What Are You Willing to Do?

Rob Rashell
Director of Instruction
TPC Scottsdale
Scottsdale, AZ
http://www.robrashell.com 
robrashell@pgatourtpc.com

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There is always a certain feel to turning a New Year. A feeling of resetting, a chance to start new, set some goals, live and feel better. There are all sorts of studies that show gym memberships go up in December and January every year, only to dwindle as the year goes on. We get busy. Work, family, we all know the drill, I’m as guilty as anyone.

In terms of playing golf, getting better, the kind of better that really moves the needle, promoting you or I to post pictures of scorecards on social media, is a whole different type of commitment.  

I was flying home from Seatlle a couple days ago and watching a Matt Damon movie called the Martian. Entertaining movie about a guy stranded on Mars who finds a way to survive and get rescued. I bring the movie up because at one point, Matt Damon’s character realizes he’s alone, has no food, and is 4 years away from the quickest rescue. This is life on the line focus. Is this extreme? Absolutely. Am I trying to make a point about what getting better at anything actually takes? You bet.

I was a very average mini tour player the first three years or so of my career, kind of treading water, and I remember thinking what the hell am I doing? I was getting to the point where I had to change something, my approach to getting better, or stop expecting something different in terms of results. I still have the word document, writing something about everything in my life needs to be put on hold for at least the next 18 months, lets really see what I can do.

No surprise here, my golf got better, a lot better. Was this fun? Did I enjoy every single minute of this? That would be a big NO. I did however learn a valuable lesson about how I work and think, what moving the needle looks like and feels like. If you’re embarking on a New Year’s mission, make a plan and get in the middle of it, and stay there, for a long stretch. Too tired to fit in some practice, go anyway. Too busy? Say no a few more times and free up some time. Think of this as a little experiment, see how good you can get, I bet you’ll surprise yourself! Good Luck! 

Rob Rashell is now the Director of  Instruction at TPC Scottsdale. You can reach robrashell@pgatourtpc.com.