EDITORIAL – GOLF DOES NOT ASK FOR RESILIENCY…IT REQUIRES IT

Phil Mickelson’s victory at The Open Championship in July is an example of the mindset required for success in golf.  Mickelson admitted after losing the US Open in June at Merion that it was the most heartbreaking moment in his career, because it was the best opportunity he ever had to win that event, by his own admission.  The fact that he failed to capture the victory could have disheartened him to the point of detracting from future performances, but he did not allow that to happen. Arriving in Scotland the prior week, he won the Scottish Open in a playoff against Branden Grace – the first time Mickelson had ever won on European soil.  At Muirfield, Mickelson further cemented his place in history when he captured the 142nd playing of The Open. What did Mickelson do after his Merion meltdown?  He went to Montana for several days to reflect and take it easy.  He then got back to work, missing the cut at The Greenbrier before winning his next two events. If you listen to Mickelson, he is always the eternal optimist, but he never puts a sugar-coating on his failures.  Instead, he accepts them and tries to learn from them.  During the heat of battle when he is hitting less than his best shots, he may berate himself, but quickly gathers his thoughts and proceeds to the task at hand.  It may also help that Mickelson earned a degree in psychology from Arizona State University, and is considered one of the most cerebral players in the game. There’s an old saying, “It’s not what happens to you but how you respond.” Mickelson certainly reflects that as well as anyone.