“STUPID IS AS STUPID DOES”

It’s that time of year again when hundreds of players from all of the recognized tours from around the world have lost, will lose or are in the process of losing their “cards” or playing privileges. As the adoring public revels in the successes of the few at the Ryder Cup, Tour Championship or the Race to Dubai, the vanquished are licking their wounds, making their excuses, and they are making plans to stage a comeback. And what are most of them planning on doing? They’re going to look up a new, or old, golf teacher and take golf swing lessons. Then they are going to “practice” really, really hard when they finally find that something they were missing last year. 

Albert Einstein is commonly attributed to have said “the definition of insanity is doing something over and over again and expecting a different result.”

He probably didn't but it sounds good, so let's go with it.

All that playing professionals have done their entire golfing lives has been to practice really hard, hit lots and lots of golf balls and take lessons. Lots and lots of golf balls and lots and lots of lessons. So unless, and until, they are going to learn how to do it in some new and magical way, which could take years, or a lifetime, they already do it well enough. That’s how they became touring professionals in the first place! Do you want to know how a one-time professional golfer becomes the new assistant manager at the neighborhood IHOP? He makes swing changes before he banks a couple of million dollars. That’s how!

Now, I’ll get to the point. Do you want to know what these players need to do to earn and then keep their playing status? They must learn how to score! There is one overriding fact: the guys who shoot the lowest scores make the most money. The guys who, 98% of the time, have the lowest scoring averages keep their cards. Obvious! But, what’s not so obvious is that there is no direct correlation between how well a ball is struck and how low the score will be!


So what am I saying? The art of scoring is always turning, somehow, 3 shots into 2. Which, is almost always accomplished by managing the strengths, the weaknesses and the variables of one's game. And it never hurts to have a short game and putt really, really well!

“Golf is 20% percent talent and 80 percent management” Ben Hogan

My book “Hogan’s Ghost” is available thru Amazon.com. You can see what I do at http://edmyersgolf.com/ #golfsparring. You can contact me at edmyersgolf@gmail.com