Q&A
Why did you write this book?
This story has been brewing inside of me for over 20 years. The 1991 California State Amateur Championship was played in Pebble Beach. I qualified to play in the tournament by earning one of 3 spots at The Olympic Club. I shot 144 for 36 holes and punched my ticket to play Pebble for the first time in my life. It was a really big deal for me to qualify and my dad took a week off from work. He caddied for me in the practice and stroke play rounds with the incentive that if I made match play he would get me a local caddy. When I made match play he hired Ray Mednis whose nick name was “Foot”. I ended up playing really well and having a breakout week and Foot was a major part of that. Over the years I have always wondered about the Momentum I had that week and I wanted to share it with others in hopes that they too can start to pay special attention to how momentum can have a positive impact in both golf and life.
Was Foot really that mystical?
Yes and no. In one way he was mystical, because I was 21, came from a very conservative family, and he was a little disheveled and had a distinctive smell. He was very tall, soft spoken, and had a wry confidence. Did we talk about momentum and beasts? No we did not, but he did guide me around the course and helped me make good decisions and a ton of putts. I remember him raking a bunker from the other side of the green and telling me how a putt was going to break without even looking at it.
What about Cyrus Steele?
Cyrus represents every golfer I have ever played with who tried to control the energy of the group by being grumpy. All competitive golfers understand the need to be focused, but most do their best to not be too contagious with their emotions one way or the other out of respect. However for some golfers, controlling the energy of the group is actually part of their strategy and I have always found their tactics to be bothersome. I had lots of fun writing about a miserable but accomplished golfer. Hopefully writing about it will allow others to notice and maybe point out to them how poorly they are behaving.
What about the Beasts, where did you come up with the idea and did you leave any of them out?
The thought of a beast came from reading Dave Stockton’s book “Unconscious Putting” where he talked about the difference between confidence and expectation. On page 57 he wrote “Expectation is a different beast.” I loved that book and it struck a chord for me that we are all playing golf against ourselves in one way or the other and by naming it something like The Beast of Expectation it might help me address it more efficiently. Once I had one beast named, I kept finding other mental hurdles that I faced during my rounds and so I named those as well. A funny thing happened when a few of my rough drafts were read by my fellow golf enthusiasts; they actually had more Beasts for me. So maybe there are more chapters out there in the future for Tom and Foot to address.
What do you hope readers take away from "Finding Big Mo?
I hope it helps them love the game of golf more. I hope it allows them to love the challenge of the game, and to realize every time they play they can have their best round ever. I also hope I can help golfers realize that the thing standing between them and their best golf is probably their self- talk while on the golf course. The more I have been around leadership training in work and in other areas of my life, the more I have noticed the power of “I am” statements. Statements like “I am a bad putter” or “I am a short hitter” don’t do golfers any favors. How are you supposed to get Momentum in your round when you don’t have positive self-talk? Turn those words around and say “I am a great putter” and see what happens.