchepp]

I think you have to try your best not to think of the outcome while you are in the round. Don't think about winning. Try to think of other things to take your mind away from thinking of the final result. Many times if you start thinking about what "number" you need to shoot to win, you are in big trouble.

I think you should learn from this. Go back and analyze what you did wrong, but also just as important analyze the things you did right to get into contention. It is so easy to think only of the bad back nine, but this ignores the really great 27 holes you played before hand. Think back to what you did well on those holes.

Lastly, don't get down. You are going to lose sometimes. That is just how golf works. Everyone chokes. It is a part of the game.

[johnclayton1982]

I hadn't seen the "enjoy pressure" thread, but I do something very similar, and I'd tweak it slightly: "be thankful for pressure".

The Dalai Lama teaches that we should thank the aggressive and hostile people in our lives, because they give us an opportunity to practice being patient and tolerant.  I'm certainly not to that level, but the only thing I've found that helps me deal with pressure effectively is to be thankful for it, i.e. "I'm really happy I have this pressure b/c it gives me an opportunity to practice under pressure".

This was the only thing that worked for me to play well under pressure.  Think "thank god I have this opportunity to learn".

[heggis]

Mcheep great advice will take that on board. Thankyou to everyone that has taken the time to reply