Most of these guys on the tour are told we
need to have results in order for our identity to
be validated. And if you listened to that idea, it
can be very challenging. I never even realized it
was happening to me until a couple of years ago
when I had this moment when a light bulb came
on and I questioned myself, “what are you after?”
I was after birdies and bogeys and positioning
how I compare to the other guys out here and
money and all that stuff. And I decided to shift
my focus to my faith and it really translated for
me on the golf course, completely freed me up
to be closer to the person I want to be when
I’m playing, instead of golf deciding what kind of
person I am.
Zach Johnson. Photo by Jennifer Perez/PGA TOUR
How does faith help your golf game?
Johnson: In my case faith is the number one
important priority in my life, it’s in everything on
a golf course or off a golf course. The fact that
the Bible can transcend anything and get inside
of the ropes to me is phenomenal. I love the fact
that there are many scriptures that speak about
lessening of fears, lessening of worries, lessening
of temporal things and are more focused on
eternal things. And for me, that’s the perspective
I desire when I’m playing golf.
Cink: If I have something that distracts me and
I hit it any way, it’s almost always because I’m
putting the results in front of anything else that
I really want to achieve. My life is not set up
around making birdies or bogeys anymore, but
it used to be. I’m fostering my relationship with
Jesus when I am playing golf. It’s also what I do
at home waking up in the morning with my wife
and family. Yet putting results ahead of my faith
is so easy to do, it’s tantalizing, it’s seducing, it
is so easy to be drawn in to the results-oriented
way because that’s the way the world says.
Perry: Well, I’ve always put Jesus first, and it’s
been real easy for me. You know, he’s in control
of my life. So now if I just kind of leave it over
to him, I’m still human. I still want to try to do it
myself, but the more I relax the more I let him
take control, the easier it is for me on the course.
How do doubts affect you on the course and in
your life?
Cink: I definitely see doubts as a way for the
body and subconscious to get your attention.
I don’t always know what that is us but it’s like
God’s presence wants to invite us in. And yet
most of us keep a wall around us. When we open
the door and feel God’s presence, that’s when
we’re able to be our true selves and achieve
peak performance. When I have doubts, I use
it as a symbol or a signal to me saying that, I
got the door closed. I think what happens is
doubt creates a domino effect to psychological
emotions. The doubt leads to how you feel
about yourself, how you compare to others, are
you afraid you’re gonna fail and then how you
feel about your failures. It’s the end result of
what you really feel afraid of, that’s when you shy
back and hurt yourself.
Volume 4 • Issue 50
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