What we can learn from David Duval

Posted by doug

February 18, 2010

I know, I know – enough David Duval . . . but I really did want to mention something that I think is important in golf and sports in general.

And it was something David mentioned in the last post I did called, David Duval – Back in the Saddle Again – and it was part of the press conference he did after he came in second at the 2010 Pebble Beach AT&T Pro Am – and I will highlight what David said in the quote below:

“I just believe — my guess is that with where I’ve been and what I’ve gone through, I think that the fact that – at least I feel like I’ve kept my head high through it all and acted like a professional and haven’t quit”

I was thinking of all the professional golfers who have gone into terrible tailspins, some notable – like Seve and Ian Baker Finch and a slew of others – whose game got the best of them.

Hey, and I can sympathize – anyone whose has played golf for a while knows the tenuous and fleeting nature of the game – but sometimes it takes good old-fashioned work and time. Like Hogan said, “Dig it out of the dirt”

And that’s what Duval seems to have done and he did it like a consummate professional. Just like he mentions above. Not once did I ever really hear him complain, argue or cry about anything. Just that he is working on it and seeing progress.

With all the Tiger crap going on nowadays it’s nice to see someone – even in the midst of extreme golfing turmoil – act and conduct himself like a professional and not quitting.

And I used to watch those interviews (still do) of all those questions he answered – about his swing, and what happened, and how his progress is coming, and his health, and does he care, and will he ever be competitive again and on and on and on. Not many people could take that year after year.

Quitting, after all, is the easy way out. It takes guts, perseverance and inner determination to forge forward. And that’s what world class athletes and successful individuals do – they forge forward – despite any lack of evidence they may be experiencing.

I mean there was a time when he was hitting 180 yard duck-hook drives and later not having any clue where the ball was going. That can really cause one to create “stories” in your head about what’s happening. But Duval did not succumb to those voices. He rose up. And he reminded me of what professionalism and not quitting are really about.