Driving growth: The shared psychology of golf and trading

Charles Schwab knows a thing or two about investing—and golf. “Both require preparation, patience, practice, and a long-term commitment,” he says in his memoir. “Both require strategy.” 

And both golfers and traders must think several steps ahead to navigate the inevitable highs and lows of their pursuits, he explains. Investors might rely on quick trades, a focus on value investing, or a long-term buy-and-hold strategy. Similarly, golfers tailor their game to their strengths: Some focus on power and distance, others on finesse or precision on the greens. 

Gio Valiante, PhD, a performance psychologist who’s worked with both golfers and investors, sees how the skills and strategies of each domain complement one another. “Playing golf could make you a better investor, and being an investor could make you a better golfer,” he says.

Here are six lessons golfers and investors can glean from their actions on the course and in the market. 

Your reactions to success and failure—missing a market opportunity or celebrating a hole-in-one—reveal a lot about who you are. Both investing and golf have a unique way of exposing fundamental psychological traits, Dr. Gio says, such as risk aversion, pride, or sloppiness. Recognizing these tendencies is the first step to improving your performance.

“What’s beautiful about both of these universes is that they expose leanings you have and ask you to solve for those things,” says Dr. Gio. Becoming a better golfer or investor can make you better in other aspects of life as well, he adds—a reference to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.

In both investing and golf, unpredictability may challenge your sense of agency. “You can hit a perfect golf shot, and the wind takes the ball into the water,” says Dr. Gio. “The market will also move however it’s going to. Both are bigger than you, both have variability in the outcome, and both require commitment to process to overcome unpredictable results.” 

While humans tend to thrive when they feel in control, golf and investing teach that not everything is within your power. “When your well-being or livelihood is attached to something over which you have no control, it could be a recipe for anxiety, panic, and bad decisions,” he explains.

Yet failure is unavoidable in both pursuits. “If you’re a portfolio manager and your hit rate is 54%, you’re wrong 46% of the time,” says Dr. Gio. 

Accepting that failure as part of the process—and reframing it as a learning opportunity—enables personal and professional growth. 

In recent years, the field of psychology has shifted from glorifying grind culture to recognizing that quitting—when done thoughtfully—could help us grow, Dr. Gio explains. “People don’t want to quit, because to quit means to admit that you’re wrong,” he says. “Once we decide to invest in something or hit a shot, and it doesn’t work out, we’re predisposed to defend our position, dig in, or deny reality. Sometimes, you have to pivot.” 

Knowing when to take the drop or the penalty stroke in golf—or walk away from a losing trade in the case of investing—is a skill, not a failure. While admitting a mistake may not come easily, it’s often a necessary first step toward better decision-making and outcomes. Resilience, paired with the ability to adapt, separates the pros from the amateurs—both on the greens and in the market.

Humans are wired to fixate on the latest events. “The brain attaches to short-term results,” explains Dr. Gio. 

But going with a gut feeling based on recent history isn’t a reliable way to approach either an investment portfolio or a tee time. Variability and change are part of the journey in both arenas, and success hinges on maintaining objectivity as much as possible.

There’s a reason investors are commonly advised to avoid overreacting to momentary fluctuations, or “noise,” in the market—much like in golf, where a bogey or an eagle on the sixth hole is likely to even out over the course.

“We have perceptual shifts, and it’s why data has become so popular—it gives an objective picture of what’s going on,” he says. 

How can you maintain objectivity under pressure? Commit to a process. A replicable approach provides a framework for decision-making that helps reduce stress, even when results aren’t immediate. 

“Process acts as a buffer against the anxiety of the variability of your golf score or your portfolio’s profit and loss,” Dr. Gio says. “In many cases, it protects us from ourselves.”  

For investors, this means adopting (and sticking to) a strategy that aligns with your risk tolerance and specific goals. For golfers, it’s about tailoring your game plan to the specific challenges of the course. While no plan is foolproof—good processes could yield bad results, and vice versa—a well-defined approach helps ensure fleeting feelings don’t interfere with sound judgment.

“Sometimes you wake up confident. Sometimes you wake up without your confidence,” Dr. Gio says. “The brain is a dynamic biological organism that’s constantly shifting and processing reality.” Your process could become the anchor that keeps those emotional highs and lows from steering you off course.

Both golf and investing can spark feelings of frustration and failure. But these pursuits shouldn’t become exercises in self-punishment. “When you start associating pain with either golf or investing, you’re playing scared,” Dr. Gio says. “Fear increases our interpretation of effects, so all we see in golf are hazards, and all you see in the market is danger, even if there are a lot of good ideas to invest in.”

Understanding—or rediscovering—your deeper motivations is key to overcoming negativity. “Albert Einstein didn’t start studying physics because he wanted to win a Nobel Prize,” Dr. Gio says. “If your sole goal as an investor is just to make money, you’re not going to be a very good investor. You have to love learning, risk, markets and the uncertainty of the path.” 

Ultimately, passion for the craft—whether it’s playing for the love of the game or investing with a long-term vision—is what it’s all about.

Winning on the course or in the market isn’t about perfection—it’s about staying focused, adapting to challenges, and staying passionate about the process. Whether you’re lining up a putt or evaluating an investment, consider this: Success comes from cultivating the right approach and mindset, not making flashy moves. So remember what went into that last hole-in-one drive, and let that wisdom fuel your investments. (And vice versa, of course.)