Foreword by Dr. Bob Rotella
“Gary, as much as anyone I ever saw, has that thing inside him that champions have.”
–Jack Nicklaus
“Gary is one of the greatest competitors who ever played the game.”
–Arnold Palmer
It doesn’t take thirty-five years of working with the greatest athletes, golfers and businessmen in the world to learn that everyone feels pressure. It does, however, take a man as seasoned and accomplished as Gary Player to teach us how to thrive under pressure, and avoid choking in competitive situations. Gary Player is one of golf’s greatest champions. As one of the “Big Three” of golf’s golden era (with Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer), he helped launch golf as a major international sport. Don’t Choke is his look at what it takes to overcome adversity.
Player explains how and why he became a champion and what it takes to win in big-time golf. He reviews the most pressure-packed situations in his major victories and how he managed to succeed when things were most tense! Then, he explains how learning to cope in pressured situations can help anyone. Player shares how what he learned from golf can help you with personal and business success!
Player has had a long, successful career in business since his playing days—designing golf courses, marketing golf equipment and sportswear, and more. If you want to do better in a boardroom or in your next job interview, Player’s advice will help. He is an ideal role model and teacher. He has maintained an infectiously positive and enthusiastic attitude throughout his life, and managed to combine a great marriage and family with succeeding in golf and business!
In Don’t Choke, Player makes it clear that he really gets it and actually lived it.
His lessons include:
· having a healthy perspective
· playing against yourself and the golf course
· Respecting your own game
· Going out and executing your game plan
· Controlling the stuff you can control and not worrying about what you can’t control
· And much, much more!
Player makes it clear that sometimes you do all the right things and someone still beats you, but the real challenge is not to beat yourself. This personal glimpse into the mind of a champion offers lessons to everyone who has to face pressure—and today that is all of us!
About the Authors:
Gary Player is considered one of the greatest golfers of all time, having eighteen major wins, nine on the PGA Tour and the other nine on the PGA Champions Tour. He is also the most accomplished international golfer of all time, winning 164 tournaments worldwide over five decades. Born in South Africa, he now lives in South Carolina.
Dr. Bob Rotella is consistently recognized as the world’s premier Sports Psychologist. He has dedicated his life to helping coaches, athletes, business leaders, and salespeople use their minds and emotions to take them to the top of their chosen professions. Rotella is the author of Golf Is Not a Game of Perfect, the bestselling sports psychology book of all time. He has been selected as one of the “Top 10 Golf Teachers of the 20th Century.” In addition to being a columnist and editorial board member for Golf Digest magazine and a contributing editor for Sports Psychology Journal, he appears regularly on NBC’s “High Performance Golf”, on the Golf Channel, and Larry King Live.
Don’t Choke: A Champion’s Guide to Winning Under Pressure
By Gary Player
On Sale: July 2010
ISBN: 978-1-61608-038-9
Price: $19.95
