The Four Foundations of Golf: How to Build a Game That Lasts a Lifetime

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Soon, you’ll be on the course analyzing a shot and saying, “What Would Jon Sherman Say?” Seriously, I’ve said it. In my opinion, Jon’s book has three chapters that are worth the cost of the book alone. Much like the Buffett example above, these concepts shifted how I look at and approach the game of golf. They have nothing to do with swinging a golf club and are core ideas that apply to golf as a whole.

The Four Foundations Of Golf: Growing Your Grit - SwingU The Four Foundations Of Golf: Growing Your Grit - SwingU

Learn mental techniques to calm yourself, build routines, and stand over the ball with more confidence To change your behavior for good, you need to start believing new things about yourself. You need to build identity-based habits. There are a ton of great chapters outside of the three chapters highlighted above. A few that come to mind are Better Golf is Not About Birdies, What is a Good Shot?, Wedge Practice, and What Can You Control?Throughout the last 25 years, I’m confident that I have either made or witnessed every mistake imaginable in golf – especially in the mental game. When it comes to your attitude on the golf course, it is critical to strike a balance and avoid extremes. While this might sound generic … How I Used Data to Become a Scratch Golfer Chapter 15 of the book is titled “Golf Is A Game Of Proximity.” Jon discusses what this truth means for golfers. Jon uses the phrase “Zombie Range Sessions” to describe how a lot of golfers “practice.” He shares that Engagement in your practice is the most important factor to using practice to effectively improve your game. And he – like me! – loves using Dr. Schools Foot Powder Spray as a golf training aid. Swing tips come and go, but foundational golf skills last forever. Whether you are a complete beginner or an advanced player, The Four Foundations of Golf will give you the blueprint to build a stronger, longer-lasting game. This is not your typical, fluffy golf guide that leaves all the important details out. Jon does an amazing job at quantifying the specific areas of your game that you need to improve if you want to start scoring better. This isn’t just some random book filled with fluff. It’s about understanding how to be more efficient with your time to get the most out of your game on various topics. He leaves no stone unturned. I highly recommend it!”

The Four Foundations of Golf - The 2nd Cut Book Review: The Four Foundations of Golf - The 2nd Cut

Since 2015, Practical Golf has been one of the top online game-improvement resources for golfers. Jon Sherman has written hundreds of articles, sharing his perspective as a “player-coach.” You can finally get all of the methods he’s used to become a scratch golfer and coach other golfers in one complete guide. These themes are familiar to long-time readers of this newsletter. I won’t rehash the importance of each since I’ve written multiple pieces on each subject ( see at the bottom of this post ).

I’ve had to go through this same process with my driver and putting. In my quest to become a better tournament player, it became apparent by watching other golfers and benchmarking my performance that these were also problems that needed to be solved. The predicament was that I kept telling myself, “I’m a great iron player, but I just struggle off the tee and on the greens.” Exactly what I was looking for. Most booos proclaim to be THE answer, but this book looks at all the decisions pre- & post-shot on and off the golf course, that contribute to your score, but more importantly, your enjoyment. Instead, grit is about having what some researchers call an “ultimate concern”–a goal you care about so much that it organizes and gives meaning to almost everything you do. And grit is holding steadfast to that goal. Even when you fall down. Even when you screw up. Even when progress toward that goal is halting or slow. I was utterly terrified of intermediate wedge shots for years and would do anything to avoid leaving myself 30-80 yards from the hole. Eventually, I realized this was impossible to do, and to get better, I had to conquer the problem head-on. So I poured over Dave Pelz’s Short Game Bible. I highlighted, took notes, and made a genuine effort to absorb the information.

The Four Foundations of Golf: How to Build a Game That Lasts

This is a guest post by Sean Denning from the Par Machine After playing the game for more than 20 years, I finally became a scratch golfer in 2020! My handicap had been in the low single digits for about 15 of those years, but I could never seem to … Why You Want to Be a System Golfer, and How to Do ItAn absolute must-read for any golfer of any level. I’m in my early 40s and wish a mentor, coach, or my dad had put a book like this in front of me when I was 9 years old (albeit the data Jon references was not available in the 1990s, but you get the point). If your goal is to shoot lower scores, you should read this wonderful book by Jon Sherman! His advice is practical, impactful, and presented with clearly reasoned, objective analysis. Highly recommended for every golfer who's serious about improving their game." The goal of a golf book should be simple—get you to shoot lower scores—but so often they're bogged down by technical jargon and theoretical filler. Jon's book does a fantastic job of always keeping the eye on the prize, which is improving your game." The Four Foundations of Golf by Jon Sherman has been instrumental in my improvement as a golfer, and I believe it is the best book amateur golfers can buy. Oh, and it has zero swing technique advice.

The Four Foundations of Golf Review: The Four Foundations of Golf

If your goal is to shoot lower scores, you should read this wonderful book by Jon Sherman! His advice is practical, impactful, and presented with clearly reasoned, objective analysis. Highly recommended for every golfer who’s serious about improving their game.” Buffett cites two chapters from Intelligent Investor that introduce the concepts of Margin of Safety and Mr. Market. Those two simple but remarkable concepts would define Buffett’s investment approach from then on. It wasn’t easy, but now I genuinely believe that I am good at both. But I had to change my processes and habits along the way. As I kept slowly chipping away and celebrating my tiny accomplishments, I was also proving my new identity. I did not want to be the dissatisfied golfer who looked at the course with fear anymore. Using Grit On the Course The chapters around managing expectations were particularly helpful to me, using Strokes Gained understanding. For example, knowing you are almost always better off getting closer to the hole, as long as you avoid hazards (water, bunkers, deep rough) or out OOB. That alone had me working my driver and long irons more deliberately. In a way, I was shifting my mindset and identity. While I still have to work on these shots to maintain my skill, I believe I am an excellent intermediate wedge player. One of my favorite authors, James Clear, describes these as identity-based habits.Legendary investor Warren Buffett is often asked what book he recommends to new investors. His answer is The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham (aka the father of value investing). When you’re looking to solve a problem in your golf game, having grit and the proper habits is usually a winning combination. I recommend the book Atomic Habits to just about everyone who follows Practical Golf. Unfortunately, we can’t have it both ways. You can’t become the golfer at the top of your mountain (which is different for each player) without climbing through some mud at the bottom.