When in Trouble, Be Patient

Every golfer must fight the urge to follow a bad shot with a spectacular recovery, or a bad hole with a spectacular hole. Spectacular play succeeds only in making the player foul up and lose the hole. In most instances, the smart move is to get safely and surely back in play, and then resume the attack.  

 

Hutchinson wrote, "Perhaps the most fatal beam of all that can float over your mental vision is the vision of a past hole badly played which you are filled with some insane notion of 'making up for.' This idea of 'making up' by present extra exertions for past deficiencies is one of the most deadly delusions that is prone to affect the golfing mind. Its results are inevitably ruinous." 

 

One situation where patience is particularly vital is on the tee after you've hit a drive out of bounds. At this point, most golfers hastily tee up a second ball despite the fact that, strictly speaking, it is their opponent's turn to hit. The wise move is to back off and allow the opponent to play (after all, he too may hit into trouble), allow yourself some time to cool off, and then tee up a second ball. 

 

Most battles on the golf course are won not by the transcendent brilliance of the victor but by the mistakes of the vanquished. Be patient and eventually your opponent will win you the match.

Read more: http://www.golf.com/instruction/10-commandments-match-play#ixzz2lTn4X94Q