Embracing the Anti-Grind

Last week, after finishing some errands early, I decided to visit my club’s driving range before heading home. A combination of rainy spring weather and busy weekends had limited my trips to the course. When I arrived, I found a few other golfers taking advantage of the pleasant day and tuning up their games. Golf season had finally arrived.

As I warmed up with a few half swings, a member I had chatted with a handful of times started hitting balls in the open spot beside me. He placed two alignment sticks on the ground and angled a third toward his target. He tucked a towel under his right armpit and performed a variety of choppy practice swings, appearing to aim for specific positions. He fiddled with the Trackman app on his iPhone.

During a break from his science experiment range session, he asked about my game, and I muttered something about managing expectations and keeping things simple. He then showed me a picture of a swing aid called the StraightAway by David Leadbetter. I feigned interest and said I might check it out. (Note: I will not check it out.)

I don’t mean to mock the guy. He’s a skilled player, and the work he put in that day no doubt helped him continue taking money off his buddies in their weekly Saturday game. I remember doing the same thing in high school, grinding on the range before tryouts or rushing to the course after finishing my homework so I could putt until sunset. But those days are behind me now.

After about half an hour, I left the range while my acquaintance set up a tripod to film his swing.

I don’t miss the grind. I’ve accepted that my swing will sometimes feel effortless and other times leave me wondering when I’ll hit a well-struck shot again. This attitude may sound awful to relentless tinkerers or ultra-competitive golfers, but I’ve discovered a sense of freedom in shifting from “I need to get better” to “I’m here to enjoy the walk.” I no longer start each golf season with ambitions to lower my handicap. I no longer devise practice plans or jot down swing thoughts in my Notes app. One of the great things about golf is that you can enjoy it through all stages of your life, whether you give up the pursuit of perfection at some point or never stop grinding.

For me, golf has become a mental reset button, and obsessing over my swing would run counter to that purpose. Club TFE members, where do you fall on the tinkering/grinding spectrum? Are you always working on something new, or have you accepted the swing you’ve got?