LETTER FROM THE TEACHING PROFESSIONAL
SET YOURSELF SOME GOALS
What are your goals ? I often ask this to students on the lesson tee and it is often hard to give an answer . It usually sounds like this , “ Ben I just want to be more consistent .” That answer is not going to cut it . In the game of golf without setting goals , it is very hard to make any kinds of plan for how to improve or move forward in your golf progression . When it comes to setting goals , not only in golf but any other time goals are set , the acronym S . M . A . R . T . should be associated . S . M . A . R . T . stands for specific , measurable , achievable , relevant , and time bound .
Let ’ s break down the typical response of want to be more consistent . The 1st part of the acronym is specific . Well right from the start the goal is not very specific at all . A goal that would be specific would be more along the lines of , “ I want to become more consistent in my shots around the green and getting them in closer to the target .” That narrows down what area of golf we want to improve on and will have us on a track .
The 2nd part of the acronym measurable , is what gives us the ability to track progress . If we are working on getting our shots around the green closer to the target , we must first measure how far away we are missing the target , then we can work on ways of improving to get the ball closer , and we have measurable progress to see how much we have improved .
The 3rd part of the acronym is often one that is overlooked , achievable . Goals must be achievable , otherwise our goal is unrealistic . For example , getting shots around the green closer to a target is achievable , being able to chip in every shot is not . When setting your goals make sure that your goals are realistically achievable .
The 4th part of the acronym is relevant , to make sure our goal is relevant we must look at the big picture . If our goal is to lower overall score on the course , but we only practice gaining more distance of the tee , our goal is not relevant to what we are practicing . We would want to look at our goal and make sure that the goal is relevant to what we are trying to accomplish .
The 5th part of the acronym is what I consider the most important part . Goals that are time-bound gives us a timeline to try and improve . A goal that is time bound would be something like , “ I want to lower number of putts per round by 4 putts by May 6th ”. The time base for goals is like having a due date for a report , it will hold us accountable to an allotted amount of time to achieve the goal .
I challenge you all to set yourself 3 goals no matter how small they may seem and if you can accomplish them . But take some time in setting up your 3 goals and , go through and make sure your goals are S . M . A . R . T . If you outline your goals and make sure that they meet the criteria , the next step will be in next months newsletter when we cover the objectives to accomplish your goals ! Hope you all have a blessed month and start to achieve your golf goals .
Ben Johnson
PGA , Teaching Professional
APRIL eaglebrooke newsletter 5