A quick follow-up on yesterday’s message.
Scottie Scheffler’s story is awesome. His career is a wonderful model for competitive discipline. But his path is by no means the only one or the most common.
Scheffler is the peak of excellence in his craft. He is on a generational run, etching his name among the greatest to ever play the game of golf.
But for every Scottie Scheffler, there are dozens and dozens of professional golfers who have been working just as hard for years who have yet to achieve that kind of success.
Tommy Fleetwood is the current #15 ranked golfer in the world. A fan favorite since joining the PGA Tour in 2018, Fleetwood is fun, kind, and has a beautiful swing.
But he’s never won a PGA Tour event. He does have 8 international wins.
- 161 events
- 2nd place 6x
- 3rd place 5x
- Top Five 28x
- Top Ten 42x
Since joining the Tour, Fleetwood has made $31,360,669 in official money. That’s an average of $3.9 million per year. Sponsorship and endorsement deals are extra.
He’s by no means failing. He’s massively succeeding. He just hasn’t finished first in a PGA Tour tournament.
As a competitor, he’s probably frustrated. I’m sure he’s desperate to win and working hard to make that happen. But he’s created a rock solid career, made a ton of money, and built one of the best reputations and brands in the game.
Wins and losses are one measure of success, but they are not the only measure and not always the best one. Obsession with winning, and the inability to handle not winning, has damaged as many lives as it has helped, if not more.
If you put competitive discipline into the pursuit of excellence, and you stay with it, there is no doubt that you will produce excellence. But the excellence you create can follow many different paths, take on many different shapes, and fit your life in many different ways.
Pursue excellence and keep your mind open.
Event + Response = Outcome. Do the work.
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