The importance of the pre-game routine

Last Sunday one of my golf buddies called me to fill in his foursome at the last minute. I hadn't planned on playing but the invitation was too good to resist. I said YES!

Now under normal circumstances I know when and where I'm playing a few days in advance. This invitation came about two hours before the round was to start. "No problem." I told him... "I'll be on the first tee in plenty of time."

This was my first mistake. As those words slid over my tongue, I mentally dismissed the all-important warm up time on the range before the round. I had a few last minute errands to run, but I could be there in time... or so I thought.

My second mistake was to misjudge the drive time. Unfortunately my last minute errands ran a bit long and I underestimated the drive time to the course. And as it turned out... I underestimated by a lot! I also hadn't planned for some the game day traffic on my route. Oops!

Our tee time was 12:51pm and I arrived at 1:18 pm. Needless to say, the group was well into the second hole by the time I arrived.

I wanted to mention another ill-advised brain killer that I experienced that day. As I impatiently sat in that precious time consuming traffic, my mood shifted in a dark and dangerous direction! I was cussing at old lady drivers, yelling at misguided teenagers and generally pissed off at the world. This is NOT a good pre game routine!

I arrived at the course, quickly checked in and hitched a ride out to meet my foursome. I watched as they finished up number two and prepared for my first swing of the day.

A pull-hook into the left rough. The group graciously granted me a mulligan noticing my lack of swing preparation. It was a thin DH drive that went about 160 yards.

I needed to regroup mentally. I shared the disastrous road trip details with my group and managed to yuck it up a bit. But my lack of preparation was not to be ignored. It was ten or fifteen errant swings that jacked my partial score beyond normal recognition.

I was able to salvage the back nine, but the round was one of my worst this summer.

So what have I learned? Well first of all, be certain you can arrive at the course 45 to 60 minutes before the round. Do a specific warm up on the range. Just 10 or 15 shots can work out some of the swing kinks. And it's a good idea to get a feel for your putter on the practice green.

All this in addition to working out game details with your foursome. Choose tee boxes, make bets and get comfortable before the round.

What are your pre-game routines and how do they help you?