T-Time Podcast // Ep. 45: The Show About Expectations with Jon Sherman
Today, Tori has a special treat for our listeners. We have Jon Sherman, founder of Practical Golf and author of the bestselling book, The Four Foundations of Golf. The book provides a blueprint for golfers to improve and lower their game scores. This guide offers tangible advice in four key areas: expectation management, strategy, practice, and mental game. It's a comprehensive resource for golfers seeking long-lasting improvement.
He's here to discuss Module 1 of his incredible Four Foundations masterclass, including the valuable lessons within the module. This digital course is designed to make learning easy and efficient, allowing you to absorb the book's wisdom quickly. Get ready to take your golf game to new heights as Jon shares insights from this enriching masterclass experience.
How the Four Foundations Were Formed
As a junior golfer, Jon was a decent player but not exceptional, with a handicap of around three or four. He secured second place in the only college tournament he played at NYU. However, as he entered his twenties and played less, his expectations clashed with his inconsistent performance, leading to frustration and a terrible temper on the course.
A turning point came during a Florida trip with his father, where Jon's outburst of throwing his golf club in anger severed it. This left his father deeply disappointed. This rock bottom moment made Jon realize his addiction to achieving a specific score and forced him to reevaluate his relationship with golf. He prioritized having fun while playing and aligning his expectations with his commitment level. This transformative experience led Jon to encourage others to reevaluate their golfing goals, find their happiness equation, and avoid the pitfalls of unrealistic expectations.
Module 1: Expectation Management
Although Jon's course has five modules, today, he will focus on the first one and its impact on people's relationships with golf. This section centers around expectation management. Jon believes understanding these concepts is crucial for becoming a better strategic player, improving mental games, and enjoying golf while lowering scores. By starting with this module, participants gain the necessary foundation to approach golf from the right perspective.
1. Incremental Progress
This lesson emphasizes the importance of incremental progress in golf and other areas of life. It encourages golfers to make gradual improvements instead of expecting immediate perfection. Jon highlights the need for patience and managing expectations to avoid frustration and give up on improving.
2. Two-thirds Rule & PGA Tour Fallacy
The Two-thirds Rule suggests that golfers can shoot their best scores even if only two out of three aspects of their game (tee shots, approach shots, and short game) are working well. It challenges the belief that everything needs to go perfectly to achieve good scores. The lesson also addresses the misconception created by watching professional golf on TV, where the best shots are highlighted, leading to unrealistic expectations for average golfers.
3. Practice & Play
This lesson discusses the importance of balancing practice and playing golf. While practice is necessary, Jon emphasizes that learning also happens on the golf course. Playing rounds exposes golfers to various situations and pressures that contribute to their development. The lesson encourages golfers to learn from their playing experiences and use the feedback to improve their practice sessions.
4. Scoring in a Nutshell
This lesson introduces the concept of strokes gained, popularized by Mark Broadie. It explains how strokes gained analysis provides a more prescriptive way to understand scoring and differentiate golfers. The lesson challenges traditional advice of playing safe off the tee, highlighting the significance of strategic decision-making based on strokes gained data.
Tournaments & Reducing Handicaps
Playing in golf tournaments can help lower handicaps by challenging golfers and pushing them outside their comfort zones. It's important to create discomfort to improve. This can be achieved by playing with strangers or betting with friends, adding pressure to each shot, and avoiding taking mulligans. However, stroke play events may not suit everyone, as they can be overwhelming and lead to self-doubt. Finding a middle ground where rounds are taken seriously, each shot counts, and pressure is applied to oneself is advised. As handicaps drop and golfers become more disciplined, stroke play events can be beneficial for further improvement. By experiencing and overcoming pressure in tournaments, golfers can become more comfortable and confident, even when playing in front of strangers.
Range of Scores
Shooting your best score in golf can be bittersweet because it's often a rare occurrence, with scores fluctuating widely. Even professionals experience this inconsistency, shooting low one day and higher the next. Beginners and intermediate players have wider score ranges compared to pros. Golfers with a handicap of around five or ten face the challenge of shooting impressive and disappointing scores. Accepting the unpredictability of the game is crucial, as not getting too high or low on oneself. Developing a short memory for good and bad rounds helps maintain a balanced mindset.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, The Four Foundations of Golf provides valuable insights and techniques to enhance your golfing experience. By managing your expectations, utilizing data analytics, adopting a strategic framework, and practicing efficiently, you can become a happier and more fulfilled golfer while lowering your handicap. This book also offers guidance on improving your swing, increasing your distance, customizing your practice sessions, and utilizing mental techniques to boost your confidence on the course. With its comprehensive approach, this book offers much more than just the mentioned points, ensuring a holistic understanding and improvement of your golf game.
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