Sonia O’Sullivan: Leona Maguire will have learned the most valuable of lessons in PGA heartbreak

It’s never easy to take the lead when it’s not what you normally do; it’s a step outside of the comfort zone for many, whether in a race or, as Leona Maguire found out this past week, when she hit the lead at the halfway point and through 54 holes of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

As Maguire commented herself going into the final day, “This is uncharted territory for me.” And, in acknowledging the situation, maybe Maguire was trying to lower the expectation and pressure that being the leader brings.

There are many ways to cross the line first, but most don’t take the lead until the finish line is in sight, when the confidence is growing and you get that burst of belief and adrenalin to lift you to victory and to reach heights you only ever dreamed of.

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At least that’s what it feels like when chasing a first major championship victory, whatever the sport, as the targets invariably become ever more difficult to achieve.

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Just two weeks ago Maguire was the hunter going into the final day of the LPGA Tour event, ultimately taking her second career tour win at the Meijer LPGA Classic. She made it look easy as she solidified her place in the Rolex world rankings and would move into the top 10 for the first time after her performance in the PGA. That’s the world class level she’s at.

Even though athletes try to block out the noise and ‘expert’ opinions floating around, it can get through and subconsciously affect your energy

However, I know from experience that, when you win and feel like you competed in a relaxed state and you’re at ease, you get a boost of confidence where you feel anything is possible. Your belief and energy is elevated to a new level. It’s like you are on autopilot where you believe you can reach a state of invincibility.

Then, just a few days later at a new competition, when you get to start again knowing what you are capable of, but also knowing that you have to work for the result, it’s not so simple. It’s not like you can simply flick on a switch. What’s on paper doesn’t always transfer to the golf course, playing pitch or athletics track.

It’s a point where the conscious and subconscious collide.

If only you could just get out there and compete in the same flow state, back to autopilot!

But it rarely works that way. We are humans, not robots, and that’s what makes sport so compelling – it’s that vulnerability and unpredictability which comes with being a high-performance professional sportsperson.

We see it all the time.

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Just a few weeks ago at the NCAA Track Championships, the highly anticipated women’s 1500m didn’t quite deliver the expected result. Katelyn Tuohy, a four-time NCAA champion and record holder who runs for NC State was the heavy favourite, but looked a bit rattled in the heats, and the numbers on paper were not quite matching how she looked on the track.

There was a lot of talk about how she would run the final – not all focusing on how she could get her best performance, but more how she could shake off the potential threats. Even though athletes try to block out the noise and “expert” opinions floating around, it can get through and subconsciously affect your energy.

As it turned out, Tuohy took the lead and, rather than running to her strengths, ran a reactive race focusing more on what others might do. This distraction meant she faded to seventh place where she would most likely have been in the top three and possibly even won if she had raced more conservatively, rather than thinking she had to try harder when she was already good enough.

That’s the thing when you lose control – it can be totally subconscious as the stress creeps in without you even realising it. You do things you don’t normally do and what you could have won just slips away, and it doesn’t even make any sense.

I’ve found it’s not just how you think and act, but also how those around you interact with you

It is often seen in the qualifying rounds of a championship event that athletes run like they are playing a game, not so focused on the win but in getting to the next round, aiming for the top five qualifiers to make the cut. It’s the same prize whether you are first or fifth, and it can feel so easy. Then everything changes when the final comes around.

Just like the final round in a golf tournament, the stakes are higher, and without realising it you can overthink the simplest things. Sleeping. Eating. Transport. Everything becomes a bigger issue and you think everything needs to be done better, when really keeping things in the same relaxed state will most likely deliver the same result – which may just be good enough to win.

[ Sonia O’Sullivan: Still running for pleasure while training through the pain ]

I’ve found it’s not just how you think and act, but also how those around you interact with you.

I remember back in 2018 at the European Youth Championships in Gyor, Hungary. My daughter Sophie was competing and got through the heats without any issues, all very calm and very relaxed.

In training we like to talk about ‘fast relaxed’, where you do it something without thinking

Then, on the day of the final, I went to the warm-up area to wish her well and it was so tense in the Irish team tent, like all of a sudden everyone was a bit more nervous on finals day. You could feel the tension, almost like they were walking on eggshells, and I was worried it would rub off on Sophie and how it might affect her.

As the finalists for the girls’ 800m were being walked to the start line, the Pharrell Williams song Happy was blaring over the speakers and all I could see was Sophie bobbing along to the tune. She had brushed off any tension from the warm-up area and I knew she would run well in a relaxed state.

It’s a lesson for everyone to find the happy spot which calms you and brings you back to the simplest thing – the love and enjoyment of your sport.

In training we like to talk about “fast relaxed”, where you do something without thinking. When you overthink, there is a tendency to overstride and try too hard, and you can lose the flow.

It’s important on the final day to find the calmness and relaxation, not to overthink about winning, but to focus on each step along the way and find the momentum, allowing things to fall into place. It’s about finding the groove that allows you to work through the process and let the result come without searching for it.