Conference 7.286::golf

RE: .0
>                           -< What are the "yips"? >-

>   At the AT&T Pro-Am today, Ken Venturi kept describing Bernhard Langer
>   as presenting suffering from the "yips."  I gathered from the
>   fragmented (largely uninformative) discussion following that it
>    has something to do with erratic execution of the putting stroke.
    
>    Is this essentially a lack of fine motor control in putting that
>    causes stabbed putts, short and jerky backswings, and topped or
>    too strongly hit putts?  

     Actually the Y word and the S word (see previous notes) are both
     something not discussed in polite company.  It is not sure if the cause
     of the Y's is neurological or psycological or a combination of both.
     You described most of the sympthoms.

     The ironic part of Langer's yips (sorry) is that he alternates between
     having them and not.  One of the commentators mentioned that in 85 he
     lead the European tour in putting.  

     Having watched him struggle in the past with this condition I always
     find it funny when I see the book "Bernhard Langer on Putting" I hope
     he wrote it in 85!  

     Larry

    A lot of times, the yips (did I say that?) can be caused by a lack
    of confidence. It's like none of your putts want to drop and each
    time you stand over a putt, you get this awful wrenching feeling
    somewhere between your esophagus and your intestines.
    
    Wanna know a good symptom of the yips (for me): constantly missing
    3 footers and then facing a 3 footer and not knowing if I am even
    going to scare the hole.
    
    Mike

    When I first moved to Vermont I had a terriblw case of the "Y's".
    The fact that the greens were like putting down your driveway and
    keeping 2 feet short of the road had a lot to do with it.  Anyway
    the "Y's" are caused by shall we say insecurity?  The hands grip
    the putter (or should I say try to murder it), the palms sweat,
    the take away is loooooooonnnnnngggg, the ball is struck as with
    a glancing blow and the eyes dart back and forth between the ball,
    the hole and the heavens.  The result is, as Mike said in .2, not
    even scaring the hole from 3 feet.  The cure for me was to practice
    3 footers with my foot behind the line of the putt so that I had
    to strike the ball firmly to get it to the hole.  After MANY hours
    of practice I lost them and now am considered a good putter.
    But I'll tell you, I've never felt like that in my life and I don't
    ever want to feel like that again.
    
    
    
    						KO

         Yip...I mean yep, had them all last season. Never had them
       before in over two decades of play and boy did I make up for
       lost time.  Anything under 5 feet looked like a 50 footer to
       me. You get over the ball and the palms sweat, you start 
       slobbering, the arms and legs tremble, the eyes twitch, you doubt 
       your manhood, you pray for a big gust of wind to blow the ball in 
       the hole, and finally you close your eyes, yank the putter back 
       and then jerk the putter through the ball. If I was lucky, the ball
       managed to find the cup maybe 20% of the time. It was hell!

         I think I hit more greens in regulation this year than any
       other year, yet my handicap went up 2 strokes (9 hole). Having
       the yi... can be devastating.  Practice? Ha!  I think I wore
       out 2 carpets at home trying to find a cure for the disease.
       I used all five of my putters last year and probably "invented"
       20 new putting stances.  It is all in the head and can only be
       cured by regaining some confidence. I'm using the winter layoff
       to psyche myself into becoming a lean, mean, putting machine
       for next year. Yip...I mean yup, that ought to do it!  

-rick

    When your putting game goes south it tends to wreck the rest of your
    game also.  Because you can't make the putts you feel that you have to
    hit everything stiff to the pin.  That puts undo tension into your swing
    which in turn causes you to hit the ball poorly.  That leaves you the
    twenty foot putt that you feel you've got to sink, because if you miss
    you might not make the three footer .... The vicious cycle builds.

    The moral of the story ... Don't worry, be happy, It's only a game,
    stop and smell the roses, before you know it you'll probably be putting
    better.

    Larry

     For those of you who have had the yips, I think what I'm about to tell
     you will send chills up your spine!  For the last six years, I have had
     the yips ... with my full golf swing.  (Believe me this is not a joke!)
     At the top of my backswing, I literally freeze.  I can't bring the club
     down.  Sometimes I have to step away, and start over; other times, I can
     be hung-up for 5 or so seconds.  This only happens when there is a golf
     ball involved (i.e., I take a perfectly natural practice swing).  I can
     have the problem with and without a teed ball.  The problem comes and goes
     ... meaning I can have it for a month, and then it just goes away.  I
     never know when it's going to happen.  

     In my case, I'm very convinced it's psychological.  In all my travels,
     I've only heard of one other person who's had anything quite like this.
     Some day, I hope to meet him.  He plays out of Salem (Ma.) CC.

     I play to an 8 handicap when I can swing, and a 16 when I can't.  The
     problem only (only??) manifests itself on full swings, so I can 
     chip/putt and bunt the ball ... just so I can be out on a course.

     If I didn't love the game the way I do, I would have quit forever when
     this first started happening.  I can't begin to tell you how
     frustrating this has been ... it even hurts just talking about it.


     Most people, seeing me play for the first time, think I do the hesitation
     at the top on purpose (a la Cary Middlecoff).  I tell them I'm trying
     to invent a new way to play the game ... their way is boring.  ;-)

     So, if you've only had the yips while putting ... be grateful as hell!

     Mike

     I had the same thing, but more like a severe "hitch" at the top.
    Recently I have had a lot of luck mimimizing it by completely relaxing
    my shoulders at address - "shrugging" them a few times, then commencing
    my swing almost immediately.
     The only good thing about this is that you can offer to play anyone
    for $$ with no strokes - AS LONG AS THEY MUST COPY YOUR SWING!
    
    --The Skoal Bandit

    Add another.  Mine was not at the top but at the take away,  I just 
    could not start the club back.  It turned out that I was misaligned
    at address and my head knew it but my eyes didn't.  I went to the range
    and did the old 2 club line up.  Eventually it went away.  The only
    word that comes to mind to describe it is terror.
    
    
    					KO

     re .7

     Thanks.  I'll try "shrugging" my shoulders ... and jumping right into
     the swing.  I've tried practically everything else ... have been
     considering hypnosis!!

     
>    The only good thing about this is that you can offer to play anyone
>    for $$ with no strokes - AS LONG AS THEY MUST COPY YOUR SWING!
    
 	Funny you should mention that.  I have made the exact same offer to
     	my golfing buddies many times (when they kid me about being in "statue
     	mode")  ... I've never had a taker yet.  I must say I've become quite
     	adept at playing this way.  Many mid to high handicappers, seeing me 
     	play for the first time, have asked me how I manage "to stop at the top"
     	... they think I'm onto something new!!!

     I certainly wouldn't rule out hypnosis, I thought about it too.
    Another thought that comes to mind is the "one, two" drill, where
    you figure out what your tempo is NORMALLY (like, "one...two" if
    you're more methodical. then apply it to your swing; meaning that
    you count to two as you start your swing, and when you reach two,
    you should be at impact. Lanny Wadkins might be "onetwo", whereas
    Fred Couples might be "one....two". Fit the tempo to your make up,
    and concentrate on nothing but the tempo, no mechanics, no nothin'!!
    
    --The Skoal Bandit