A4 June 2024 Pamplin Media Group

By PATRICIA BOOK Charbonneau resident

“ Your body plays the game . Your mind determines the results !”

These are the words of MJ McCloskey , author of “ When Girls Win ” and NCAA 2023 coach of the year . MJ is celebrated for building a women ’ s golf program from the ground up at George Fox University as well as leading her team to the top-ranked spot in the country and winning 13 NCAA D-III conference championships and a national title against all odds !

If you believe the universe has a way of bringing people together in a gravitational pull of spirit , the Rise and Shine breakfast , a collaboration of Charbonneau women ’ s golf clubs , was a force meant to happen . About three years ago , CWGA member BJ Shrock and Niners member Judy Williams signed up to play in a Staggette Scramble at Willamette Valley Country Club . They only had three players and the pro of the club assigned their fourth player — McCloskey . BJ and Judy had no idea who this fourth player was , and while they were happy to have a full team , they only hoped she could contribute .

As BJ reported in her introduction McCloskey on April 26 , not only did MJ hit drives that made their drives look like chip shots , but MJ shared some excellent words of wisdom and , most importantly , they enjoyed each other ’ s company ( and won )! Years later Coach McCloskey emails BJ telling her about her new book “ When Girls Win ,”

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Amy Day , Cathy Loffink , MJ McCloskey , BJ Shrock and Carol Riley pose for a photo at the event .

and BJ decided to bring the book to share at the CWGA winter luncheon . The seed was planted and , soon , the idea of bringing McCloskey to speak at a collaborative event for The Niners , CWGA and Lake Oswego Golf Club was born .

The morning of the breakfast , over 70 women gathered to listen to MJ speak about the importance of mindset . Her inspirational message is a testament to why women of MJ ’ s caliber are the ideal coaches , teachers and mentors of future generations of women . Despite the obstacles and concerns of fellow coaches that a golf team in her conference didn ’ t have what it took to compete as a national contender , MJ grew a winning women ’ s golf program at George Fox University by building a powerful mental framework and then modeling that mental toughness for her players .

Mindset is the set of beliefs that play a pivotal role in what we want and whether we achieve it . If we have a fixed mindset , we believe that our abilities and talents cannot be changed no matter what we do . If we have a growth mindset , we believe that our talents and abilities can be developed over time through hard work and positive self-talk .

“ We believe that the impossible is possible and our passion leads the way in helping us to maneuver around the obstacles and break through resistance ,” MJ says .

To illustrate a growth mindset , MJ gives attendees a sample of the activities she uses with herself and her team . First , we investigate how failure teaches resilience and makes us stronger for the next time . We draw a circle and write within it the factors we can control in golf , such as our focus , patience , positivity and having fun . Outside the circle , we name all the things on the golf course over which we have no control , but might blame for a bad shot ,

Attendees gave a standing ovation for MJ McCloskey .

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such as the weather , noises , teammates talking or endless waiting to hit your next shot . We discover that accepting responsibility for our game is crucial to taking our game to the next level .

In another activity , MJ asks us to write affirmations about our game and explore the effect of the positive self-talk on the course . How many of us have stepped up to a shot with negative self-talk ? I ’ ll never do well on this hole . I can ’ t make it over the water . I ’ m horrible at reading long putts . Instead , MJ emphasizes that writing affirmations that reflect what you aspire sets the stage for positive self-talk . For example , writing that you are a focused putter and good at reading the greens might very well change your mindset about how you putt and approach practice . Positive self-talk and the stories we tell ourselves on the course are key to positive results .

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