The Mental Intensity of Golf
I love watching the big golf tournaments, and seeing the “mental game” play out on the world’s best golfers.
It proves time and time again that golf — at that level — is still 99% played mentally.
Right now I’m watching the closing holes of the 2009 US Masters at the Augusta National Golf Club (on television, not live unfortunately).
Kenny Perry played a huge few holes to end up with a brilliant tap-in birdie at the Par 3 16th. That gave him a 2 shot lead over Chad Campbell and Ángel Cabrera.
All he needed to do — assuming the other two played to par (which they do) — was to have a bogey and a par to finish one shot in the lead and win the Masters.
And they flashed up a statistic on the screen that he’d played the preceding 22 holes without a bogey.
So two more holes without a bogey… should be easy, right?
After all, he just walked off the 16th green after an incredibly good birdie. He’d be “pumped” about that.
But this is major championship golf. For many players it is “the tournament” of all tournaments. To win the coveted green jacket and be crowned Masters champion. As Gary Player says, the Green Jacket is a symbol of massive achievement.
And that intense mental pressure showed yet again how big a factor it really is, especially at the money end of the tournament.
Because Perry not only took one bogey in those last two holes — but two. For fans, it was excruciating to watch. His first two bogies in 24 holes, happened to be the last two of regular play for the 72 hole event.
An outright win was not to be.
A play-off is now underway. Campbell, Perry and Cabrera head back to the 18th tee.
Perry shows great mental courage by playing the same club as he played in regular play, which put him in the bunker. This time it puts him in a great place on the fairway. Cabrera will need a miraculous save to get out of the trees — he goes for it, but rather than finding the green, still finds the fairway, but a long way back.
Perry’s approach finishes wide of the green.
The mental pressure is at it again. As Faldo says in the commentary, that’s the first time all week that Perry has “lost the ball right” as he did.
Campbell’s turn. He finds the sand. Head down, he’s feeling the intense pressure too.
Of the leading three players in arguably one of the world’s greatest tournaments, not one could find the play-off green in regulation. It gives Cabrera a chance to stay in the tournament — his 3rd shot lands well, giving him a chance to one putt for par.
What will mental pressure do to Campbell and Perry for their third shots on this sudden death play-off hole?
Can they hold the mental pressure together to hole it?
Perry goes VERY close. He’ll make par for certain. That might be the winning shot.
Now it’s up to Campbell from the sand … he must hole it to win, or get it “up and down” to stay in the play-off. He misses, but both he and Cabrera have makeable putts to stay in it — both putts are under six feet.
But this is the Masters, and what will the mental pressure do?
Will they putt it in to stay in the play-off? What is racing through their mind? What visual and mental processes do they employ to stay on focus?
Cabrera sticks to his routine and nails the six footer. He’s still in the play-off. Campbell’s turn. This put to stay alive… … … he misses. He’s out of the play-off, it’s down to just two.
Campbell’s tournament was interesting. His first round and a half rocketed along, and then his golf stayed steady after that (his score near the end of round three was not much different than the end of round one). Not enough of a rocket boost to really break away.
So Cabrera and Perry move on to the 10th. They nail their drives. The play-off continues.
This is no better demonstration of the mental intensity of golf. From making a run of birdies to the bogies that cost Perry an outright win. The stories are tumultuous.
Whether you’re a regular club player, a weekend hacker, or one of the world’s best, it’s the mental game that makes such a difference. Sure, you need a consistent, repeatable swing to reach the top. But whatever your level, you need a strong mental game to make sure you hold up to the pressure.
I know from what I’ve learned from giants like Tony Robbins that it really is the mental game that makes the difference. I wish I had that knowledge when I used to play regular club golf and pennant through my school years. Work got in the way of golf … it’s my goal this year to be out on the fairways again more regularly (plenty of Rotary golf tournaments will help with that!) — and mentally enjoy it much more.
And the Masters play-off? The pressure gets to Perry again — his approach to the second play-off hole, the 10th, misses way left. Cabrera hits the putting surface. He’s on in two. Perry’s chip stays on the green, but several metres past where he’d like it. His turn to putt, for par. A miss will give the Argentinian Cabrera two easier puts to win.
Perry misses. Cabrera’s turn. It’s interesting to look back on the first play-off hole, from the trees, when Cabrera struck a tree and ended up on the fairway, a long way from the green, he didn’t look dismayed. He was wide eyed and alert. His mental game was fine tuned and focused enough to see him still make a par from adverse circumstances.
Cabrera comfortably two putts, and wins the tournament. The first Masters winner from Argentina (erasing Argentinian world golfing champion Roberto DeVicenzo’s misfortune from 1968). Not the crowd’s favourite like Americans Perry or Campbell, but he deservedly gets a rousing ovation. The Green Jacket is now his, adding to his first major win at the 2007 US Open (20 seconds later, the win is already part of his bio entry on Wikipedia!).
Winning here comes from holding your nerve to simply make par. No explosive birdies or eagles, just par. Golf played in regulation format, against all of the mental pressure going on around you.
Perry’s television interview — he admits he was nervous, and said he had a lot of fun … but he admits too it was his tournament to win, and his golf wasn’t in control after the 16th when he walked off the green “juiced”. Impressively, he shows his true character by graciously congratulating Cabrera on his win — Perry is a wonderful ambassador for golf.
That’s the mental game on a world stage. Golf might look to some people like watching grass grow, but when this kind of mental pressure comes into play, it’s incredible to watch.
PS: What’s a marketer/copywriter talking about golf for? If there’s a marketing lesson here — it’s the ability of a golf tournament to get the attention of the sporting world — how it stands apart from its competitors (both other golf tournaments and other sporting and leisure activities). But what’s most evident, with my marketing “hat” on, is the stories that capture the imagination of the target audience… the emotions of golf, the trials and tribulations, the roller-coaster mental ride each player lives through on our screens. For me, it’s watching with much interest how golfers tackle the intense, mental pressure — now that’s exciting.
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