Murphy wary of complacency in golf's mental battle
John Murphy during the Walker Cup earlier this year. Photo: USGA
The number crunchers will tell you John Murphy made six eagles and 71 birdies in his first half season as a professional golfer but the Kinsale man knows the difference between success and failure is so slim, it often comes down to the six inches between the ears.
Had he finished a yard left or right of a bush on the 10th in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on the Old Course at St Andrews, he might have avoided a double-bogey and gone on to claim a top three finish and European Tour card.
He also knows that had he not laced a five-iron to three feet and made the eagle putt on the 72nd hole at the Empordà Challenge nine days ago, he might not even have had Challenge Tour status next year either.
“It really is just the smallest, smallest margins,” said the 23-year old Cork man, who threatened to upstage the world’s best at the Home of Golf, then did enough in limited Challenge Tour starts to earn himself a card for Europe’s second tier tour in 2022.
Like many others, Murphy has talent in spades. But he’s also had the sense to realise he needs to plot a course between the highs and lows of tour life and make the tiny improvements that make the difference between achieving your dreams and wondering what might have been.
It’s not just the technical work he does with coach Ian Stafford that drives him but the mental work he does with sports psychologist Fergus Wallace, recommended to him by his management group, JMC Sport.
“I took the approach this year that I was an apprentice trying to learn my trade out there and I figured that no matter what happened this year, there will be other opportunities,” Murphy said yesterday as he reflected on earning his Challenge Tour stripes for 2022 by the skin of his teeth by finishing 69th of the 70 players who earned exemptions.
“I would’ve always considered myself to be relatively strong in terms of the mental side of the game, but I don’t want to leave any stone unturned, so I got in touch with Fergus and he has certainly helped a lot over the first few months.”
Murphy impressed Pádraig Harrington with how he handled himself in the final group alongside eventual tournament winner Danny Willett at St Andrews but the red-haired University of Louisville graduate knows he has to take a leaf out of the Dubliner’s book and strive for improvement every step of the way from now on.
“I don’t know if you ever know if you are good enough,” he said. “Tiger Woods won 14 majors and was still trying to change a swing. Right now, I am happy with the trajectory I’m going on, but I don’t think I’m good enough; I am not where I want to be.
“For example, Shane Lowry has had an incredible career, but I’m sure he’s doesn’t consider himself good enough. I am sure he is still striving to be better and achieve bigger and better things. I am confident I can win tournaments out on tour, but right now, I don’t think I am good enough.
“You have to remember that things could always be better, and things could always be worse. I could’ve had a top-three finish in the Dunhill and won a European Tour card or not eagled the last hole in Empordà and had no status at all next year. This game can certainly play tricks with your mind. I’m happy with where I’m at right now, but I don’t want to get complacent.
“I know I have a lot of work to do, but I’m never going to let myself forget that. No matter how well things went for me, I don’t think I’d ever get complacent, and I don’t think I’d ever be satisfied. Right now I’m very excited to try and improve as much as I can.”
