What was the second big learning experience from Immelman winning the Masters?

Sign up for my big golf secret here

Simple.

Belief

Yet again I’m droning on about belief. But that’s because it’s so ludicrously important. It was so important in my challenge and as a professional in the Tiger era it’s more important than ever. Zach Johnson felt he had divine intervention on his side last year and that obviously helps when you have Tiger bearing down on you. Many much more successful golfers than Johnson (Ernie anyone?) have allowed their self-belief to crumble in the face of a duel with Tiger but with God on your side things are different.

So what about young master Immelman? He didn’t have God on his side but if you’re a South African golfer he had the next best thing. He had Gary Player. A man who drove his entire career through self-belief. Who ignored his size and stood up to the might of Nicklaus, Palmer and Trevino at their prime and won nine majors. Most pertinently he won four US Masters.

So when Gary Player leaves a message on your anwering machine telling you that he believes in you and that you need to believe in yourself then suddenly the might of a Tiger charge (or indeed the threat from anyone) suddenly seems a little less significant.

“Young man – believe in yourself and the world is your oyster…”

(Photo – Ben van Hook – Golf Digest)

Belief in your skills and abilities. I cannot emphasise it enough. This was the key skill that got me to the end of my challenge. When I started to listen to the nay-sayers and believed those who said it was impossible then my scoring got worse. When I, through whatever means, allowed myself to believe I could do it then all the hard work and practice could truly translate onto the course.

Believe you can be a much better and then just go for it.