Birdies, Bogeys & Life Lessons from the Game of GolfSample

Just Fake It

I was in college at the time. I was playing in a lot of golf tournaments. I was attending college on a four-year golf scholarship, and I had high hopes to be a professional golfer one day. I traveled the country during the summers playing in national and regional golf tournaments.

There was one thing that plagued me that has affected golfers all over the world—first tee jitters. I hated them. Sometimes I would hit really poor shots because I could not control the first tee jitters. The great Bobby Jones used to say he struggled with first tee jitters so bad he often used a 3-wood just to ensure he got the first tee shot in play.

Golfers often go through mental gymnastics when standing on the first tee in a tournament. We begin to think thoughts we never think in a normal game of golf. Will I make contact? What if I shank it or top it? What will they think of me? It’s the only game I know that can reduce a seasoned player to a beginner in one swing because of nerves or the intimidation factor of the situation.

One day I was playing a practice round with a well-known professional who had played on the tour. He and I had become friends. I asked him how he dealt with first tee jitters. He was quick to respond.

“I pretend I am Jack Nicklaus and have all the confidence in the world. I sort of ‘play act’ how he would approach the first tee. I present myself almost in a cocky manner as if I am the greatest golfer who ever swung an iron. Somehow this allows me to move past the nerves. I guess it’s getting into a different state of mind. It has worked for me.”

Faith When You Can’t See It

Faith is the evidence of things not seen. It says I am going to believe something even when I can’t see it or feel it. We pretend it has already happened and expect the outcome we want to happen. When the priests carried the ark of the covenant into the Jordan River at flood stage (see Joshua 3), they had to believe God would help them cross over, but there was a real risk they could lose the ark in the river. Sometimes we must simply put one foot in front of the other to see God move on our behalf.