Karma, Zen, religion and Golf

That's a big ol' broad topic, ain't it?

Let me talk about some assumptions first. I'm assuming that you play Golf because you enjoy the game. I'm assuming that you spend time on the Golf course because you get something out of it. I'm assuming that, being that you are sacrificing somewhere around 4 hours a round to it, this something you get out of it is of value to you.

So you know where I'm coming from, I'm Presbyterian. My Church describes itself like this:

We are an intentional faith community - doxological, liturgical, sacramental, and missional - which welcomes questions, invites inquiry, defends mercy, advocates justice, and loves beauty ..

Golf is a good place to leave any dogma behind and connect with the spiritual. Regardless of where you stand on beliefs and belief systems, given the assumptions we started with, there's a synchronicity between your game and your spiritual health. Or more succinctly (and to paraphrase a better known saying) "There ain't no atheists on the Golf course."

I'm not putting this forth to start a debate. I am saying that if you're out there, you believe in something.

If the something that you believe in is strictly you and your game, more power to you. You are probably a scratch Golfer and are reading this as a source of amusement. For the rest of us, discovering what it that we believe in (on the Golf course specifically) and tapping into it can only help our game.

There are common traits to most religions and/or belief systems: faith, forbearance, forgiveness, redemption... [if you have doubts about this statement, I invite you to do your own research and not rely on the press for your information.]

And that's where I finally come around to Karma and Zen. Though Golf is inherently a competitive game, keep firmly in mind that "what goes around comes around."

Find your center (physically: the place your balance comes from, mentally: the place your imagination comes from, spiritually: the place your joy comes from) and you will find the source of your Game. Examine it, feel it, experiment with it.

1. Faith:
   Believe in yourself, and your Game. Believe that [pick your guiding force] believes in you and looks out for you.
   
2. Forbearance
   Don't get wrapped around the axle about things that don't matter: your partners' quirks, the slow foursome in front of you, the trash talk during the game. That's not what you're here for.
   
3. Forgiveness
   Forgive yourself if you think you've messed up. Forgive your partners if you think they got in your head. Forgive in general. Don't hang on to any bile.
   
4. Redemption
   Having forgiven, accept that Redemption will follow. Anticipate the reward of putting yourself in the right state of mind
   

My understanding of Zen is limited to what I've read, but if I've got this right, if you achieve that internal balance around your center you will be in the right place to excel in your game (and in life...)

Likewise my understanding of Karma is limited to what I've read, but this goes back to the "what goes around comes around." If you play with integrity and look out for those around you, you will be rewarded. (The converse is true, so watch the trash talk and please repair those divots!!)

Apart from the general sense of well-being you will achieve by focusing on these elements, as a Kinetic Golfer focusing on this aspect of you and your game allows your brain to get out of it's own way and improve your game.