“The Open” was a few weeks ago. Formerly known as the “British Open” it is one of the biggest tournaments of the golf year. Our household was pretty tuned in. My seven-year old is a golf fanatic. Him and I got up each morning at 5 AM during the tournament. Due to the time difference, he wanted to get up early to watch all his favorite players play. It was a fun time for him.
Scottie Scheffler ran away with the tournament. There was very little drama or doubt for most of the tournament of who was going to win. Scottie, however, stole the show before the tournament during a pre-tournament press conference where he talked about winning and what matters. Here is an excerpt from it:
Reporter (Doug Ferguson, AP): “What would be the longest you’ve ever celebrated something, and what was the most crushing loss?”
Scheffler:
“I think it’s kind of funny. … I said something after the Byron this year about it feels like you work your whole life to celebrate winning a tournament for a few minutes. It only lasts a few minutes, that kind of euphoric feeling. … You win it, you celebrate—hug your Family—it’s such an amazing moment. And then it’s like, OK, now what are we going to eat for dinner?”
“Life goes on. … It brings tears to my eyes just to think about … I’ve literally worked my entire life. To become good at the sport and to have that kind of sense of accomplishment is a pretty cool feeling. To live out your dreams is very special.”
“But at the end of the day … I’m not out here to inspire the next generation of golfers. I’m not here to inspire somebody else to be the best player in the world—because what’s the point?”
“This is not a fulfilling life. It’s fulfilling from a sense of accomplishment, but it’s not fulfilling from a sense of the deepest places of your heart. … You get to No. 1 in the world, and they’re like, what’s the point? … Why do I want to win this tournament so badly? … I don’t know, because if I win, it’s going to be awesome for two minutes.”
“I Love the challenge. I love being able to play this game for a living. It’s one of the greatest joys of my life. But does it fill the deepest wants and desires of my heart? Absolutely not.”
“This is not the place to look for your satisfaction. … It’s something you can appreciate and be thankful for. It’s literally one of the most fun things I can do in my entire life. I love being able to come out here and compete. But at the end of the day, it’s not what satisfies me.”
On what does fulfill him:
“Golf does fulfill me, along with my family. But if the game ever ever affected my role as a husband and father, I’d quit on the spot. Family matters the most to me.”
Reading this reminded me of an interview I saw from Tom Brady many years ago. Here it is:
Two of the greatest to ever play their sports, both saying the same thing: the pinnacle of performance isn’t the pinnacle of life.
As coaches, we need to remember this—winning is worth chasing, but it can’t be the only thing. The work we do with athletes has to connect to something deeper.
Question for coaches:
If the scoreboard disappeared tomorrow, what would still make your program worth being part of?
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