No introduction needed, let’s jump right into it. Here are 10 things that I wish I knew about golf before playing competitively.

1) I wish I knew how hard competitive golf is.

Of the 10 things that I wish I knew beforehand, this is the most important one.

Golf is going to beat you down. You will have great days as a result of golf tournaments, but it can also cause you the most anger & embarrassment that you could ever imagine if you let it. I wish I could have foreseen the feelings of disappointment in myself as a result of golf.

The easy missed putts, the missed cuts, the great rounds that get ruined on the last hole, the fear of failure… it all adds up, and it takes a toll on you.

Not everyone is cut out for the constant failures that you must endure to be a great competitive golfer.

If anyone tell you that another sport is harder than golf, they are wrong. I’ve played nearly all of them at a competitive level. Golf is by far the hardest sport there is.

“Hell, the ball is just sitting there. How hard could it be?” Don’t even get me started.

So, yes, golf is hard. But the incredible lessons that it teaches you about life can be beat by no other sport. It’s humbling. Golf teaches you how to appreciate things. How to compete. How to move on. How to push through. {Insert more motivational things here}. You get the point.

 

2) I wish I knew how expensive competitive golf is.

Costs that you will have to incur: your club membership fees, range ball plan fees, the cost of traveling to tournaments, practice round costs, tournament entry fees, lodging costs, swing coach lessons (if applicable), costs of equipment, and much more.

Depending on the level of competitive golf that you are playing (junior tournaments to mini tour tournaments), you will hardly earn any money by playing golf, if you earn any at all. You should look at these tournaments as an investment. An investment in a college education, an investment in a potential dream career, and an investment in yourself by proving that you can do something incredible.

There are tons of reasons that many golfers eventually quit playing competitive golf voluntarily. One is that they lose confidence in themselves and in their games. Another is that 99.9% of golfers eventually realize that their odds of making it big time is so slim, so they give up. But a very overlooked reason is that competitive golfers eventually cannot afford to keep playing these tournaments, so they get a 9-5 job and eventually fall off the wagon.

 

3)  I wish I knew that having friends in the golf tournament scene is very important.

I’ve always been a very big introvert. At golf tournaments, everyone has their freind group that they hang out with on the putting green and at the range during tournaments. They always meet up after rounds, go out to eat at night, and (most) genuinely care about the rest of the group, both in golf and in life.

I have always envied those tight friend groups, and I wish I put myself out there more from the get go.

Having these friends at tournaments can lessen the nerves and the pressure of competitive golf.

These friends can console you and sympathize with you after a tough round.

My advice to you is to put yourself out there, goof off with others, and try to make as many friends as possible in golf. There are tons of lifetime buddies to be made out there. Don’t lose those chances by avoiding them.

Pair up during practice rounds whenever possible. Really get to know your playing partners during rounds. You can truly make tight connections during 5+ hours together during a round. Keep up with these friends when you see them at tournaments. Say hello, call them by name, ask them how they have been.

An added benefit is that friendships like this can often lead to saving money by rooming together or staying at their home when a tournament is in their hometown.

 

4) I wish I knew how prevalent cheating in golf is.

Imagine how much cheating happens in golf. Then triple it. That’s about right.

I’ll never forget my first competitive round of golf that I ever played. It was in a regional golf tour that had players way beyond my current skill level.

I was paired with 2 eventual D1 college golf players. I was the most nervous I had ever been in golf, by a factor of 10 or more. But I knew that I could learn a lot about their games.

Second hole, one of the guys had terrible luck with a couple of shots. Ended up doubling the par 5. I was keeping his score. Without asking him to make sure he got a 7, he turns to me and says “I made par”. I was shocked and didn’t know what to do. Maybe I had it wrong in my head? No, he definitely had to hit it twice out of the bunker. He definitely took a penalty stroke after his drive barely splashed in the water.

I calmly confronted him about it. He says that he actually found his drive and that he only hit it once out of the bunker. Without wanting to cause any commotion, I shrugged it off.

A few holes later, a similar situation occurs. He says he found his ball in the woods and plays it out, eventually reaching the green after a couple of shots. I see his ball is different than the one that he putted with last hole.

And again, a couple holes after that, I see him drop a ball from his pocket after a wayward drive. I was shocked that one of the best golfers in the state was acting like this. He went on to shoot like a 75 while I was hacking it around all day, accurately keeping score. (Long story short: told the tour staff about him, he says he is known for doing that, said that they would “keep a better eye out for him” in the future).

This wasn’t a one time problem. I have played with numerous golfers that “accidentally” tell me the wrong score before they quickly remember the duffed chip that they were hoping everyone forgot about.

So, yeah, I wish I knew how common cheating was going to be, so that I could be better prepared to call people out in a nonchalant way to make sure everyone’s scores were fair.

 

5) I wish I knew how to save money in golf before I started.

There are so many ways to save money on golf. And when you play everyday, these small changes add up. Here are some of my favorite tips:

• Look at every local courses’ membership plans and see if any type of discount could apply. Many clubs had student discounts, senior discounts, out of town (AKA, can use mom and dad’s house) address, and many more. Find the best value plan based on course conditions, clubhouse amenities, and price. I’d suggest finding the best plan for walking only, as riding a cart can obviously be way too expensive when you have to pay 20-30 cart fees a month. This is the most important tip, as this one change can save you tons of money each month.
• Buy golf balls at Golf Balls Direct. They offer the best wholesale deals that I have ever seen, and I’ve done hours of research on just about every used golf ball store online. I’ve been a buyer there for the last 2-3 years and will never go back.
• When it comes to golf lessons, see if you can get a bulk deal on a set of 5-10 lessons over a long period of time. And cut down the frequency of your lessons. Once a month should be plenty, and it will give you more time to make sure you have implemented your swing changes before your next lesson.
• Try to ride and room with friends for tournaments if you can. Like I said earlier, these friendships can be very cost beneficial.
• If you can’t afford a practice round for tournaments, ask the head pro if you can grab a cart and tour the course real quick. Try to make as many notes as possible. This knowledge paired with the yardage book will suffice when you are balling on a budget. Now you can focus your time on the (free) putting green and chipping green to get used to the speed and how much the greens check up for chips.

 

6) I wish I would have found a great golf coach a long time ago.

I can’t stress enough how important it is to find a great swing coach/golf coach/life coach.

I originally tried to teach myself how to play golf. After a couple years, I ended up with a fairly decent golf game from scratch. I was insanely good around the greens, but I was never a good ball striker. My swing had a lot of flaws that took years to fix, after I eventually found someone that I was comfortable with.

My current coach is an all around incredible man, and I cherish all of the time we spend together. I’ve learned so much about the golf swing and even more about life.

I wish I had searched out for him earlier, but I was put off by intrusive pros that approached golfers on driving ranges and gave unwarranted advice that often does more harm than good. I didn’t like how they thought there was only one “correct swing.” There were lots of other things that put me off about the idea of a swing coach. I really just wanted to do it myself, as I was a perfectionist at heart.

However, I wish I got over those thoughts and made an effort to find the perfect swing coach for me. You live and you learn.

 

7)  I wish I knew sooner how to play golf one shot at a time.

My mental golf game is at an all time high. I play shot by shot, only dwelling on a bad shot for 5 seconds before moving on an making the best of it.

If you were basing how I was playing off of my attitude and reactions, you wouldn’t be able to tell if I was shooting a 60 or 90.

Problem is, when I started out, my mental game was pathetic. I stressed over shots the entire round. I never let go of the short missed putts, the wayward drives, the duffed chips.

I didn’t visualize shots beforehand. I just hopped.

If you want to be a successful golfer, you HAVE GOT to strengthen your mental game as early as possible.

 

8) I wish I would have caddied for an incredible golfer early on.

Hear me out on this one. After a couple of years of golfing, the best golfer I knew asked me to caddy for him in a qualifier for the US Amateur.

Looking back, it was such a great learning experience. I got to see unclose some of the best golfers in my state. I got to see how they approached different situations. I got to see their mindset on different holes. I got to see how they reacted to poor shots and great shots.

It was one of the best learning experience that I’ve had in golf. Some of the things that I noticed were strict pre-shot routines, positive (and calm) attitudes throughout the entire rounds, and exceptional short games.

After seeing so many great shots that day, I came back the next day so motivated to improve to that level, both physically and mentally.

If you know of someone that competes in tournaments that allow caddies, tell them that you would love to caddy for them if they needed. They don’t (always) have to pay you, but you will typically get a free meal and snack out of it, plus all of the information that you will learn.

 

9) I wish I knew how to practice on the range much sooner.

I can’t believe I haven’t said anything about the range so far. The range is so important for developing a good golf swing and a good golf game in general.

Here’s what I wish I did: instead of pounding balls, go through a pre-shot routine before each shot, and never go to the same target twice. Do you ever hit the same shot twice in a row in golf? No, so why would you hit the same shot 10 times in a row on the driving range? Good question.

For drives, pick out a fairway and try to hit it right down the middle.

For approach shots, take out your rangefinder, shoot a target (doesn’t even have to be a flag), go through your pre-shot routine, hit your shot, and examine what you could have done better.

Those that practice diligently on the range can improve significantly more than those only playing rounds, IF they do it right.

You should try to simulate real round conditions for each shot. Even go back to your bag after every shot so that you don’t allow yourself to get in some sort of rhythm.

If all goes well, you can hit 100 simulated course shots in 45 minutes as compared to 35-50 real swings on the course in a 4 hour round.

Of course, actual rounds on the course are very important, but practically everyone can improve their dedicated range time by taking each shot more seriously.

Easy to say, hard to do. Force yourself to do this, and get into a habit of treating your range time like a real simulated round.

 

10) I wish I knew how important a pre-shot routine is.

Compounding off of #9, a pre-shot routine is incredibly important. It is the time where you turn the switch from analyzing to focusing in on the shot and target.

Have the same routine before any type of shot (besides putting maybe, as it will be slightly different). Think of Keegan Bradley. It doesn’t have to be that prominent, but make it stand out… make it your own.

Personally, I stand behind the ball, make one short practice swing, visualize the shot three times, twirl the club three times in my right hand, and then get next to the ball and hit it without any more thinking.

I’ve found that this works for me, and I do it on the range and on the course. It puts me in the mindset of focusing on the shot and blocking out everything else that could distract me.

 

Bonus: I wish I knew I would always be nervous on the first tee of a golf tournament

Nothing wrong with being nervous. I guess I just didn’t realize that I would always get the first tee jitters in every round of competitive golf.

I guess it proves that I care a lot about the sport of golf.

My best advice would be to embrace it, take deep breaths, and be confident in your ability, especially on the first tee.

 

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What do you wish you knew before you started? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comment sections below.