The short answer: one bad shot becomes three because you carry it into the next swing: angrier, quicker and more aggressive. Recovering is a skill, and the PGA Tour even measures it. The fix is a reset routine that closes the door on the last shot, a more conservative choice on the next one, and a realistic goal for the next hole.
My story
I was 3 over through 4 and going along nicely. On the next par 4 I hit a good tee shot, only to find it slightly blocked by the trees. Fine: punch one up towards the green. It found the greenside bunker.
This is where I got too precious. Instead of my usual 56-degree, I pulled out the 60 to play something delicate. It didn't get out. Second go with the 60: still in the bunker. I switched back to my usual 56 and got out first go, then two-putted for a 7.
First triple of the day, and a scorecard ruiner. The bad break was the trees. The damage was me trying to be clever with a club I don't trust, twice.
The pros measure this
The PGA Tour keeps a statistic called Bounce Back: how often a player follows a bogey or worse with a birdie or better on the very next hole. Through the 2024 3M Open, the Tour average was about 21%. Scottie Scheffler led at 33%, and the top ten all sat around 27% to 33%.
Two lessons hide in those numbers. First, even the best players on earth usually don't bounce back with a birdie. Recovering from a mistake is hard for everyone. Second, the difference between average and elite is real and measurable. It's a skill, which means it can be practised.
Why the spiral happens
After a bad shot, most of us do three things at once:
- We get faster. We stomp to the ball and hit before we've settled.
- We get greedy. We try to win the shot back with a hero swing: the driver on the tight hole, the flag tucked behind the bunker.
- We keep replaying it. Part of our attention is still on the last shot, not this one.
A sports psychologist writing for the Golf Performance Center makes the same point: anger and upset talk golfers into aggressive play right when they should be doing the opposite.
A reset routine for the next shot
- The ten-step rule. You're allowed to be furious for ten steps. On step eleven, it's over.
- One slow breath out before you pull a club.
- Play the safer shot. After a bad hole, take one less risk than you normally would, especially off the tee. And use the club you trust. If my 56 gets me out of bunkers, the 60 can stay in the bag.
- Run your normal routine, exactly. Same steps, same timing. The routine gives your mind a job that isn't the last shot.
- Set a realistic goal. Not birdie. The Golf Performance Center suggests aiming to be one shot better than the previous hole. A double followed by a bogey is a bounce back for most of us.
Drill: practise bouncing back
On the range, deliberately hit one bad shot: an exaggerated slice, a topped ball, whatever you dread. Then run the full reset routine and hit a normal shot to a target. Repeat five times. You're practising the moment after the mistake, which most golfers never rehearse.
Watch the video
See you on the first tee.Bring the 56.
Sources
- The Golf Performance Center (2024). Bounce Back. PGA Tour Bounce Back figures through the 2024 3M Open.