I have to count my blessings. Today, I got to play the gloriously beautiful Edgewood-Tahoe Golf Course, near Stateline in South Lake Tahoe. To give you taste of this golfing pleasure, here’s my old friend Robert and new friend Gary walking down #16 toward the Lake:

We played early and watched a coyote run across the 2nd fairway. This is a special place. Edgewood is a first class track and the scenery couldn’t be better. It was a beautiful morning with the wind picking up on our back nine. I shot a respectable 91 from the white tees, had a great time and we played in four hours.

The best part was sharing another part of what Fred Shoemaker talked about at the Shivas Irons-Pasatiempo event with my friend Robert, who has also done Extraordinary Golf schools with Fred. At one point, Fred talked about having it all “be OK” wherever the ball goes… fairway, O.B., rough, trap, whatever. Ultimately, you have to accept it wherever the ball goes anyway, right? But thinking about anywhere it goes being OK before you hit it seems to enable more freedom.

In addition, I’ve extended the concept and I’ve been using this idea successfully recently with putting. It helps me “just hit” my putts (when I remember). I shared this with Robert on the back nine and he instantly made a couple of putts and putted with more freedom. The difference was obvious. Yay!

I hope this helps you play with more freedom and to make more birdies and pars. Here’s the view of a foursome on the first tee that I took from right next to where we ate lunch. Happy Labor Day to you all!