THE LONG GAME
By Jon Sherman
What’s the first question someone asks you after a round? It’s probably not, “Did you have fun?”
It’s almost always, “What did you shoot?”
And rarely does your answer end with just a number. You’re going to tell a story about how it could have been lower if it wasn’t for that bad bounce on the 11th hole, or the vicious lip out for par on the 18th.
We’ll take every opportunity to explain how the score we didn’t want could have easily been the one we did want.
Why do we do this to ourselves?
Well, it’s mainly because scoring is central to golf. There’s no escaping that we get judged by a number on every hole and every round. It’s part of what draws us to the game in the first place.
But where golfers typically get into trouble is how they interpret those scores, and more importantly, what they expect those scores to look like from round to round.
Most players walk onto the course chasing a very specific outcome. They want to play well, or in other words, post a score on the lower end of their spectrum. And when they feel that slipping away, a whole host of issues arise.
This plagued my game for a long time, and it’s one of the most common issues I’ve had to help other golfers with.
Here’s the uncomfortable truth most golfers don’t want to accept – most of your rounds will not be your best stuff. And that doesn’t mean something is wrong, or that you’re not getting better.
Without knowing it, we generally don’t accept, or even understand, what a normal scoring distribution looks like.
A pro golfer can shoot a 63 in the first round of a tournament and then plummet down the leaderboard the next day with a 77. For a recreational player, that range might be 20, 30, or even 40 strokes wide.
Of course, it’s infuriating to feel like your game can be that different from round to round, but there’s no escaping it. A more helpful way to think about scoring is a bell curve.
Most of your rounds are going to live somewhere in the middle of the range.
Your personal best? A low-probability event.
Your absolute worst? Also, a low-probability event.
Where we all get into trouble is when we emotionally anchor ourselves to these extremes. We fantasize all week about our best rounds showing up on demand, and then we struggle to accept the rare, disastrous rounds when they appear.
Both are mistakes.
Golf is inherently volatile. One day, your swing feels great, and then suddenly, whatever “feel” you had is gone.
So, what should we do to manage our scoring expectations and avoid obsessing over scores in general? Well, there are two basic ways – acceptance and accountability.
Acceptance doesn’t mean lowering your standards or even expecting a bad round. It means that you tee off with a healthy understanding of what outcomes are reasonable for your skill level.
When golfers don’t accept the reality of their scoring range, they generally make mistakes. They make poor decisions when they’re in the trees and turn a bogey into a triple. And if you’ve read my book, The Four Foundations of Golf, you know that better golf is more about limiting double bogeys (or worse) than it is making more birdies.
And therein lies the “secret” to becoming a better golfer. It’s not about producing more career low days. It’s about limiting the damage when things aren’t going well. Turning an 83 into a 78. Turning a 105 into a 98. Making the off-days less destructive.
That’s how scoring ranges tighten over time and handicaps drop. Better golfers aren’t immune to poor rounds; they’re just better at managing them.
I can tell you from personal experience that golf becomes far more enjoyable when you stop demanding low-probability results and start accepting the reality of the game.
And that becomes easier when you can create a checklist of what you will hold yourself accountable to when you play.
It’s very natural to think about our score while we play. Trying to actively not think about it often backfires. What really matters is how you can redirect your mind in those moments, and that’s where our checklist comes in.
Every time I play, I try to hold myself accountable to certain habits – how I pick targets, my routine before each shot, even taking moments to enjoy the round and take in the scenery of the course in between shots.
I find this very helpful when you are worrying about a poor start to your round or even get a little too nervous after a great front nine. I simply ask myself, “Let’s just see what happens if I can stick with the plan.” That brings my mind back from worrying about results to a more defined, controllable checklist. I know I’ll feel good after the round, no matter what happens, if I can stick with that list.
If you're like many other golfers and struggle with your score, think about how you can become more accepting and, more importantly, make that list of what you can hold yourself accountable to every time you tee it up.
Jon Sherman is the author of the bestselling book, The Four Foundations of Golf. He also co-hosts the Sweet Spot podcast and coaches on the PGA Tour. As a “player-coach,” he offers perspective on topics beyond the golf swing, including expectation management, strategy, practice, and the mental game. Jon is also a regular competitor in MGA Tournaments.