Welcome to issue number 48 of The 3 Minute Golfer. This FREE, weekly publication is here to help every golfer improve their mental game and their personal wellbeing. 

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Golf is often described as a game played on the fairway between your ears. Nowhere is that truer than when impatience creeps in. Impatience doesn’t just affect tempo or attitude, it quietly sabotages decision-making, shot selection, and ultimately scoring. Many of the most common mistakes golfers make aren’t technical flaws, they’re emotional reactions driven by the urge to get on with it, make something happen, or fix things immediately.

Impatient golfers tend to make decisions based on emotion rather than logic. A poor shot triggers a desire for instant redemption, leading to overly aggressive choices, like going for a tucked pin instead of the centre of the green, trying to carry a hazard when you should clearly lay up short, or pulling driver when a fairway wood or iron would keep trouble out of play.

When patience disappears, risk tolerance spikes. Golfers stop asking, “What’s the smart play?” and start asking, “How do I get this hole back right now?” The result is compounding mistakes, with one bad decision stacked on top of another.

In psychology, patience is more than just “waiting without ranting” it’s a character trait involving calm endurance in the face of error, delay and frustration. It includes emotional and behavioural control, not just the ability to sit through someone else’s pre-shot routine. Researchers studying golfers have found that top players often excel because they manage their emotions and stay focused one shot at a time. Patience, confidence, and the ability to focus just before the swing appear among the hallmarks of the best golfers. (PubMed)

Learned or Inherited…Here’s where the science gets interesting…researchers haven’t isolated a “patience gene,” but personality studies suggest that many traits, including persistence and impulse control, are moderately heritable, meaning genes play a role, but environment and experience matter too. (PMC) Twin and family studies show that genetics can influence your baseline temperament. Roughly 30–60% of personality variation might be inherited but that means a big chunk of what makes you patient or impatient comes from your upbringing, practice, culture, and experiences. (Healthline)

Fiery and Itchy…are two golfing mindsets that exude impatience. Fiery, as discussed in newsletter number 12 is always playing on the edge of boiling over and losing it at any moment. While the Itchy mental style is often overly competitive and impatiently looking for that little bit more, even when the statistical chances of success are very small. Both can cite numerous times when their round has been ruined by their impatience.

Delay Gratification…Great course management requires delayed gratification. Sometimes the correct decision feels boring…aim away from the flag, accept a longer putt, or play for bogey instead of forcing par. Patient golfers understand that minimising damage is often more valuable than chasing hero shots.

Don’t Rush…Impatience shows up in how your shots are executed. If you rush your pre-shot routine and skip key checkpoints, you’re more likely to swing with tension and lose rhythm. Ironically, the desire to speed things up usually produces slower rounds and worse results. Extra shots, penalty strokes, and recovery attempts add far more time than a calm, deliberate routine. Elite players understand that patience in preparation leads to freedom in execution.

Avoid Chasing Outcomes…One of the biggest errors impatient golfers make is focusing on hopeful outcomes. They swing hoping for a result rather than committing to a clear target and swing intention. Your brain can’t swing freely while simultaneously trying to control the future. Patience shifts focus back to what’s controllable…routine, aim, and tempo. The score takes care of itself when the process is respected.

Think The Buffet Way…Warren Buffett famously said, “The stock market is a device for transferring money from the impatient to the patient.” Golf operates under the same principle. Strokes are transferred from impatient players to patient ones every day. Just as investors who chase short-term gains often buy high and sell low, golfers who chase quick fixes and immediate results usually compound their losses. The patient golfer plays the long game…accepting small setbacks, sticking to a plan, and trusting that consistency beats volatility over 18 holes.

Be Actively Patient…Patience isn’t passive. It’s actively disciplined. It means sticking to a strategy, committing to smart targets, and accepting that not every hole will go your way. Patient golfers stay emotionally neutral, recover faster from mistakes, and avoid the snowball effect that ruins rounds. They understand a fundamental truth…golf rewards restraint as much as skill.

Slow Down…The difference between your good and bad rounds is rarely a change in your inherited talent or skills. More often, it’s your ability to slow down, think clearly, and let the game unfold. Just like investing, relationships, and mastery in any field, golf quietly favours those willing to wait. Because in golf, just as Buffett observed with investing, success almost always flows from the impatient to the patient.

An Analogy…Turning the heat up too high doesn’t make food cook better…it burns it. Swinging harder rarely produces better shots. In all cases, impatience creates the illusion of progress while actually increasing risk.

See the References Here.

While staying patient can help your golf game, it seems it can also benefit your wellbeing.

Obesity…Scientists have discovered actual long-term health payoffs for patient people. In a large Swedish study that followed nearly 12,000 adolescents for almost five decades, those who preferred immediate rewards…ended up with worse health and a higher likelihood of obesity and premature death in adulthood compared to those who were more patient. (Royal Economic Society)

Diabetes…Impatience doesn’t just make waiting for your coffee annoying…it can make you unhealthy. In research on people with type 2 diabetes, those who favoured immediate rewards were more likely to skip medications and have worse blood sugar control. (PubMed) 

Stress…Patience can be a stress-coping mechanism. Among nearly 1,800 college students, those who used patient coping strategies to manage interpersonal stresses had lower levels of depressive symptoms. (PubMed) Likewise, workers in high-pressure health systems who scored higher on patience also showed better stress tolerance. (PMC) 

Emotions…Scientists studying personality and health have also found that patience helps emotion regulation. Researchers define impatience as the emotional reaction to a wait that feels “unfair” or “too long,” and patience as the coping strategy that helps you deal with that frustration. (ScienceDaily) 

Pain…In people with cardiovascular disease, higher patience has been associated with lower pain reports. (USQ Research) It seems that people who are good at waiting also experience pain less intensely. 

Health…In general, research suggests that being patient is associated with better stress tolerance, fewer depressive symptoms, healthier coping, and longer lifespans.

See the References Here.

Question from Elaine in Melbourne. 

Question: I know I’m a fair-weather golfer because my brain turns into soggy cardboard when there is any strong wind or rain about. It stresses even further when the rain and wind come together. Is it scientifically proven that bad weather drains motivation and guarantees terrible scores, or is it just me? Are there any techniques for handling the bad weather better?

Answer: Bad weather creates discomfort, distraction, and a loss of perceived control, all of which your mind interprets as threats. The key mental shift is accepting that discomfort is part of the challenge, not a sign the round is doomed. The moment you stop fighting the weather emotionally, you free up mental energy to actually play golf.

Reframe the conditions as a shared problem, not a personal curse. Everyone on the course is battling the same wind and rain, even if some are better at pretending they enjoy it. Shift your mindset from “This weather is ruining my game” to “This weather is challenging everyone,” which keeps you focused and competitive instead of discouraged.

Narrow your focus dramatically. Bad weather makes long-term thinking overwhelming, so stop thinking about scores, handicaps, or how miserable the next four holes might be. Shrink your world to one shot, one decision, one target. Windy and rainy rounds are won mentally by players who simplify…not by those trying to play “normal golf” in abnormal conditions.

Build a weather routine that becomes familiar and calming. Extra club, smoother swing, lower expectations, deeper breaths and repeat the same process every time conditions are poor. Routines act like mental anchors, they tell your brain, “I’ve been here before, and I know what to do.” Confidence doesn’t come from perfect shots in bad weather…it comes from predictable decisions. 

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