within your grasp:
this season's golf goals

“In the absence of clearly-defined goals, we become strangely loyal to performing daily trivia until ultimately we become enslaved by it.”
~ Robert A Heinlein, award-winning author

Many golfers, despite good intentions and playing aspirations, struggle to improve their game. They become fixtures on the driving range. Cart girls know their credit card number by heart. Golf catalogs stack up next to their bed and beyond.

Andy Hilts, GolfTEC’s National Director of Instruction, pursues a goal-based agenda as he equips hundreds of PGA and LPGA Pros training to be GolfTEC Certified Personal Coaches. Hilts talks about creating a “vision of what you want to do.” In other words, what it looks like when you bring your best game.

Three types of goals are built from this very personal and individual vision of accomplishment: The Goal of Increased Skill, The Goal of Score Reduction, and The Goal of Golf Enjoyment.

Increased Skill: Where It All Begins

It comes as no surprise that the goal of increasing a specific skill or set of skills is the foundation for the other two goals. Logically, the truest path to score reduction is to improve your golf skills, and golf enjoyment flows from shedding the destructive habits and patterns.

Hilts reports that many GolfTEC clients seek help because they want to enjoy golf again, something they find difficult when they compare their game against playing partners. Instead of finding a new foursome or trading greens for bowling lanes, setting goals for skill development is a longer-term view. One proven to be effective from tee to green.

Score Reduction: Swinging a Double-Edged Sword

The second of these three goals, score reduction, is best kept in perspective. In the absence of score-keeping, measuring personal improvement would be tedious. Without a score or handicap goal for the season, a player can quickly become stale.

Hilts, the 2005 Colorado PGA Teacher of the Year and winner of the prestigious Horton Smith Award in 2008, cautions against over-zealous pursuit of a lower handicap. Setting your goals too high can lead to significant disappointment and serious setbacks. A player who has never broken 100, and then decides to break 80 this season, is likely in for extreme disappointment. Failure looms and discouragement now lurks as the player bit off more than he can chew or even attempt to swallow.

Golf Enjoyment: A Round for Everyone

Can happiness be blocked out on a calendar, or enjoyment scheduled for 2 PM? Yes, pleasure as the outcome of a leisure activity often does need to be brought forward intentionally. Adding golf improvement as a positive pursuit can easily turn a vein-popping, pressure cooker of a day into an enjoyable one.

After a post-college playing slump, Hilts regained his love of the game by forgetting about score and focusing on fun. Playing with an old friend and appreciating the beautiful surroundings was his key to getting back in the groove – and improving in the process.

A better 2009 is sitting 300 yards out on the first hole. With three simple goals in the bag, the sun may come out for the first time in a long time. Swing strong, and don’t forget to smile.