Golf as a Tool for Problem Solving

One of my biggest hobbies is playing Golf. I have been playing since the age of 14 and although I have learned many things from my years of playing, I am still far from perfect. What amazes me about the game of golf is the mental aspect behind it. Golf is not simply a game of clubs and fairways, rather a more mental challenge. In order to truly excel, one must be able to understand their limits and play the game in a way that allows for improvement.

What I mean by this is the countless amounts of time that one must deal with stress and mistakes on the golf course. In a particular round, I will make anywhere between ten to thirty mistakes, whether it's club selection, shot approach, aim, putting line, etc. However, I now realize that what makes a good golfer is not simply how many mistakes one makes, but rather how they deal with the mistakes. In my younger years, I would frequently become frustrated and take my anger out in frustration by swinging harder to get the ball to go where I want it to. The great thing about golf is that if you do this, the ball will do the opposite. Instead, to be able to shoot consistent shots with accuracy and power, one must learn to slow down their swing and focus on form rather than power.

This concept of stress and anger management has helped me immensely in the real world once I began to realize that this idea does not exclusively pertain to the golf course. In fact, I realize more and more as I continue my college experience that heated anger and frustration often times solves nothing. I have taken a new approach on life in that I am beginning to solve problems not by trying to swing harder at the ball, but to gather and compose myself to create a quality, well-thought shot. Now I can really argue my case to anybody who tells me "Golf is just a game".