Are you always walking off the course saying something like: “If I just didn’t make that double … or that triple … I would’ve had a great round!”?
Every golfer hits bad shots. Your swing isn’t perfect. It’s not one bad swing that ruins your round. It’s what happens after the bad swing.
Blow-up holes aren’t about mechanics; they’re about response and preparation. If you don’t have a plan for what to do when things go wrong, you’ll start compounding mistakes. That’s when doubles, triples and worse show up on the card.
Here are three things I would recommend doing if you want to stop being “one hole away” from your best round.
1. Control yourself. Don’t chase after mistakes.
There’s a pattern that leads to most blow-up holes. You tug a drive left, end up under a tree and immediately think, “I’ll fix this with one big swing.” Or you miss a short putt and decide to “get it back” on the very next tee.
The truth is that you’re not behind. One bogey doesn’t derail the round. The danger is telling yourself you need to make up ground immediately. That’s when you try the thread-the-needle punch through trees or fire at a tucked flag you have no business chasing.
Tour players make mistakes all the time. The good ones don’t let emotion choose the next shot. They know when to take their medicine and move on.
Key Takeaway: After a mistake, remind yourself: “I’m not behind. I’m still on pace if I stay smart.” Then choose the high-percentage shot, not the ego shot.
2. Damage control mode. Bogey is fine.
Blow-ups usually happen because golfers don’t know what their “scoring safety net” is.
They get in trouble and think, “How do I save par?” instead of asking, “How do I make bogey from here?”
That mindset shift is a game-changer. Instead of desperately trying to recover, you start to make smart shots that make bogey an achievable score. It shifts your target to the middle of the green instead of firing at trouble. It forces you to manage the downside instead of taking a gamble.
Your threshold will depend on your scoring goals:
- Breaking 100: Doubles happen but triples (and worse) are what blow up the card. Keep those off.
- Breaking 90: Bogeys are fine. Limit yourself to no more than three or four doubles in a round if you want a chance to post an 89.
- Breaking 80: Better players can survive the occasional double but the key is keeping doubles to just a couple per round and eliminating triples.
Key Takeaway: Ask this every time you’re in trouble: “How do I make bogey from here?” You’ll be surprised how often that bogey turns into a par and how many triples never show up.
3. Find a trigger to reset.
Sometimes, no matter how well you manage things, you’re going to have a rough hole.
This is where a reset routine matters. Little actions signal to your brain: “That hole is over. Let’s move on.” You can choose something that works specifically for your game or experiment with some different options. Some golfers change the golf ball they have in play or try one of these resets.
- Wipe down your club and clean the golf ball before the start of the next hole.
- Take your glove off and then re-Velcro it before the next tee shot.
- Do one cycle of box breathing while you walk to the tee. (Box breathing is a simple breathing technique where you inhale for four seconds, hold for four, exhale for four, and hold for four before repeating.)
These physical cues help shut the door on the past and reset your focus. Without them, frustration can linger and your next swing comes with baggage from the last hole.
Key Takeaway: Build a consistent reset. Use the same small actions every time so your brain associates them with letting go.
Final thoughts
I use all of these strategies. The older I get, the easier it is for me to accept a bogey and realize I’ll make up for it later in the round. When I was younger and playing more competitive golf, I always had that voice in my head pushing me toward the hero shot. I had no stats or data to back up those decisions. Now I play smarter golf and, because of that, I rarely see blow-up holes.
One more thing I’d be remiss not to mention is the short game. A solid short game can save your score on any hole. Getting up and down is huge. You can take four shots to reach the green on a par-4, roll in a putt and still walk away with a bogey. The real damage comes when it takes four shots to get on and then you three-putt.
Hopefully, this advice helps you stop compounding errors and handing strokes back. Most importantly, you’ll be able to finally stop saying, “If it wasn’t for that one hole …”
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