My Screw Up

"Pressure and stress is the common cold of the psyche"

Andrew Denton

Walking across a plank positioned on the ground is a positively simple task; even those with biblically poor co-ordination would be able to shuffle from one end to the other with relative ease.

Now place that same plank a thousand feet in the air. Suddenly, a previously simple task becomes incredibly stressful and difficult. Therefore, we can assume that it is not the actual task that places pressure on an individual or a collective, rather the context that it is placed in. A professional tennis player will have performed thousands of perfect forehands in training, but how many times have you seen the crucial shot been hit agonisingly wide? Who remembers the story of Jean Van de Velde? Three shots up at the final hole of the 1999 British Open at Carnoustie, he conspired to hit a double-bogey seven with his shots disappearing into the bunkers, the water and, outrageously, the grandstand. Having seen his lead disappear thanks to a series of errors and misjudgements, Jean went on to lose the resultant play-off, and the dubious honour of suffering one of the most infamous sporting chokes of all time was his.

Compare that story to that of the 2009 French Open. Roger Federer was desperately chasing the title that had alluded him throughout his career; however, with the indomitable Rafa Nadal undefeated on the Paris clay, very few believed he would ever pull it off. But after Nadal crashed out , Federer went on to win the tournament. What makes his performance so outstanding was that he had to defeat two opponents in every single match- the opponent on the other side of the net and the opponent lodged deep in his psyche. The pressure he was under is unimaginable, maybe his only chance to fulfil one of his greatest desires. He described the final few points as almost unplayable, yet he still found a way to win.

Overall, does it suprise you that Jean Van de Velde was a journeyman pro, whereas Roger Federer is considered the greatest tennis player of all time? Having a superlative talent is never enough, an individual needs to be able to utilise their talent not only when the going is easy, but also when under the most intense pressure. That is what seperates the average from the special.