Better Golf with Process Goals

At AGI we define Process Goals as the “to-do lists” of those players striving for excellence. This process is what gives you a chance to find out how good you can be.
In the challenge of setting Process Goals, we all need to take an honest assessment and take inventory of our game. You may see that your ball-striking needs improvement; you may need improvement in chipping, pitching or bunker play. Could there be something in your mental game that needs addressed, maybe you need a better attitude toward putting or you might need to be better at staying in the present moment. The bottom line is, nobody is perfect in any of these areas, but most players are better in some than others. Our job is to identify the weaker areas and work to raise those weaker areas to the standards of the others.

Here is a set of Process Goals, if you follow them; you will most assuredly give yourself your best chance to find out how well you can play in that particular round.

  1. On every shot, I will trust myself and my swing. I know I do not have absolute control of where the ball goes. I DO have absolute control of whether I trust myself.
  2. I will execute my pre-shot routine on every shot.
  3. The present moment is where I live, I won’t speculate in mid-round what my score will be, or where I stand in the tournament will refrain from critiquing or analyzing the shots I have taken. I will focus on each shot as it comes, and that will be the only shot I will care about. When that shot is over, I will see how I did.
  4. On the course, I will refuse to allow anything that happens on the course today to bother me or upset me. Bad breaks and mistakes are part of the game; I will accept them and be tough in adversity. I am going to be in a good mood and a great state of mind for the entire round today. I WILL enjoy playing.
  5. I will trust my instincts, be decisive and committed as I play.
  6. As the round goes on, I will be freer, looser and more confident, resisting the urge to get tighter, more careful and doubtful.
  7. I will LOVE my wedge and putter today.
  8. I will not interfere and let the ball go to my target on every shot.
  9. I will maintain a constant, ideal level of intensity on every shot.
  10. I WILL play to play great.

The object of process goals is to focus your energy on the process of scoring and not thinking about scoring. It doesn’t matter what level you are now, to challenge your “personal bests” you have to change your way of thinking. Creating and focusing on Process Goals, embracing the process of scoring and not just hitting the golf ball around without a plan is much more conducive to steady if not rapid improvement.
AGI will be there in all phases, helping you become a true golfer, a scorer, a mean lean golfing machine, not somebody who just plays golf. When you get ready to play, here are some thoughts to ponder as preparation before playing.

1. A process goal is an intention to do certain things, often repeatedly, that will lead to the realization of your dreams.

2. Success is a combination of the right process and perseverance.

3. Great golfers learn to be good at waiting, but as they wait, they do the right things, so, what’s on your “to-do list”?

AGI: play better golf.