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LESSONS FROM THE DOJO
Welcome to the dojo.
This is where I share reflections, insights, and lessons from the dojo.
Some articles explore golf as a sacred path to self-mastery through Presence Golf.
Others focus on the deeper journey of becoming a Man of Presence—awakening inner power, cultivating courage, and living with greater purpose and freedom.
My writing is inspired by the game of golf, spiritual practice, ancient wisdom, personal experience, and the everyday challenges of being human.
You won't find swing tips or quick fixes here.
You will find conversations about Self-mastery, healing, awareness, resilience, trust, surrender, and what it means to live and play from a deeper place.
Whether you're a passionate golfer, a truth-seeking man, or simply someone searching for a more meaningful way to live, I hope these writings encourage you to slow down, look within, and reconnect with what matters most.
The path is different for each of us.
The invitation is the same:
Awaken your inner power. Live with daring courage. Walk the path of soul evolution.
— Troy Ismir
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Read the Latest Lesson From the Dojo
The External Rhythm Doesn’t Have to Become My Internal Rhythm: Lessons from the Dojo
Sometimes life moves too slowly. Other times we feel pressured to hurry. Both can disturb our inner state when we believe the world around us needs to unfold according to our preferred rhythm. A frustrating round of golf reminded me that while I can't always control what happens around me, I can notice when I've allowed the external rhythm to become my internal rhythm and return to Presence.
Troy Ismir
10 hours ago2 min read
When the Course Got Loud: Lessons From the Dojo
Everything felt peaceful until my environment suddenly became loud, busy, and distracting. I responded by trying harder to stay Present—and discovered that the effort itself was pulling me away. This reflection explores the subtle difference between experiencing Presence and turning Presence into something else we need to achieve.
Troy Ismir
6 days ago2 min read
What My First Golf Competition Taught Me: Lessons From the Dojo
Competition has a way of revealing what ordinary practice can hide. Returning to tournament golf showed me where fear, attachment, and the need to prove myself still remained. These three lessons aren't really about golf. They're about competing, striving, and giving our best without allowing the outcome to define who we are.
Troy Ismir
Aug 113 min read
Bringing Divine Peace to the Golf Course Through Presence Golf| Lessons from the Dojo
Before my round at Marianna Butte, I committed to one intention: Peace begins with me. During the round I battled snap hooks, chip yips, and moments of hesitation, yet I discovered something far more valuable than a lower score. Peace isn't something golf gives us—it is something we bring to the course. This reflection explores how Presence transforms not only the way we play, but the way we live.
Troy Ismir
Jul 283 min read
The Score That Matters: Lessons From the Dojo
Preparing for my first tournament in years revealed something unexpected: I still cared deeply about score. But I also realized that score no longer defines me. In this first Lessons from the Dojo reflection, I explore the tension between competition and Presence, why golf is my practice rather than my identity, and how true Self-mastery begins when we give our best effort without losing ourselves in the outcome.
Troy Ismir
Jul 143 min read
The Roar of Redemption
The greatest victories in golf aren't always measured by trophies. Inspired by Wyndham Clark's journey from public failure to U.S. Open champion, this article explores redemption, self-compassion, and why our past mistakes never have to define our future.
Troy Ismir
Jun 303 min read
Living Inside the Shot: Ben Hogan, Presence Golf, and Self-Mastery
What can Ben Hogan teach us about Presence, Self-mastery, and the art of practice? In this article, I explore Hogan's craftsman-like devotion to the game through the yogic principle of Pratyahara, or interiorized awareness. More than a lesson about golf, it is an invitation to live inside the shot rather than outside of it—on the course and in life.
Troy Ismir
Jun 184 min read
What's Your Gongfu?
Golf is more than a game. It can become a sacred training ground for discipline, humility, concentration, and spiritual evolution. In this reflective essay, Troy Ismir explores the Taoist concept of gongfu and how the challenges of golf — including the chip yips, slow play, and unpredictable conditions — can teach us presence, inner peace, and self-mastery.
Troy Ismir
Jun 103 min read
The Jester Knows
This piece is a reflection on the pressure many men and golfers place on themselves to constantly prove, perform, and achieve. Through personal stories of athletic intensity, burnout, and overcoming the chip yips, Troy explores how golf—and life—can lose their joy when identity becomes tied to performance. Inspired by Kristoffer Reitan’s journey through professional burnout, this article invites readers to rediscover play, Presence, and freedom from perfectionism.
Troy Ismir
May 144 min read
Beyond the Chip Yips...Overcoming Chip Yips in Golf with Presence
A raw and honest reflection on my decades-long struggle with the chip yips and the deeper realization that changed everything. This post introduces the Presence Golf Chip Method, a simple yet powerful approach to moving beyond fear, overthinking, and control to rediscover trust and freedom around the greens.
Troy Ismir
Apr 214 min read
Self-Forgiveness: The Missing Step to Inner Peace and Freedom
A raw and honest reflection on self-forgiveness, this piece explores the hidden habit of self-punishment that keeps many men stuck in guilt and shame. Through personal insight and spiritual awakening, it reveals that true inner peace doesn’t come from fixing the past—but from releasing it. This is a call to take responsibility, forgive yourself fully, and step forward with clarity, freedom, and Presence.
Troy Ismir
Apr 143 min read
Most Men Are Suffering in Silence-I Saw It in Tiger Woods' Eyes
A powerful reflection on quiet desperation in men, inspired by Tiger Woods, and the courageous path inward toward healing, truth, and inner freedom.
Troy Ismir
Mar 313 min read
I Get Crazy A Lot...And That's Why I Meditate
n the middle of a chaotic spring break season in Panama City Beach, a simple interaction with a 13-year-old boy sitting in meditation becomes a powerful reminder of why inner stillness matters. In this heartfelt reflection, Troy shares how meditation helps us stay centered in a noisy world—and why even a kid who learned meditation from Kung Fu Panda understands something many adults forget: sometimes we meditate simply because we “get crazy a lot.”
Troy Ismir
Mar 175 min read
Non-Attached to Outcomes: When Wanting It Too Much Costs You Everything
Shane Lowry’s heartbreaking finish at the Cognizant Classic reveals a truth we all face: sometimes wanting something too badly keeps us from having it. In this raw reflection, Troy Ismir explores how attachment to outcomes tightens the ego and disconnects us from Presence — and how golf becomes a sacred training ground for playing free, detached, and whole regardless of the score.
Troy Ismir
Mar 33 min read
From Quiet Desperation to Realizing the Greatness Within
After sixteen years away from professional victory, Anthony Kim’s win at LIV Golf Adelaide is more than a sports headline—it’s a resurrection story.
Behind the talent and early fame was decades of silent suffering, addiction, and thoughts of suicide. Through sobriety, faith, and the support of those who refused to give up on him, Kim reclaimed not just his career—but his life.
This post is a call to every man living in quiet desperation: your gap is not your grave.
Troy Ismir
Feb 193 min read
Change the Game
n Change the Game, Troy Ismir invites men and golfers to redefine success by letting go of ego, outcomes, and performance-based identity. Drawing inspiration from Moneyball, the Beatitudes, and modern golf, this piece calls readers into inner surrender—where Presence replaces pressure and the soul becomes the true measure of the game.
Troy Ismir
Feb 103 min read
What Are the Lies You Are Telling Yourself?
Many men live constrained by stories that no longer serve them—about age, relevance, and worth. Inspired by Justin Rose’s refusal to buy into limiting narratives, this reflection invites men to question the lies they’ve believed, reconnect with their inner power, and live from the freedom of the soul rather than the fear of the ego.
Troy Ismir
Feb 32 min read
Golf for Peace: An Invitation to Presence
Golf for Peace: An Invitation to Presence explores how golf and sport can become pathways to inner peace in a chaotic world. Through reflections on Presence Golf, spiritual teachings, and Scottie Scheffler’s transformation, this piece invites athletes and seekers to discover peace, identity, and purpose from within.
Troy Ismir
Jan 203 min read
Spiritual Weightlifting on the Golf Course
Over three days at Streamsong Resort, Troy Ismir uses golf as a spiritual dojo—revealing how adrenaline, ego, and external stimulation disrupt Presence, and how calm awareness restores freedom. A real, honest reflection on nervous system regulation, fatherhood, and learning to live from inner stillness rather than control.
Troy Ismir
Jan 53 min read
The Intimate Game
The word intimacy used to make me shudder. I would let people get close to me—but not too close. Not close enough to really see me. More than once, people have told me I’m hard to get to know. For a long time, I wore that like quiet armor. It kept me safe. It also kept me lonely. As I continue walking this spiritual path, something has become painfully—and beautifully—clear: If I am not intimate with myself, it is impossible to be truly intimate with anyone else. My life is b
Troy Ismir
Dec 29, 20252 min read
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