"If you believe that you put yourself in the right positions—like, obviously, making a 50-footer for eagle, for that to go in, there’s certainly luck involved."Spieth continues, "I put myself in position by executing to get it close, but if you have that extra element of belief that it’s going to go in, then you’re not surprised and you believe that it was you. Then you create a trend of your mental approach with it. And, obviously, it can go the other way really quickly. You can believe you are not going to get a break. And then you probably won’t. It’s amazing how it works."
Tiger Woods once said, "There's no sense in going to a tournament if you don't believe that you can win it. And that is the belief I have always had. And that is not going to change." To believe is a good thing but, what happens when you don't win?
After the third round of the Hero World Challenge, Woods seemed to change his tune and was just happy to be back in the game; he was enjoying the competition of the tournament, not considering the final outcome. "It’s nice to be part of the fight again,” Woods said. “Get out there and fighting against the golf course; fighting against the guys. That’s fun."
Can having fun and not worrying about the outcome increase your luck on the golf course?
Research has determined that "the idea that exceptional performers are the most skilled is flawed."
Winning is overrated and exceptional performance often occurs in exceptional circumstances. Luck also has a lot to do with winning.
Scientists have looked into the science of luck and believe that there is a measurable aspect to luck which "has more to do with psychology than probability." A positive mental attitude combined with not compensating when facing fear can better your chances of winning.
So, can you be "lucky" at golf and improve your chances? Is there a scientific aspect to luck and, if so, how can you apply it to your next round of golf?
Read: Improve your short game in 2 easy steps
An article in Popular Science magazine says that it is possible to trick your mind into believing you are lucky...with "lucky charms". In fact, research has shown that superstitions of any kind can help you perform better on the golf course. "Researchers hypothesized that the people with their lucky charms by their side persisted at problems longer because they felt more effective like they had the assistance of some other power." So now you know it's okay to pull out that rabbit's foot, throw grass over your shoulder and mark your ball that certain way...
Gary Player contradicts research by saying, "The harder you work, the luckier you get."
Of which mindset are you...and what lucky charms do you carry in your golf bag? Let us know in the comments section of our Golf for Beginners golf blog and tag us on Twitter @Golf4Beginners.
