Play where it lies...

                             "They call it golf because all the other four-letter words were taken!" 

In general I am an overall fan of sports for the incredible athletic achievements but to be honest...I am more of a fan of the deep seeded mindsets needed in order to advance to the next consistent level of where you want to go! 

There are two sports that at the end of the day are incredibly mental mindset driven...

The first is any long distance endurance sport...

Take Ironman for example...every Ironman I did and for that reason every Ironman that anyone partakes in starts with all of us being ready on the start line. 

We put in the time, we put in the effort, we advance through injuries and we typically show up physically ready to conquer our task.

Its that mental monster that stands in our way from start to our goal! 

We can be in the best shape of our life and fall way short not because of a lack of endurance training but more from a lack of mental preparation. 

The second sport and probably the most mental of sports there is these days...is...GOLF! 

I am not a huge fan but I have a complete and relentless appreciation for the mental fortitude needed to move through a round of GOLF! 

We tee off with hopes of playing well but...winds, rain, bunkers, ponds, lakes, gators (that's a thing..right?), hot streaks from other players, a bad shot and deep grass all have a say in how the round goes...

AND...THEN...

The biggest hurdle to overcome is...

You guessed it...

Our mind! 

When I was a kid trying to learn golf I would go out and play with my step-dad at times...

Being a super competitive kid I would get so frustrated that every shot was not a shot of brilliance...but really, who did I think I was...practice makes perfect and perfect practice makes things even better! 

I remember one day hitting a shot into the tall grass and getting so hot headed and angry at myself.

Then my step-dad stepped in and said, "Oh, I see your stuck in the rough! Every player lands in the rough. It's how you get out of the rough that counts!" 

I am sure as a kid I whispered some four letter word under my breath absolute oblivious to the message being delivered to my immature mind! 

I did tune into the Master's last weekend for a hot second and what makes these players such incredible human athletes is how they can muster through adversity on a course and move on to the next shot in the blink of an eye without hesitation, visible doubt and limited frustration. 

One shot into the rough for them leads to the next shot being a picture of incredible domination. 

So why can't we do the same in life? 

Last time I looked, went through an obstacle or had a conversation with adversity I realized that with every challenge is a great opportunity in life. 

Life is not won by living a lifetime free of mistakes, free of obstacles and free of adversity. 

Life is won by those who respond to the mistakes, obstacles and adversity that is littered in ones path. 

Life will give you everything you need and more in order to have a life full of memories! 

Life doesn't happen to you...life happens FOR you!

Cancer will happen, ACL tears will happen, Alzheimer's diagnosis's will happen, being fired will happen, having an injury before a race...WILL happen, break ups will happen, missing the winning shot...most definitely will happen and a million other crazy scenarios will happen! 

Not to sound like an asshole or one that is not compassionate to some of the tougher obstacles but my meaning is genuine in that just because something happens doesn't mean we need to throw in the towel. 

Like my incredibly brilliant step dad said...its what you do next that matters!

When you land in the rough of life...TRY...and ask yourself the following questions...

What's something good that could come from this?

What's life trying to teach me?

What's the opportunity in front of me?

What can I do right now to help what's next? 

Remember...Life doesn't happen to you...life happens FOR you!

We need to go all in on protecting our mindset....just like a professional golfer! 

My answer for most of those questions is gratitude in the sense that there could always be worse obstacles, harder adversities and I could be ignorant to the beauty of what I still have!

Control the controllables and...

Master the NEXT SHOT! 

Always Crush Life! 

Make It Count!