Trip To Taupo

At the end of last week I was unexpectedly offered a trip to Taupo where the main attraction was a round of golf at Wairake International. Having never played there before and as it is rated in the top 3 (I think) in New Zealand I had no hesitation is accepting.
I also have some very good friends living down in Taupo and this would be an opportunity to catch up with them. Roy and Debbie Menton have been in New Zealand just over a year and settled in Taupo. I think they settled there as Roy is keeping his lovely thin wife all to himself. Can't say I blame him. It was great to see them again and they look very settled and happy. Unfortunately Roy was not able to phone in sick and join us for a game on Monday.
Wairake truly is a lovely golf course and no expense has been spared in making it a truly memorable occasion. From the minute you arrive the pro shop staff, Dax and Steve are helpful and cannot do enough. The practice range facilities are superb and on the day we were there the course was relatively quiet.
We had a beautiful day and as it was just a "hit out" I decided to use the round to test Michael Anthony's 4 step process. I was very impressed.

The 4 steps are:
1. Feedback Response. Once played analyze the reason the shot has gone where it has. If it was a good shot pat yourself on the back. If it wasn't quite what you intended then determine if it was a mechanical fault or was it something mental? Adjust accordingly and move on.
2. Relax. Accept and acknowledge your feelings and emotions. And relax. History is history and you do not know what the future holds so don't fear it.
3.Preparation. Analyze the next shot, the obstacles, distance, wind, terrain etc., your chances of execution with the selected club. Prepare for the shot and accept that you can only control the present. Have confidence in your ability.
4.Instinctive execution. Get up and trust your swing. Play the shot and go back to feedback response.

I want to tell you I had some pretty bad shots which would normally make me irate, especially on such a lovely golf course, but with this approach I never once got upset for longer than 10 seconds.
All in all the process outline in The Mental Keys To Improve Your Golf worked for me on the day and I shot a very good round (35 Stableford points - which was the format we played on the day) on a strange and tough course.
The next day we headed back home and on the way stopped off at Tokoroa for another game. This is another top course and is rated in the top 25 in New Zealand. If you can draw the ball you will be off to a flying start on this course as the first 5 holes all favour a draw.
The greens weren't as slick as Wairake and they took some getting used to. All in all a great little track that requires a lot of shot making to some blind pin positions on elevated greens. A real challenge that my golf didn't stand up to but once again The Mental Keys helped me to stay focused and calm, accepting that it just wasn't my day.
All in all a great trip with some good laughs with two good mates and a catch up with some old friends. Thanks to all concerned.