Good Sport explores how our love of sports shapes life on and off the field, court, and course. For our first installment, PGA Tour veteran Blake Adams, now Director of Player Development at The Kingdom, shares how mindset, habits, and resilience define both golf and life.
1. GRIT
Mental toughness is the foundation for success in golf. It’s patience, discipline, and resilience wrapped into one. This game will humble you. No one has ever mastered it, and no one ever will. The players who stay patient, embrace mistakes as opportunities to learn, and view challenges as part of the process are the ones who grow.
I set nearly impossible standards and designed drills during practice that felt harder than tournament golf so that competition would feel easier. I also worked daily on breathing and heartrate control, using simple techniques to slow things down, steady emotions, and stay calm under pressure.
Over time, I realized mental toughness isn’t just grinding harder. It’s training your mind and body to work together so you perform with clarity and confidence. Control what you can control: your process, attitude, and effort. Even the best players hit bad shots. Embrace them, learn, and keep working to improve.
2. FAILURE
Bad shots and frustrating rounds happen to everyone; no one is immune. The key is to learn from every outcome: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Golf isn’t a game of perfect. It’s a game of misses, and the player who manages those misses best usually finds success.
Positive self-talk and small mental escapes — looking at the clouds, trees, or flags moving in the wind — were my reset tools to quiet my mind and refocus. At Reynolds, players can use the views of Lake Oconee as the perfect backdrop for a fresh start. All it takes is a slow breath and the reminder that the next shot is a new opportunity.
3. PRESSURE
Handling pressure began and ended with my routine. It was my anchor, and it never changed. Whether I was playing a casual round or the 72nd hole of a Major, every detail remained the same. Within that structure, I filled my mind with calm, positive reminders instead of fear or doubt.
Because I’d rehearsed my routine thousands of times, I wasn’t reacting to pressure. I was repeating something familiar. Preparation built confidence and gave me something reliable to fall back on. My focus was never on the outcome; it was on executing a process I trusted completely. I worked tirelessly on mastering my breathing and controlling my heart rate, both on and off the course. Simple breathing techniques helped slow things down and steady my emotions. Breathing became part of my routine.
When dealing with pressure, my mindset was simple: stay in my routine, trust the process, breathe, and let the results take care of themselves. Consistency in my routine created clarity, and clarity allowed me to perform freely in the biggest moments of my career.
4. IMPROVEMENT
One of the biggest misconceptions is that endless range time automatically leads to improvement. It doesn’t. Improvement comes from quality practice with a purpose. Too often, players spend hours reinforcing bad habits instead of learning from each swing.
Remember, we’re trying to learn the game of golf, not the game of range. Practice should mirror the golf course: visualize the shot, go through your routine, and reflect after each swing. Focus inside 150 yards, where scoring occurs. When practice becomes purposeful instead of repetitive, improvement accelerates and confidence grows
5. FITNESS
Fitness and mobility are essential for performance, injury prevention, and longevity. Golf puts tremendous demands on the body. If you can’t move efficiently, your ability to compete and enjoy the game will be short-lived. During my career, fitness was non-negotiable. My trainer and I worked daily to prevent injuries, delay surgeries, and give me every possible edge.
While distance often gets the spotlight, the real benefits go far beyond that. A proper fitness routine reduces fatigue, sharpens focus, and allows you to perform consistently over time. You don’t need a fancy gym or a complicated program. Simple, consistent movement and mobility work can make a huge difference. The goal is to build a body that supports the game for life
6. ADVICE
Be resilient. No matter how prepared you feel, the game will challenge and test you. Even when the game wins, what defines you isn’t the failure, it’s how you respond. Every round and every shot demands patience, grit, and the willingness to keep moving forward.
I’ve always had a personality that refuses to quit and demands excellence. Golf sharpened that mentality. It taught me how to handle obstacles, frustration, and adversity, not just on the course, but in life. In many ways, golf isn’t just a game to me. It’s a training ground for resilience in the game of life
7. PASSION
Personally, I’m a big fan of anything outdoors. Anything that enhances balance, flexibility, focus, or patience can complement golf. Yoga and Pilates improve mobility and body awareness, while pickleball or tennis sharpen agility and coordination. Hiking, hunting, or fishing build endurance and teach you to stay calm and present. At Reynolds Lake Oconee, Members have access to all of these activities, making it easy to build that balance alongside an incredible golf experience. Creating a well-rounded lifestyle that supports both physical health and mental clarity is key.
8. BALANCE
A balance of competitive golf and enjoyable golf has always been tough for me. I’m wired to compete. Golf’s never ending pursuit of perfection is what drives me. It’s a game that is impossible to master. That never-ending pursuit fueled my career, but over time my appreciation for the game has evolved.
I genuinely value the moments outside competition: playing with friends and family, spending time outdoors, and soaking in the views of a great golf course. The conversations, the laughter, and the scenery bring a different kind of joy. While my competitive fire will never disappear, my enjoyment of the game has grown into a deeper appreciation for the people and places that make every round meaningful.
9. FAVORITES
Choosing a favorite course at Reynolds is hard because growing up here, I witnessed each one being built.
Creek Club and Great Waters stand out. Creek Club for its creativity. It challenges you to see shots differently and fuels my competitive side. Great Waters offers incredible Lake Oconee views that provide a deep sense of serenity.
Favorite hole? #11 at Great Waters. It’s strategic, beautiful, and forces you to weigh risk versus reward — exactly what great golf design should do
10. MEMORIES
Earning my PGA Tour card remains one of the most rewarding moments of my career, especially having my family beside me throughout the journey. Growing up in small-town Georgia and hearing, “From Eatonton, Georgia, Blake Adams…” on the first tee is something I’ll never forget. It represented years of hard work, sacrifice, and belief becoming reality.
Professional golf isn’t always glamorous, but traveling the world for almost 20 years with my wife and children was an incredible blessing. Life on the road can be exhausting, yet those shared experiences meant everything to me.
