271: 10 Lessons 2025 Taught Me (and What I’m Carrying Into 2026)

I've done a goal-setting episode at the end of every year for the past 6 years, but I don't think I've ever done a review of the year that just ended. This episode will show you a simple, proven way to review your year (or your day or your round of golf) that you can and should use. And I of course set some golf and podcast goals for 2026, which I think can help you do the same. ----- 📊 FREE Mental Game Assessment: joshnicholsgolf.com/assessment - identify your mental strengths and areas for mental game improvement. ----- 🏋️‍♂️ Nerd Fitness: Head to nerdfitness.com, and when (not if) you go through onboarding just mention Josh at The Mental Golf Show sent you. 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter. 👨🏻‍🏫 Josh Nichols Golf (1-on-1 Mental Coaching): Email [email protected] or visit joshnicholsgolf.com for sessions. 🏌️‍♂️ Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. ⛳️ PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. ----- 🔥 Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here. 

Steve Wheatcroft played professional golf for 19 years, almost all of those on the Korn Ferry and PGA Tour. In this episode we get into the experiences he had, the fallout of retiring, and the journey since.  Topics discussed: The Silence After Professional Sports Identity Beyond the Game The Balance of Passion and Profession Learning to Practice Effectively The Journey of Becoming a Golfer Self-Perception and Mental Challenges Lessons Learned and Advice for Others The Humor in Golf: A Lighthearted Approach The Feeling of Not Belonging: A Personal Journey Aspirations and Realities: The Golfing Dream The Pressure of Early Success: A Cautionary Tale The Long-Term View: Sustainability in Golf Careers Identity Beyond Golf: Finding Self-Worth Reflections on the Book: Cocktails and Range Balls The Identity Crisis After Golf Struggles with Alcoholism and Depression The Journey to Recovery Finding Purpose Through Storytelling Transitioning from Professional Golf The Mulligan Foundation: A New Hope Writing for Change: The Power of a Story ----- Steve Wheatcroft's links: Book: Cocktails and Range Balls: One's Too Many, Ten's Not Enough The Mulligan Foundation ----- 📊 FREE Mental Game Assessment: joshnicholsgolf.com/assessment - identify your mental strengths and areas for mental game improvement. ----- 🏋️‍♂️ Nerd Fitness: Head to nerdfitness.com, and when (not if) you go through onboarding just mention Josh at The Mental Golf Show sent you. 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter. 👨🏻‍🏫 Josh Nichols Golf (1-on-1 Mental Coaching): Email [email protected] or visit joshnicholsgolf.com for sessions. 🏌️‍♂️ Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. ⛳️ PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. ----- 🔥 Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here. 

🎓 The Perfect Pre-shot Routine digital course: Dial in your pre-shot routine here. ----- This year has been a monumental one for The Mental Golf Show. It's the most interviews I've ever done (33 up to this point) and I feel like my skill as an interviewer has drastically improved across this year, and certainly over the life of the podcast. So with guest episodes in mind, I wanted to pull out some of my favorite nuggets from interviews in 2025. I wanted to include so many more than this, but I also wanted the episode to be about an hour long so I landed on 9 guest nuggets (I said 8 in the pod intro, pardon my bad counting skills). Below are all the guests and their episode number so you can go back and listen to their full episode: Webb Simpson: What confidence is made of, how to grow it, and what hurts Webb's confidence (Episode 242) Dan Abrahams: How to get the most out of your ABCD Game (Episode 239) Jayson Nickol: Getting comfortable going low and eliminating “Anyway Shots” (Episode 238) Ross MacLeod: Is putting the most important part of the game? (Episode 244) Mike Booker: The difference between a “Tournament Golfer” and a “Golfer Who Plays Tournaments” (Episode 241) Gary Waters: The benefit of detaching yourself from your results (Episode 254) Lou Stagner: Where should players set their stat benchmarks? (Episode 236) Jim Waldron: What and how much should we be thinking about during the golf swing? (Episode 245) Dawn Grant: How do you maximize joy on the golf course? (Episode 250) ----- 🗓️ Basic and Custom Practice Plans: Get more organized with your practice at joshnicholsgolf.com/practice 🏋️‍♂️ Nerd Fitness: Head to nerdfitness.com, and when (not if) you go through onboarding just mention Josh at The Mental Golf Show sent you. 📊 FREE Mental Game Assessment: joshnicholsgolf.com/assessment - identify your mental strengths and areas for mental game improvement. 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter. 👨🏻‍🏫 Josh Nichols Golf (1-on-1 Mental Coaching): Email [email protected] or visit joshnicholsgolf.com for sessions. 🏌️‍♂️ Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. ⛳️ PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. ----- 🔥 Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here. 

🎓 The Perfect Pre-shot Routine digital course: Dial in your pre-shot routine here. 🗓️ Basic and Custom Practice Plans: Get more organized with your practice at joshnicholsgolf.com/practice 🏋️‍♂️ Nerd Fitness: Head to nerdfitness.com, and when (not if) you go through onboarding just mention Josh at The Mental Golf Show sent you. ----- Will Knauth is a +5 handicap U.S. Mid-Amateur competitor, a PhD student in Theoretical Statistics and Time Series Analysis, and he has opinions on how to play better golf. In this episode, you'll hear those opinions. I'm confident you'll leave here knowing more about the game with real things to try and having changed your thinking on different parts of golf. Will is one of my favorite guests because he has no skin in the game--he's not pushing or selling anything, he's not trying to build a personal brand... he's just a good golfer who's incredibly smart. I think you'll enjoy it. ----- Topics discussed: Two and a Half Years of Fighting the Hooks The Physics of Pushing vs. Pulling: Finding a New Swing Feel Swing Thoughts on the Course: Why Mental Chatter Isn't the Enemy Block Practice vs. Random Practice: The Internal Dialogue The Music Analogy: Distraction and the Sequence of Thoughts Bridging the Gap: Taking Your Range Game to the Course The Bottom of the Pendulum: Knowing When to Change Swing Thoughts Peaking for the US Mid-Am: Timing Your Game The Tale of the 13: A US Mid-Am Disaster Making Golf Work with a Demanding Life: Commitment and Sacrifice Time vs. Efficiency: There's No Substitute for Hours The Choice to Stay Competitive: What Are You Willing to Give Up? ----- 📊 FREE Mental Game Assessment: joshnicholsgolf.com/assessment - identify your mental strengths and areas for mental game improvement. 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter. 👨🏻‍🏫 Josh Nichols Golf (1-on-1 Mental Coaching): Email [email protected] or visit joshnicholsgolf.com for sessions. 🏌️‍♂️ Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. ⛳️ PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. ----- 🔥 Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here. 

🎓 The Perfect Pre-shot Routine digital course: Dial in your pre-shot routine here. 🗓️ Basic and Custom Practice Plans: Get more organized with your practice at joshnicholsgolf.com/practice 🏋️‍♂️ Nerd Fitness: Head to nerdfitness.com, and when (not if) you go through onboarding just mention Josh at The Mental Golf Show sent you. ----- David Buck is a former professional playing pro who’s competed on the Canadian Tour, mini tours, and traveled extensively across North America and internationally chasing the game. He now operates an engaged community through his brand Big Swing Kings, where he blends humor and real coaching, swing roasts, and totally unique ways of thinking about the game. And he says he does this all with the intent to help players play better and enjoy the game more. You can find David at these places: Youtube: Big Swing Kings TikTok: bigswingkings Instagram: bigswingkings Website: bigswingkings.com ----- 📊 FREE Mental Game Assessment: joshnicholsgolf.com/assessment - identify your mental strengths and areas for mental game improvement. 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter. 👨🏻‍🏫 Josh Nichols Golf (1-on-1 Mental Coaching): Email [email protected] or visit joshnicholsgolf.com for sessions. 🏌️‍♂️ Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. ⛳️ PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. ----- 🔥 Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here. 

📊 FREE Mental Game Assessment: joshnicholsgolf.com/assessment - identify your mental strengths and areas for mental game improvement. ----- In this FundaMENTALS episode, we look at how expectations add tension and narrow your options, and why shifting to clear standards helps you swing with freedom. I cover the basic brain mechanics, a simple process to use before each shot, and a few practical course examples. The goal is steadier decision-making and more durable confidence. ----- 🗓️ Basic and Custom Practice Plans: Get more organized with your practice at joshnicholsgolf.com/practice 🎓 The Perfect Pre-shot Routine digital course: Dial in your pre-shot routine here. 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter. 👨🏻‍🏫 Josh Nichols Golf (1-on-1 Mental Coaching): Email [email protected] or visit joshnicholsgolf.com for sessions. 🏌️‍♂️ Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. ⛳️ PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. ----- 🔥 Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here. 

📊 FREE Mental Game Assessment: joshnicholsgolf.com/assessment - identify your mental strengths and areas for mental game improvement 🗓️ Basic and Custom Practice Plans: Get more organized with your practice at joshnicholsgolf.com/practice 🎓 The Perfect Pre-shot Routine digital course: Dial in your pre-shot routine here. ----- What if your pain wasn’t just a body problem, but a brain and golf problem? In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Carly Hunt—Mid-Am Golfer/Pain Psychologist and author of Train Your Brain to Beat Chronic Pain—to talk about how golf can both ease and amplify pain, why “it’s all in your head” is a terrible (and wrong) message, and how the brain’s alarm system actually works. We get into practical tools for playing with ongoing pain, navigating fear of re-injury, dealing with the identity grief of not being the golfer you used to be, and how to shift from fighting your body to working with it so you can keep playing the game you love. ----- Carly Hunt's links: Carly Hunt's Book: Train Your Brain to Beat Chronic Pain: How to Harness the Power of the Mind-Body Connection - https://www.amazon.com/Train-Your-Brain-Beat-Chronic/dp/1462558526 Pain Reprocessing Therapy - https://www.painreprocessingtherapy.com The Pain Psychology Center - https://painpsychologycenter.com/therapy-techniques Carly on LinkedIn Carly on Instagram Email Carly ----- 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter. Josh Nichols Golf (1-on-1 Mental Coaching): Email [email protected] or visit joshnicholsgolf.com for sessions. Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. ----- Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here. 

🎓 The Perfect Pre-shot Routine digital course: Dial in your pre-shot routine here. ----- How do you lean in when the round of golf starts going sideways? It’s so easy to eject mentally and just go through the motions. Let's dive into the concept of Exposure Therapy as a tool to build your mental resilience. ----- FREE Mental Game Assessment: joshnicholsgolf.com/assessment - identify your mental strengths and areas for mental game improvement 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter. Josh Nichols Golf (1-on-1 Mental Coaching): Email [email protected] or visit joshnicholsgolf.com for sessions. Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. Basic and Custom Practice Plans: Get more organized with your practice at joshnicholsgolf.com. PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. ----- Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here. 

FREE Mental Game Assessment: joshnicholsgolf.com/assessment - identify your mental strengths and areas for mental game improvement ----- Paul Salter joins The Mental Golf Show (for the second time). Paul is a mindset and performance coach who uses hypnosis to help his clients get unstuck, uncover their edge, and unlock their potential. We cover these topics: The Commitment to Golf Mastery The Power of Language in Self-Talk Building Confidence Through Action Understanding Fear and Success The Role of Beliefs in Performance Unlearning Limiting Beliefs Navigating Fear and Anxiety in Golf The Art of Unlearning for Success The Pressure of Expectations The Secret to Consistent Success The Secret to Extraordinary Success Challenging Societal Norms and Rules The Balance Between Success and Fulfillment Identity and Performance in Sports Communication and Relationships in Golf and Life ----- Paul Salter's Links: The Scratch Golfer's Mindset podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts Instagram - thegolfhypnotherapist Website - thegolfhypnotherapist.com ----- Get more from Josh Nichols: The Perfect Pre-shot Routine digital course: Dial in your pre-shot routine here. 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter. Josh Nichols Golf (1-on-1 Mental Coaching): Email [email protected] or visit joshnicholsgolf.com for sessions. Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. Basic and Custom Practice Plans: Get more organized with your practice at joshnicholsgolf.com. PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. ----- Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here. 

Most of us don't have caddies helping us get fully committed to shots, so we have to be our own caddies. Learning how to be your own caddie effectively can give you a huge advantage over your opponents and your own unhelpful tendencies. ----- The Perfect Pre-shot Routine digital course: Dial in your pre-shot routine here. ----- Get more from Josh Nichols: 📧 The Mental Re-Grip Newsletter: Sign up for weekly mental game tips at joshnicholsgolf.com/newsletter. Josh Nichols Golf (1-on-1 Mental Coaching): Email [email protected] or visit joshnicholsgolf.com for sessions. Divot Board: Get 10% off at divotboard.com/mentalgolfshow using code 'MentalGolf10'. Basic and Custom Practice Plans: Get more organized with your practice at joshnicholsgolf.com. PutterCup: Get 15% off your PutterCup order by going to puttercupgolf.com/mentalgolfshow and signing up for the PutterCup newsletter. Mental Game Assessment: Free assessment at joshnicholsgolf.com to identify strengths and improvement areas. ----- Special thanks to Titleist for their support of The Mental Golf Show. Join Team Titleist here.