The 2nd Cut Newsletter: Edition #45

Avoiding Stupidity, Tiger Talks, Playing With Good Players, Side Bend Mobility, Golf is Hard

The 2nd Cut

May 02, 2024

“Golf is hard.”

📰 Edition #45 📰

Welcome back to The 2nd Cut Newsletter!

📫 In today’s Newsletter:

Avoiding Stupidity, Tiger Talks, Playing With Good Players, Side Bend Mobility, Golf is Hard

ICYMI, check out last week’s Deep Dive: A Reminder to Myself: Practice Does Not Make Perfect

Avoiding Stupidity

This weekend marks the first Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting since the passing of Charlie Munger. His wisdom and sharp wit will be greatly missed. In tribute to Charlie, here is one of his most famous and straightforward concepts.

“It’s remarkable how much long-term advantage people like us have gotten by trying to be consistently not stupid, instead of trying to be very intelligent.”
– Charlie Munger

Billionaire investor, Charlie Munger, was Warren Buffett’s right-hand man at Berkshire Hathaway. He was well known for his multidisciplinary wisdom in physics, economics, biology, engineering, and history.

Munger had a quick and blunt wit that got right to the point. One of his wise tenants was a very simple concept that helped him in life and investing:

“Avoiding stupidity is easier than seeking brilliance.”

As I've mentioned countless times, the key to lower scores isn't about chasing birdies and striving for perfect shots (brilliance); it's about steering clear of trouble and minimizing those big, costly scores (avoiding stupidity).

🐦 Tweets of the Week 🐦

Tiger has been on a press tour promoting the release of his golf clothing line, Sun Day Red. Not too long ago, it would have been hard to imagine seeing Tiger openly discussing topics like his father, children, and fellow golfers with a smile.

Earlier today, on the TODAY show, Tiger had a conversation with Carson Daly, who was once a competitive youth golfer alongside Tiger, and they shared some entertaining stories of their paths crossing. It’s a good watch and about 9 minutes long. (LINK)

Mike Carroll is an excellent source for anything golf fitness and rehab. In this tweet, he demonstrates an exercise for side bend mobility and strength. (LINK)

📺 💻 T2C Media 📺 💻

Jon Martin wrote a great post for his Substack called Play With Good Players. In it, Jon talks a bit about why it can be beneficial and why you shouldn’t be intimidated to do it.

I couldn't agree more. When I resumed playing golf, I had the opportunity to play with a couple of low-handicap players, and there's truly no better way to grasp what it takes to excel in the game. It’s visceral and obvious when you experience it in person.

For me, it was an eye-opening experience. I soon realized that I was swinging way too hard, experiencing too many blow-ups on the course, and my approach game desperately needed improvement.

Check out Jon’s post when you get a chance. (Link)

“In all walks of life, one of the best ways to learn is through observation. By watching someone with more knowledge and experience, you start to learn. You learn about technique and nuance. You learn thought process and simplifying complex tasks.
So, why not do that with golf? I don’t mean watching tour pros on TV. While you can learn from watching golf on TV, it’s a better learning experience spending an entire round on the golf course with better players. You get to see everything, not just the snapshots TV offers.”

Check out Tiger’s MY GAME Series (which used to cost money btw) on YouTube. It’s a 10-part series where Tiger talks about difference facets of the game. This one is on distance wedges, which is about 12-minutes long.