Golf is a Next-shot Game

“Golf is a next-shot game.”

– BILLY CASPER (1931 – 2015), winner of three Majors -- Masters, 1970; U.S. Open, 1959 & 1966

If you read golf instruction books, golf magazines or watch golf instruction TV shows and videos, you will read and hear these words over and over again: Grip, Setup, Posture, Alignment, Acceleration, Stance, Aim, Target, Routine, Visualization, Focus, Rhythm, Balance, Tempo, Spine Angle, Takeaway, Rotation and Turn. 

All golfers are very familiar with these words. They can pop up any time you have a club in your hand – in your den practicing your putting, on the range or on the course when you are in The Zone or when you are desperately trying to get your game back on track.

These words are essential members of a golfer’s lexicon and can serve as great reminders. For example:

GRIP: “Be sure that your grip is not too tight, just a trifle firmer in the left hand than in the right.” – Englishman James (Jim) Barnes (1886 – 1966), who won the first PGA Championship in 1916 as well as the same tournament in 1919, U.S. Open 1921 and The Open Championship 1925.

BALANCE: “Good balance throughout the golf swing is so important. I made sure to build a good foundation and maintain that foundation throughout my motion.” – Calvin Peete (1943 – 2015), who was a 12-time winner on the PGA Tour. He was the leader in driving accuracy on the PGA Tour for 10 straight years, 1981–90 and won the Vardon Trophy in 1984.

TURN: “The purpose of the backswing is to transfer weight to the right side by getting your back to the target. To do that, you need to make a good shoulder turn.” – Annika Sorenstam (Born 1970) won 10 Majors, 95 worldwide professional tournament, including 72 LPGA tournaments

While all of the words mentioned above are the foundation to any golfer’s understanding of the game, I would argue that the MOST IMPORTANT WORD TO ANY GOLFER IS: NEXT!

Golfers by nature are optimists, but that outlook must be tempered by a dose of reality. We all know that there are no perfect rounds – and few great ones -- which is why it is essential to accept our hiccups, miscues and mental blunders. Golfers must learn to be resilient and think about the next shot, the next hole, the next nine and the next round.

Yes, GOLF IS A GAME OF NEXT!   

“It is not solely the capacity to make great shots that makes champions, but the essential quality of making very few bad shots … Play the shot you've got the greatest chance of playing well, and play the shot that makes the next shot easy … Every golfer scores better when he learns his capabilities.” – Tommy Armour, The Silver Scot, (1894 to 1968), winner three Majors: 1927 U.S. Open, 1930 PGA and 1931 Open Championship.

“I know they call me ‘the dumb Swede,’ and they say I've got no imagination, that I don't know enough to worry about a golf title. I do know that all that matters in golf is the next shot. Maybe the ‘dumb’ reputation helps me. The others are likely to start pressing if they think I'm not worrying.” – Ralph J.  Guldahl (1911 – 1987), winner of the U.S. Open in 1937 and 1938 and the Masters in 1939.

“Placing the ball in the right position for the next shot is 80% of winning golf.” – Ben Hogan (1912 – 1997), who won nine Majors and 64 PGA Tour victories, which ranks 4th all-time.

“If you hit a bad shot, just tell yourself it is great to be alive, relaxing and walking around on a beautiful golf course. The next shot will be better.” – Al Geiberger (Born 1937), who won the PGA Championship in 1966 and was the first player to shoot a 59 (−13) in a PGA Tour-sanctioned event. His 59 came during the second round of the Danny Thomas Memphis Classic in 1977.

“If you let the last shot interfere with the next one, you cheat yourself.” – Curtis Strange (Born 1955), who won back-to-back U.S Opens in 1988 & 1989.

“Confidence comes when you’re looking forward to what happens next, not thinking about what came before.” – Jordan Spieth (Born 1993), who has won three Majors -- 2015 Masters, 2015 U.S. Open and 2017 Open Championship.

Until The Next Post!

Allan Stark

Photo credits:

Billy Casper: Used in a June 1967 issue of Boy's Life; on Wikimedia Commons.

Calvin Peete: Ted Van Pelt from Mechanicsburg, PA, USA; Creative Commons Attribution 2.0.

Tommy Armour: Published after he won the 1927 U.S. Open; Public Domain.

Curtis Strange: DepositPhotos; ProShooter.