Keys to Overcome The Yips in Golf
Frustration is the one emotion a golfer cannot afford to carry from hole to hole.
Yet every golfer has experienced frustration after missing a fairway, landing in the water, pushing a putt past the cup or double bogeying in the middle of one of their best rounds.
You can probably identify several instances when frustration blocked you from playing your best…
Best case scenario, your frustration after a bad shot may only last a short period of time and you can find a way to get back on track.
Now, imagine for a second, that the frustration you experience after a missed 3-foot putt is multiplied ten times or even more.
This overwhelming level of frustration is the emotion experienced by golfers with the yips. Not only is the level of frustration more intense, it is also prolonged.
There are many factors that increase the level of frustration when dealing with the yips:
1. Unknown Origin – The yips seemingly pop up out of nowhere with no warning signs. With no obvious cause or warning, the yips are mysterious and daunting.
2. Strength Attack – The yips often affect an area that was once the strength of the golfer. This is a hard pill for a golfer to swallow…
The aspect of your game that you have consistently counted on for years now seems to be an utter crap shoot.
3. Feeling of Helplessness – Golfers who have the yips know what is happening but feel helpless to control it.
No matter how many times these golfers tell themselves to relax or to focus, the yips still show up mid-swing.
4. Practices vs. Tournament Play – To further confound the problem, golfers with the yips seem to have virtually no issues during practice versus on course play.
It is extremely frustrating to putt well on the practice greens only to fall apart AGAIN when trying to sink similar putts on the first hole.
5. Sneak Attack – Even though a golfer may be playing well, there still seems to be the feeling that it’s just a matter of time before the yips surface and it is usually at the most inopportune time.
6. No End In Sight – The yips can be so pervasive that there seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel. For that reason, many golfers consider giving up the sport entirely.
As you can see, it is not just the act of yipping that can cause profound problems for a golfer but, also, the frustration of not playing to one’s potential that goes along with the yips.
It is the frustration that accompanies the yips that halts progress, interferes with peak play, disrupts focus, prevents success and limits your sense of fulfillment and enjoyment.
The yips can take you to a very lowly place but, know for sure…
YOU ARE NOT ALONE!
Many golfers have gone through what you have or may be currently experiencing and have made it through while taking their game to the next level in the process.
Just ask World No. 11 Tommy Fleetwood…
Fleetwood won the 2017 Race to Dubai and has continued to keep the ball rolling this year.
Fleetwood has made the cut in eight tournaments, took fourth at the Honda Classic, tied for fourth at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and tied for seventh at the Players Championship.
Despite having a solid 2018 season, there was a darker time when the yips had a stronghold on Fleetwood’s game and mind.
In 2016, Fleetwood struggled with the yips…
The driving yips consumed Fleetwood and he lost confidence in his tee shots. Fleetwood’s frustration was immense especially since he considered his driving a dependable part of his game.
Each time Fleetwood stood over his tee shot, he would feel tense, anxious and unsure, causing him to yip midway through his swing.
FLEETWOOD: “My driver is my strongest club — it’s what my game kind of revolves around. I’d yip and stand up and the ball would go 80 yards right. You’re always nervous and you’re tense, and you know it’s coming.”
The frustration mounted and the pressure became overwhelming.
At the 2015 European Tour PGA Championship, Fleetwood’s erratic tee shots wore heavy upon his mind. The yips eventually caused Fleetwood to question his ability to play on the Tour.
FLEETWOOD: “It was demoralizing. Aside from being the biggest event of the year for me, it was more the fact that you can’t do what you want to do. My confidence was so low. It was pretty difficult. My coach Alan Thompson didn’t say it at the time, but he questioned if I could ever come out of it, that maybe I was too far gone.”
The difficulty with the yips is that you know what to do, you know how to do it, you have done it before but there is a disconnect between your mind and body that inhibits your ability to perform the task.
FLEETWOOD: “It doesn’t matter how good you think, or how many balls you hit on the range, or how well you hit on the range. It’s something that you can’t control — your body is doing it… I just couldn’t keep the ball on the golf course.”
Fleetwood brings up an interesting point by characterizing the yips as “something you can’t control”.
When you worry about the result of your shot and try to consciously control your swing or control what your body is doing, you stay stuck in the yips cycle and fuel further frustration.
The Keys to Moving Past the Yips are to:
- quiet your mind
- let go of outcomes
- stop over thinking
- trust your swing
These four keys often appear simplistic and easier said than done but are critical when you are seeking to remedy the yips.
Related Golf Psychology Articles
- Where Do the Driver Yips Come From?
- How to Stop the Yips Cycle Before it Starts
- How to Manage the Yips in Golf
Overcome The Yips and Enjoy Golf Again!
Breaking The Yips Cycle Video and Workbook program is ideal for any amateur, collegiate, junior, and tour professional golfer who wants to break out of the putting, chipping, or pitching yips.
Golf coaches and instructors would also be wise to teach “Breaking The Yips Cycle” principles to their players who struggle with tension in their swing or the full-blown yips. This program is perfect for any golfer who wants to improve performance by swinging freely again!