The Psychology of Mini Golf

Why Competition Brings People Together Instead of Driving Them Apart

Competition doesn't usually have the best reputation.

We picture rivalries.

Trash talk.

Hurt feelings.

People taking games a little too seriously.

Sometimes that's exactly what happens.

But over the last five years, I've watched thousands of people compete on a portable mini golf course, and I've noticed something unexpected.

Most of the time...

The competition brings people closer together.

Why?

The Stakes Are Wonderfully Small

I think it starts with this:

Nobody really needs to win.

Nobody's promotion depends on making the next putt.

Nobody's scholarship is on the line.

Nobody goes home with a giant trophy.

The outcome simply doesn't matter very much.

Ironically, that's exactly what makes it matter.

Because once the pressure disappears, competition transforms into something else.

It becomes permission to play.

Everyone Wants Someone Else to Do Something Amazing

This is one of my favorite things to watch.

Someone lines up a ridiculous bank shot.

Everyone gets quiet.

The ball bounces once...

Twice...

Three times...

And drops into the hole.

The loudest cheers almost never come from the person who made it.

They come from everyone else.

Think about that.

For a few seconds, every competitor forgets they're competing.

They're simply excited that something cool just happened.

We Root for Each Other More Than We Realize

I've watched complete strangers celebrate another person's hole-in-one.

Coworkers high-five someone from another department.

Kids cheer for adults.

Adults cheer for kids.

For a little while, everyone seems to forget whose turn it is to win.

Maybe because there really isn't much to win.

Except a good story.

Losing Becomes Safe

This might be the most important part.

When the consequences are tiny, people become willing to fail in front of each other.

Someone misses an easy putt.

They laugh.

Everybody else laughs with them.

Not at them.

That's an important difference.

Shared laughter has a funny way of removing the invisible walls we usually carry around.

Competition Becomes Collaboration

One of the strangest things I've noticed is that people constantly help each other.

"Try banking it off that wall."

"Hit it a little softer."

"I made the same mistake."

Imagine helping your opponent during the final hole of a major tournament.

It would never happen.

At mini golf?

It happens all the time.

Somewhere along the way, people quietly decide that having fun together is more important than beating each other.

Maybe We're Wired This Way

I sometimes wonder if friendly competition isn't really about finding the best player.

Maybe it's about creating a shared experience.

Everyone faces the same obstacles.

Everyone gets lucky sometimes.

Everyone gets humbled eventually.

There's something comforting about realizing we're all playing the same game.

The Real Winner

People occasionally ask who won an event.

Honestly... I usually don't know.

What I remember is the coworker who made an impossible shot.

The child who insisted on one more round.

The grandmother who was just a little more excited than the rest of her group thought was necessary.

The conversations that started between strangers.

The laughter that spread across the course.

That's the score I remember.

Because I don't think the real victory is finishing with the fewest strokes.

I think it's leaving with a few more people you're glad you met and spent time with.