One of the most overlooked skills in golf isn’t the swing, it’s what you do after the shot.
A good post-shot routine isn’t about pretending every shot was perfect. It’s about controlling your response so one swing doesn’t affect the next.
Try this simple process:
Accept it. Good or bad, the ball has gone. You can’t change it.
Assess it. If needed, make a quick, objective observation. Was it the club? The strike? The decision? Keep it factual, not emotional.
Move on. Once you’ve learned what you need to, let it go. Your focus should now be on getting to the next shot with a clear mind. Use a ‘closing’ trigger, such as taking your glove off or hearing the noise of the club landing in your bag, to put closure on the shot ready to move on to the next.
The best golfers aren’t mentally strong because they never hit bad shots. They’re mentally strong because they recover from them quickly.
Your score isn’t determined by your worst shot… it’s determined by how well you respond to it.