The Shot That Ruined Everything

Tom couldn't stop thinking about hole 14. Three hours after his round, he was still replaying that chunked wedge that found the water. He'd hit 17 other shots that day, including a beautiful 6-iron to 12 feet and a perfectly weighted chip to tap-in range. But all he could think about was that one bad wedge.

If this sounds like your typical post-round analysis, you're not alone. Tom was making the same mistake that keeps most golfers stuck at their current level: obsessing over what went wrong while ignoring what went right.

Your Brain's Bad Habit

Tom's mental replay wasn't unusual—it's how our brains are wired. We're evolutionarily programmed to focus on threats and problems. That chunked wedge screamed at Tom for hours, while his solid 6-iron barely registered as worth remembering.

This natural tendency makes sense if you're trying to avoid predators, but it's terrible for golf improvement. Every time Tom replayed that bad shot, he was actually strengthening the neural pathways associated with poor execution. He was literally programming failure into his muscle memory.

The Backwards Approach

Like most golfers, Tom spent his practice time trying to fix what was wrong. Chunked a wedge? Hit 50 wedges focusing on not chunking. Sliced a drive? Work on swing path for an hour. This approach felt logical but created a problem: he was spending all his mental energy on his failures.

Meanwhile, his good shots—the ones that contained all the information he needed about proper technique—were treated like lucky accidents and quickly forgotten.

The Simple Switch

Tom's breakthrough came when his instructor asked him to do something different. Instead of analyzing what went wrong after bad shots, he started paying attention to what felt right after good shots.

The process was simple:

• After every good shot, take three seconds to notice how it felt

• Pay attention to tempo, balance, and the sensation of impact

• File away that feeling without analyzing it

That's it. No complex swing thoughts or technical adjustments.

Building a Success Library

Within a few weeks, Tom noticed something interesting. He was developing a mental library of successful sensations that his body could access during rounds. When he stood over a wedge shot, instead of thinking "don't chunk this like hole 14," he could recall the feeling of his good wedge shots.

The same principle worked for every part of his game. His putting improved because he started remembering what good putts felt like instead of obsessing over his misses. His driving got more consistent because he focused on reproducing the sensation of his straight drives rather than fixing his slice.

Why It Works

The science behind this approach is straightforward: focusing on successful movement patterns creates stronger neural pathways than trying to eliminate unsuccessful ones. When Tom repeatedly recalled his best swings, he was literally rewiring his brain to reproduce those motions more consistently.

His muscle memory was constantly recording every swing he made. By shifting his attention from failures to successes, he was programming reliability instead of inconsistency into his system.

The Practical Application

Tom still hits bad shots—everyone does. But now he handles them differently:

1. After a good shot: Takes three seconds to notice exactly how it felt

2. After a bad shot: Asks himself what his last good shot felt like

3. During practice: Spends time reproducing successful feelings rather than fixing problems

4. Mental rehearsal: Visualizes and feels his best swings, not his worst ones

The Results

Tom's scores started dropping not because he eliminated his bad shots, but because he began reproducing his good ones more frequently. His best shots already contained everything he needed to know about proper technique—he just hadn't been paying attention to them.

Try This Approach

The next time you play:

• Pay attention to how your good shots feel

• Spend three seconds after each good shot noticing the sensation

• Stop replaying bad shots in your head

• Focus on reproducing success rather than eliminating failure

Your best shots are trying to teach you something. The question is: are you listening?

Remember, the improvement you're looking for isn't hiding in your problems—it's waiting in your successes.

Until next time, less swing thoughts, more great shots!

Owen.