Two years ago I sustained a serious neck injury herniating two discs and severely limiting the range of motion in my neck and back with pain and weakness down my left arm. At the time I was a 13.2 handicapper and improving every week. I was devoted to reaching a single digit GHIN.
I thought my favorite past time was lost. My handicap skyrocketed to 18.6, my swing not only did what it wanted but gave me severe discomfort while doing so. I was fairly depressed and was having a hard time dealing with the situation. I know, it's a game, get over it. Easier said than done. Most golfers I know take their game seriously, no matter how bad they are. I play with single digit players to 20 plus. They all try their best and want to be better. That's why so many 20 handicappers play for money with their friends, male ego and the competitive nature of sport.
So I tried many things to play with the pain. I adjusted my swing, took lessons to readjust my swing, went to a 3/4 swing, took major doses of aspirin prior to, during and following the round. Nothing was working. The thought of going back to Bass fishing was OK, but another boat? $20K easy, and the wife thinks my irons are too expensive! I turned to working on the mental side of the game, focusing on mind over matter. I read books, researched everything I could find on the mind and sports. It was working. I was able to take my mind to a different place while swinging the club. Not perfection, not consistently, but enough to enjoy the game again.
That is where David L. Cook, Ph.D. came into my life. An expert on the mental side of golf having worked with over 100 PGA TOUR professionals, rated among the Top 10 Mental Side Experts by Golf Digest. I was given his book "Golf's Sacred Journey - Seven Days at the Links of Utopia" a novel about influence by Stan Sayers, my putting coach at McGetrick Golf Academy. Yes it is about a golfer and his trials and tribulations, but more about how you never know when your influence might change the life of another and how to put the game in perspective. With this book I saw beyond my game, my woes, my pain and realized that golf was a small part of my life. That my focus should be elsewhere; family, husband, father, provider, teacher.
Thanks to Stan and Dr. Cook I have a balanced view of golf and life. I still have too high a GHIN, but that's OK. I don't need to shoot low 80's to be happy, because I derive my happiness from other pursuits. If you get the chance read his book. It can change your life as it did mine. You can email for information on how to get your copy at cgb2000@msn.com.
