When I think about an avalanche, I tend to focus on the one snowflake that causes the whole thing to come down. We never think about all the snow that preceded that last bit. It’s easy to focus on “big wins” and forget about all the little bits of work we have to put in to get there. It’s also easy to lose sight of the whole as we slowly add to the pile. All progress is incremental, and it’s worth remembering that. Especially as we practice in the off season.
I’ve been dieting for the past 6 weeks, and part of that process has been weighing in every day. It can be frustrating, as I see fluctuations day to day, but the overall trend is downward. There are no quick wins in weight loss, it’s simply a day by day process of making better choices and burning more calories than I eat. Each day is an opportunity to lose weight, I just have to stick to my plan.
Working on golf isn’t much different. I am not magically going to go out and shoot an under par round because I spent the winter practicing. A review of my last 20 rounds of the year shows the progress I am making. My anti-cap (the 12 scores that don’t count towards my handicap) was a 7.1 vs a handicap of 4.5… Considering I was soft capped around a 7.1 to begin the year, I’m going to consider this a huge win. My worst scores have improved dramatically. This is progress. While I did not shoot a career low round this year, I like to believe my game showed some tangible improvement. Small steps forward, improvement over time. I have a bad tendency to expect significantly better play, when really I just need to be a little bit better every day.
The same is true of practice. I’m working on lowering my spin and ball flight. It’s a move that requires my hands be significantly more forward at impact. This is not an easy move for me, and much to my chagrin, it has not been immediate. That said, when I get on a simulator my ball flight has gone down from 140+ feet down into the 120s. It’s not where I want to be, but it’s closer than I’ve ever been.
It’s been a bunch of small wins, but they are worth celebrating. The avalanche will come eventually, but I will continue to slowly pile my snow. I won’t get frustrated that it hasn’t happened yet, instead I will just realize that the only way to get it to happen is to keep piling the snow.
Yes, that is me talking to myself to motivate myself to stay focused and working on the things I need to work on. I have plenty of other work going on as well. It’s all slow progress, but it’s progress nonetheless. This is a good place to manage my expectations. I can’t become a great putter today, but I can be better. If I keep working (and focusing on the right things) eventually I’ll get my avalanche.
Wow! That is a great piece of writing. Very well done.