Keep Turning Up: The Mindset That Changes Matches

Golfer Tommy Fleetwood knows the walk. Final-round tension, leaderboard glances, cameras following. And yet — no PGA Tour trophy in his hands.

He’s widely considered the best player without a win — a tag no one wants, but one he’s carried with grace. His close calls are many, his skill undeniable, but the breakthrough hasn’t arrived.

Tennis has its own versions of this storyline. Think David Ferrer, who reached a Grand Slam final and stayed in the top five for years without winning a major. Or Elena Dementieva, who played multiple Slam finals and won Olympic gold, but never claimed a major trophy. Like Fleetwood, they lived in the rare air of constant contention, week after week, without the crowning moment.

The Invisible Hurdle

Fleetwood’s challenge isn’t mechanical — he’s a world-class ball striker with multiple European Tour wins. The real opponent?

History’s shadow – Each time in contention, the whisper comes: Here we go again.
Expectation weight – Every point or shot feels heavier because of what’s at stake.
Anxiety’s trap – Playing to avoid failure instead of playing to win.

As Davis Love III says, “It’s a mental battle to not play for something other than one shot at a time.” Any tennis player who’s tightened up serving out a match in the third set knows exactly what he means.

Why Showing Up Matters

Performance psychology shows that repeated close calls can cause overthinking. The brain, trying to protect itself from the pain of past losses, tenses when the moment comes again.

The key is to keep showing up anyway. Fleetwood himself put it best: “I would way rather be there and fail than not be there at all.”

In tennis, the same holds true. Being in the fight — whether in the semis of your club championship or at the sharp end of a Badge finals match — is proof of belonging, not failure.

A Lesson From My Coaching Days

When I coached juniors in the US, I made a deal with my students: they had to play 10 tournaments over the summer. Why? Because no one knows when the breakthrough will come.

I secretly hoped it wouldn’t happen in the first couple — that early rush of winning can tempt young players to overplay and risk injury. But by tournament eight or nine, something deeper took hold. Turning up wasn’t just about chasing a trophy anymore; it became a life lesson in resilience.

They learned to:

Compete when tired
Focus after disappointment
Trust that persistence is its own kind of win.

The Takeaway

Fleetwood’s story — and those of Ferrer, Dementieva, and countless other players — proves that persistence is a skill.

When the breakthrough comes, it won’t be magic. It will be the natural outcome of showing up, again and again, long after it would’ve been easier to stay home.

Whisperer Tip: Keep turning up.

When the win comes, it won’t mark the beginning of your story — it will simply be the next chapter in your tennis development, forged through resilience.

Keep Turning Up: The Mindset That Changes Matches