Pro Tip: – “32 points…..24 on the front 9 – 8 on the back….”

Probably one of the most common things we hear in the ProShop. A tale of 2 nines. We have all experienced it. Have an absolute cracking first 9, tally up our score and have 20+ points. Cheering. 2 hours later – we tally up our second 9 score and it comes to 8 points. 28 total. And the question we get asked is how

does this happen? Why does it seem like that second nine you forget how to play golf. When did it switch from good golf – to rubbish. Why can’t I put 2 nines together?

Fortunately for everyone, we have all been there done that. Here’s some reasons why it happens. Note: None of them are physically related.

Let me break it down into a main reason that it happens – followed by the “sub reasons” that add up to the main reason.

Main issue – We start to think of the future outcome or possibility of what could be rather than doing what we’ve already done to get to this point.

Sub reason 1 – We start thinking, if I just shoot 16 points on the second nine – ill have 40 points, or, if I just shoot a 45 on the second nine – ill break 90 for the first time

Sub reason 2 – If I just play conservative for the second nine and don’t do anything dumb, ill have my best round

Sub reason 3 – We start trying harder because we really want to shoot that “best” score

Sub reason 4 – We tense up and start taking extra practice swings or extra time over the shot

Sub reason 5 – We go away from everything we did to shoot that great front 9 and do stuff we never usually do on the back.

The common denominator in all this isn’t that we forget how to play golf, it’s that we change the way we think somewhere between adding up our first nine and starting our second nine. If you have resonated with any of those above, here are some new ways of thinking about that second nine.

Main Solution – Don’t think or do anything different from what you did on the first nine.

  1. Whatever routine, practice swings, no practice swings, alcohol consumed, course management style used for the first nine, remains the exact same thing for the second nine.
  2. Don’t think of the result at the end or what could be. Instead, set yourself a goal that is driven by a process. I.e. Don’t settle for having just 16 points on the back – instead, set a goal of shooting 24 points again on the back nine. Often we go defensive on the back nine to protect our score. That’s first sign of a bad nine coming. Now aiming for 24 points doesn’t mean you be ultra aggressive – but setting a higher goal well help raise our floor. Or if you’ve shot a 45 on the first nine, set a goal for 40 on the back.
  3. Isn’t thinking about shooting a great score on the back changing what we have done on the first nine? No. Settng an outcome goal is fine. The way to get there is thru our process goals, or in golfer’s terminology – our routine. Whatever that looks like for us as individuals.
  4. Embrace the feelings and thoughts. Yourself knows or at least our playing partners confirm you have had 25 points that nine. You can’t ignore it. I wouldn’t recommend it. It takes a lot of energy to try block out those thoughts and its incredibly hard to compartmentalise it. Instead, acknowledge that you’ve had a good first nine. “I’ve killed it”. Then immediately, set a goal. I want to shoot 27 points the second nine. And then we go back into our exact same routine or things we did during the first 9. Back to the start of the round.

Think back to your best rounds or scores and rehash the mental state you were in. What was your routine like? Were your expectations low from the get-go? Did you know your score thru 9 holes?

Did it derail after you found out? Was it playing a friendly game with your mates. Start thinking about the mental side of why those rounds happened. Of course, you played well and sunk all your putts or drove it great. But there’s often more to it then that. Maybe start applying some of the tips above to help you turn the 24 points into 48 points.

NEED GOLF LESSONS?

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