What Jared Shared From His Book, “EVERYDAY GOLF PSYCHOLOGY”
1. Emotions aren’t random—they’re signals
• Anger, fear, embarrassment, overconfidence… none of these are “mental weaknesses.”
• They’re outputs of something deeper: expectations, flawed goals, poor preparation, or misjudged skill.
• Trying to “stay calm” without understanding why you’re upset is like trying to fix a slice by adjusting your grip every hole.

2. Overconfidence is a silent killer
Most golfers don’t realize they’re overconfident until they’re already playing poorly.
Overconfidence often comes from:
• A few good practice sessions
• A hot streak on the range
• Misjudging actual skill level
• Tournament performance exposes the truth: practice success ≠ competitive readiness.

3. Fear of embarrassment is more common than fear of failure
Recreational golfers especially worry about:
• Looking stupid
• Holding up the group
• Hitting a bad shot in front of others
This creates tension, rushed routines, and poor decision-making.

Focus: The Real Engine of Performance
4. Focus is driven by goals, not discipline
Jared was adamant:
“Focus isn’t something you do—it’s something your goals create.”
If your goals are vague (“play well today”), your focus will be vague.
Clear goals = clear attention.

5. Phones destroy focus more than people admit
• Even checking your phone between shots fractures your mental rhythm.
• The brain doesn’t fully “return” to golf for several minutes.
• Recreational golfers underestimate how much this matters.

Accessing Information During Shots
6. Great players access more detail, not less
They see:
• Wind patterns
• Lies
• Shot windows
• Tendencies
• Emotional state
Most amateurs try to “simplify” too much and end up ignoring critical data.

Bridging Practice → Competition
7. Practice must simulate pressure
Otherwise:
• You build skills you can’t access under stress.
• You create false confidence.
• You never learn how your emotions behave in competition.
Jared’s strategies included:
• Adding consequences to practice
• Tracking emotional patterns
• Practicing decision-making, not just mechanics
• Using post‑shot evaluations to build awareness

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week on Those Weekend Golf Guys, John Ashton is joined by two of our favorite smart‑aleck swing whisperers, Scott Monroe and Jeff Smith, for a conversation that wanders all over the golf landscape — in the best possible way.

We kick things off with the U.S. Open, where the golf was great, the crowds were… enthusiastic, and the etiquette was somewhere between “country club polite” and “rock concert adjacent.” From there, we jump into the hot‑button topic of music on the golf course — does it help you groove or make you shank it harder? Depends on who you ask.

Scott drops an absolute gem of a story about a pro in Australia who literally blacked out mid‑round and kept playing. Yes, really. That leads us straight into the mental side of golf — why this game demands a totally different headspace than sports where you never stop moving. We dig into hypnotism, visualization, and positive self‑talk, including Scott’s upcoming work with hypnotist Ricky Kalman, who might just be the next secret weapon for golfers everywhere.

We also talk about the future of young talent: Can late bloomers still make it? How has NIL changed college golf? And what does the modern path to the pros look like now that 19‑year‑olds have sponsorship deals bigger than our mortgages?

It’s smart, it’s funny, it’s a little chaotic — in other words, it’s exactly what you expect from Those Weekend Golf Guys

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week, John and Jeff dive headfirst into the part of golf that ruins more rounds than bad lies and slow groups combined: the mental circus inside your own head.

Pressure, Panic & Playing With People Who Scare You
Jeff kicks things off with a story about playing at his father‑in‑law’s club — the classic “I swear I’m better than this” round — where he tried so hard to impress everyone that he played like a man who’d never held a golf club before. John jumps in with how working with Jeff helped him stop trying to prove anything to anyone and start leaning into humor, fun, and the occasional self‑burn. Because nothing lowers expectations faster than making fun of yourself before anyone else can.

Golf With Better Players (AKA: The Intimidation Olympics)

Jeff talks about playing with golfers of all skill levels and how he tries to make people comfortable by pretending he’s not a Top‑100 teacher. John admits that playing with Jeff can be intimidating — because watching someone flush it on command is a humbling experience — but it all circles back to the mental game being the real separator.

U.S. Open Talk: Courses, Carnage & Wyndham Clark

The guys break down the U.S. Open setup and whether the USGA intentionally picks courses designed to make grown men cry. They talk about Wyndham Clark’s win, how a previous meltdown shaped his mindset, and that ridiculous recovery shot on 16 that basically said, “I’m winning this thing, thanks.”

Hero Shots & Why Pros Go Full Send

John and Jeff debate a player choosing the aggressive route instead of taking an unplayable. Jeff calls it a hero shot. John calls it Tuesday. They agree that when the difference between first and second is millions of dollars, you don’t lay up — you swing like you mean it.

Golf Psychology: Your Brain Is Not Your Friend

The guys get into why telling yourself “don’t hit it in the water” is the fastest way to hit it in the water. Jeff shares his Golf.com first‑tee jitters video and how negative thoughts become self‑fulfilling disasters. They lay out real fixes:

• Deep breaths
• Fast, loose practice swings
• A single, clear target
• ZERO math mid‑round

Bagger Vance, Tunnel Vision & The Good Kind of Zoning Out

Jeff brings up The Legend of Bagger Vance to explain that magical moment when the world blurs, the target sharpens, and the swing just happens. John nods approvingly, mostly because it means he gets to reference a movie he actually remembers.

Thinking vs. Doing (Spoiler: Thinking Loses)

Jeff reminds listeners that you can’t think your way through a golf swing — it happens too fast. It’s like trying to play guitar while reading the sheet music for the first time. As Jeff’s buddy John Dunnigan says: “When you think, you stink.”

Warm‑Up Like You Mean It

They talk about warming up without a ball first to avoid early‑round negativity. Jeff suggests hitting the ground with a tee to find balance and rhythm before you start judging yourself.

Stop Doing Math & Start Playing Golf

The guys wrap by reminding golfers to stop calculating their score mid‑round and focus on one shot at a time. They tease an upcoming episode with sports psychologist Jared Tendler, who will either validate everything they’ve said… or politely tell them they’re full of it.

They close with the usual: subscribe, leave a review, and stay tuned for more mental‑game wisdom — or at least entertaining nonsense.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.