Few players saw the same kind of meteoric rise in profile as Joel Dahmen did from Netflix’s “Full Swin” PGA Tour docuseries.
Before the show, Dahmen was a PGA Tour journeyman with an endearing personality and a relatable story of overcoming adversity. The appearance on Netflix’s first docuseries on the PGA Tour took that story and broadcast it to the masses.
Dahmen’s play has taken a hit in the two years since Netlfix released the first season of Full Swing, crescendoing last month when Dahmen nearly lost his full-time status on the PGA Tour, firing a dramatic final-round 64 at the RSM Classic to just sneak into the Top 125 of the standings.
On this week’s episode of GOLF’s Subpar, Dahmen explained some of the challenges he’s faced personally with his newfound fame.
“I would say the first year of Netflix, so the prior year was the hardest year of managing time because you have so many opportunities coming your way,” Dahmen told Subpar co-hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz. “And it’s easy to say yes to everything because new opportunities coming in means more money, it means more awesome stuff, meeting new people. All these opportunities are coming to you and I didn’t manage that very well because also I had my kid like three weeks before Netflix came out, season one. So that was all new, everything’s new coming at you. And I don’t think I handled that as well as I could have.”
But, like most golfers who have made it far enough to earn their PGA Tour card, let alone win as Dahmen has, he figured out how to adjust. He hired renowned sports psychologist and performance coach Chris Bertram to help him learn simply how to ask for help.
He said he didn’t get settled with it early enough in the year, which is why he found himself teetering on the edge of losing his card, but he feels in a better position now, which explains how he fought back in the final round in Georgia to keep his card.
“Saying no is a powerful thing. I’m in a position now where I can say no. And that is a really cool thing,” Dahmen said. “And you just say yes to the things you really want to do and that you’re passionate about. And with my great partners, I can say yes to more of those things instead of divided time around so many other things. So I am, I’m excited for what’s to come.”
You can listen to Dahmen’s complete Subpar appearance here, or watch the video below.
