Bob Rotella - Make Your Next Shot Your Best Shot: The Secret to Playing Great Golf

Foreword by Padraig Harrington

Make Your Next Shot Your Best Shot

The Secret to Playing Great Golf

Dr. Bob Rotella

Bestselling Author of Golf Is Not a Game of Perfect

With Roger Schiffman

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To Mom and Dad, who loved each other, and who loved all their children equally, and who taught us that everything good in life must be earned, and that we should not expect anything to be given to us. So live your life with passion and be sure to appreciate all that you get, and all those who help you along the way.

by Padraig Harrington

I first met Dr. Bob Rotella in 1998, and since then we have worked together for the better part of twenty years. One of my most telling moments with Bob came immediately after the 2006 US Open at Winged Foot, in Mamaroneck, New York. If I had parred the last three holes, I would have won. And I broke the back on each of those holes by hitting three good tee shots. But I bogeyed the 16th hole, and then I pressed too much on 17th and 18th and made two more bogeys.

So as Im walking off the 18th green, through the bleachers and up the shale path toward that iconic, grand Tudor clubhouse, there he is, waiting for me in the reserved area. I can guess the meeting were about to have. But Bob doesnt know the secret Im about to tell him. I give him a polite nod with no reference to my mindset, good or bad, on the way to taking care of my scorecard. Unfortunately for him, he has to wait that five minutes while Im doing my card, and I knew he was concerned about me, and I suspected he thought I was devastated, but that was not the case. Now, as Bob always says, I have a choice: I can allow those last three holes to negatively shape the rest of my career, which I have seen happen to other professionals, or I can take away something positive. I had been learning this lesson since I was eighteen years of age, and that day at Winged Foot was an epiphany. You see, a similar occurrence happened to me in the Irish Youths Championship, an important tournament in my homeland. I bogeyed three of the last four holes to lose the tournament. Kids can be harsh, using words such as choker. I had cried in the carpark afterward, but not because of what they called me. I think the real reason I cried was that I didnt know why I had bogeyed three holes at the end. Fortunately, I got over that experience with a solid record for Ireland and three Walker Cup appearances (1991, 1993, 1995) before I turned professional at age twenty-four. But now, in 2006, with the understanding from Bob, I knew exactly what I was experiencing, nearly as if I were standing outside my own body watching it. I now had no doubt at the end of that championshipI told myself, I know how to get into this position and I know how to win when Im in this position.

Until that US Open at Winged Foot, I always felt that for me to win a major I needed other players to help me out by playing poorly. But something incredible happened to me that week, and Bob was instrumental in making that a reality. He got me to that optimum position in my mental gamewe had been working diligently on honing this attitude for quite some time. Whereas up to that point I always hoped I could win a major, this time I knew that I could have won this major by myself; it was within my grasp. I didnt need to hole a long putt or get a lucky break. Bob had given me the confidence that I needed to fulfill my biggest dreams. Instead of thinking that I messed up, I was thinking that now I had a plan. And if I went through with my plan, and did my processes, it was good enough to win. Id played just my normal golf that weeknothing spectacularand I nearly won. I didnt have a great week of holing incredible putts or chipping in. Everything about my performance seemed totally within me. There was nothing extreme in how I played. I did feel mentally that week that I was right there. But physically I was just ordinary. Id set a plan and a process, and it delivered without my having a miraculous week. I had never had that feeling before. Previously, I always thought I had to do my absolute best to win a major. But suddenly I realized that wasnt the case.

So I come back out of the scorers tent, and I have the biggest smile ever, Im sure to Bobs relief. Im so excited, Im like a little schoolboy with good news to tell. And I say to Bob, I know now I can win a major championship. This was a game-changing event for me, and the person I most wanted to share it with was Bob, as if he were my best friend. Thats one of the reasons I like working with Bob. Im always bouncing my ideas off him, and as always with Bob, it is a sharing experience. As much as hes trying to help you, hes always trying to learn. Were both getting better together. I learned from Bob that when youre comfortable mentally, good things happen. He knows how to make his players comfortable by helping to give them confidence in their ability. You always perform better when youre a big fish in a small pond, rather than a small fish in a big pond. And that day at Winged Foot, I turned into a big fish.

Of course, I went on to win The Open Championship the next two years (2007 and 2008), as well as the 2008 PGA Championship, all in a span of thirteen months. I went on to have a career that includes thirty-one professional victories worldwide, six Ryder Cup appearances, and becoming the 2020 European Ryder Cup captain (the matches were delayed until 2021 due to COVID-19). I owe much of my success to Dr. Bob Rotella.

Bob has never changed his tune. He has a tremendous amount of experience, and he has worked with the best performers in many different sports and activities, from basketball to football to lacrosse to tennis to equestrian to motor racing, even to music and actingand of course to golf. Theres no fancy stuff in what he tells you. Its simple and straightforward. Its Do this day in and day out, and you will get better. But there is always the responsibility for you to do it. You do it today, but you also have to do it tomorrow, and the next day. And the more you do it, the better you will get. It can be annoyingly simple, and thats what I love about Bob. Hes there to help you, but hes not holding your hand. Ultimately, especially in golf, you have to go out there on your own. He is not a crutch. He gives you the tools so you are comfortable out there doing it by yourself. Bob has a down-to-earth quality that makes his approach so appealing. Hes not playing tricks.

We can go to many golf courses throughout the world, and we can pick out a couple of players at each club who hit the ball and swing the club as well as half of the players on tour. Yet, some of these guys wouldnt even break 80. So the biggest difference must be mental. Today, so many people in golf love the physical side of the game because that can be measured. We can assess what the swing looks like, we can determine a players clubhead speed, the angle of attack, and so forth. We are all preconditioned to think that if someone