We had been back in Florida for a few days and my wife, Keri, said to me “I just love Florida Chris.”
I understand what she means. This summer was a very frustrating one for me. I missed most of my cuts, many by one shot. After an incredible start to the season my expectations rose, while unfortunately, my performances dipped. In hindsight, I was never going to stay on that trajectory. I was one of the best players in the world for the month of January, but that’s golf. One minute it is the easiest game in the world, the next you can’t hit your hat!
Without realising it, I had become more introverted and more serious about my golf. Earlier in the year I was very care free and relaxed about things. I was happy with where my game was at and I knew what I was doing in every area. When you start missing cuts, you begin to question why. I lost confidence in what I was doing and began trying harder. The harder I tried, the worse things got. It’s like gripping sand in your hand, the harder you squeeze the more gets through your fingers.
My game wasn’t in bad shape at all. When I look at my scores over that summer period, I didn’t have any awful rounds and I had plenty of good ones. I just think I was expecting to be that player I was in January all of the time. Part of being a pro is realising there are ebbs and flows. The more you can just roll with it, the more consistent your performances will be. That is something I need to get better at. I need to be okay with not being at my best. One thing I have noticed in all top players is they are the same off the course whether they have shot 80 or 60. Perspective is one of the most important traits a sportsman can have.
Now that I have had some time off I feel great again. I have found that as long as I have a clear, simple and focused plan, I’m happy. For the next few weeks I’ll be beavering away at my golf and Keri will be enjoying spending time with Florida Chris. The next events are the Web.com Tour finals, where I have the chance to earn a PGA Tour card.
