Full Swing Yipper Who Cannot Hit A Golf Ball No Matter What He Does

[DuckhookDenny]

Hello Everyone

I honestly dont know what to do anymore. I used to be good at golf around 5 to 6 years ago. In the UK, a steady 2-3 handicap who had many rounds of par or better, ive broken 70 a few times and always saw myself improving and always wanted to be on the course.

Almost it seems overnight, i completely lost my game, and it has never ever come back.

I have full swing yips at takeaway. I must have lost 10mph of clubhead speed and i struggle to even take the club away. I used to play a nice draw shape on almost all my clubs. I now have a choppy, slappy fade/slice that goes absolutely nowhere and if into the wind, its not uncommon itll banana 70 yards right.

I cant remember the last time i even hit a shot properly.

Today, it really was the final straw for me. After 12 holes, i was already +6 on a very wide open course, having already hit two tee shots into water hazards (and made bogeys, birdying the hole with the second ball each time), i had topped a hybrid 30 yards straight out of bounds, fatted a 6 iron 10 yards, hit a 6 iron 60 yards right of a green, topped a 3 wood 180 yards off the tee along the ground all the way, and hit a 70 yard pitch shot sideways off the toe of the club.

Even on the moderately good shots, i couldnt take the club away.

It came to an awful head today where i walked off the 12th green and im ashamed to say, i smashed all my clubs up and said "im done" and walked off.

 

I think im done with the same sadly, its brought me so much in the past but i just feel so over it and hopeless now. Id do anything to play decent again but it just feels like its all gone.

 

Ive tried most things, lessons, changing clubs, even tried a little psychology but i cant seem to overcome the yips.

 

Can anyone offer any advice? im at my lowest point ever.

 

Thanks everyone

[Vinsk]

27 minutes ago, DuckhookDenny said:

Hello Everyone

I honestly dont know what to do anymore. I used to be good at golf around 5 to 6 years ago. In the UK, a steady 2-3 handicap who had many rounds of par or better, ive broken 70 a few times and always saw myself improving and always wanted to be on the course.

Almost it seems overnight, i completely lost my game, and it has never ever come back.

I have full swing yips at takeaway. I must have lost 10mph of clubhead speed and i struggle to even take the club away. I used to play a nice draw shape on almost all my clubs. I now have a choppy, slappy fade/slice that goes absolutely nowhere and if into the wind, its not uncommon itll banana 70 yards right.

I cant remember the last time i even hit a shot properly.

Today, it really was the final straw for me. After 12 holes, i was already +6 on a very wide open course, having already hit two tee shots into water hazards (and made bogeys, birdying the hole with the second ball each time), i had topped a hybrid 30 yards straight out of bounds, fatted a 6 iron 10 yards, hit a 6 iron 60 yards right of a green, topped a 3 wood 180 yards off the tee along the ground all the way, and hit a 70 yard pitch shot sideways off the toe of the club.

Even on the moderately good shots, i couldnt take the club away.

It came to an awful head today where i walked off the 12th green and im ashamed to say, i smashed all my clubs up and said "im done" and walked off.

 

I think im done with the same sadly, its brought me so much in the past but i just feel so over it and hopeless now. Id do anything to play decent again but it just feels like its all gone.

 

Ive tried most things, lessons, changing clubs, even tried a little psychology but i cant seem to overcome the yips.

 

Can anyone offer any advice? im at my lowest point ever.

 

Thanks everyone

Forget about all the tech stuff and take some swings with the Jim Venetos method. Just go to YouTube and watch. It’ll calm you down and give you some confidence. Cheers.

[triestogolf]

42 minutes ago, DuckhookDenny said:

Hello Everyone

I honestly dont know what to do anymore. I used to be good at golf around 5 to 6 years ago. In the UK, a steady 2-3 handicap who had many rounds of par or better, ive broken 70 a few times and always saw myself improving and always wanted to be on the course.

Almost it seems overnight, i completely lost my game, and it has never ever come back.

I have full swing yips at takeaway. I must have lost 10mph of clubhead speed and i struggle to even take the club away. I used to play a nice draw shape on almost all my clubs. I now have a choppy, slappy fade/slice that goes absolutely nowhere and if into the wind, its not uncommon itll banana 70 yards right.

I cant remember the last time i even hit a shot properly.

Today, it really was the final straw for me. After 12 holes, i was already +6 on a very wide open course, having already hit two tee shots into water hazards (and made bogeys, birdying the hole with the second ball each time), i had topped a hybrid 30 yards straight out of bounds, fatted a 6 iron 10 yards, hit a 6 iron 60 yards right of a green, topped a 3 wood 180 yards off the tee along the ground all the way, and hit a 70 yard pitch shot sideways off the toe of the club.

Even on the moderately good shots, i couldnt take the club away.

It came to an awful head today where i walked off the 12th green and im ashamed to say, i smashed all my clubs up and said "im done" and walked off.

 

I think im done with the same sadly, its brought me so much in the past but i just feel so over it and hopeless now. Id do anything to play decent again but it just feels like its all gone.

 

Ive tried most things, lessons, changing clubs, even tried a little psychology but i cant seem to overcome the yips.

 

Can anyone offer any advice? im at my lowest point ever.

 

Thanks everyone

Still in the UK? Have a look at samjarmangolf.com 
 

Sounds like you have a lot of thinking going on! You’ve played to a good standard before and can get there again, no doubt. Book wise, try Stillpower by Garret Kramer, cheap copies on EBay/Amazon/Biblio. Good luck, your bad golf sounds better than my good golf :)

Paul R

[Club Rat]

5 hours ago, DuckhookDenny said:

Can anyone offer any advice?

Start a My Swing thread.
Lots of good advice can come from members.

[pganapathy]

7 hours ago, DuckhookDenny said:

It came to an awful head today where i walked off the 12th green and im ashamed to say, i smashed all my clubs up and said "im done" and walked off.

I am hoping that was just hitting the ground in anger and not actually breaking the clubs.

WRT playing properly again, may I suggest going to a pro for a lesson or two.  I think having somebody look at your swing with a dispassionate view can help a lot.

[DuckhookDenny]

13 hours ago, pganapathy said:

I am hoping that was just hitting the ground in anger and not actually breaking the clubs.

WRT playing properly again, may I suggest going to a pro for a lesson or two.  I think having somebody look at your swing with a dispassionate view can help a lot.

unfortunately, no it wasnt just against the ground. I broke all of them. It just became too much for me. Im ashamed of it, i feel stupid of course i do.

Ill aim to get video done if it would help people diagnose my faults.

It feels like my weight never goes back, and that no matter what i do, my mind wont let my body turn backwards in the backswing.

It just leads to a yippy takeaway thats always different and hideous strikes because i simply cant do anything instinctively.

I really appreciate everyone taking their time to try and help me, it means a lot to me

[billchao]

Try taking the game up with your opposite hand for a bit? Maybe it will reset your brain.

[Double Mocha Man]

1 hour ago, DuckhookDenny said:

unfortunately, no it wasnt just against the ground. I broke all of them. It just became too much for me. Im ashamed of it, i feel stupid of course i do.

I'm guessing you snapped all the shafts.  You could always have them re-shafted.  But I'd suggest getting all new or used clubs.  Don't go back to what you had.  You need a whole new, fresh look.  Then sell all the old heads on Ebay.

[mcanadiens]

There are plenty more qualified people than me to give you golf swing advice, but I do know something about struggling.

When it gets to the point of rage (and it has for me in the past), I think you need to give the game a rest. Maybe a couple of weeks will be just right. Maybe longer than that.

Do something else these next few weeks. Pick a date, maybe April 1. If you want to get back at it by then, go ahead.

Edited March 9, 2020 by mcanadiens

[DuckhookDenny]

27 minutes ago, mcanadiens said:

There are plenty more qualified people than me to give you golf swing advice, but I do know something about struggling.

When it gets to the point of rage (and it has for me in the past), I think you need to give the game a rest. Maybe a couple of weeks will be just right. Maybe longer than that.

Do something else these next few weeks. Pick a date, maybe April 1. If you want to get back at it by then, go ahead.

Hello there

thanks for the advice much appreciated.

Ive spoken to my dad today and im just going to visit the range with him and help him out for a bit, hes improving steadily and a 14 handicap whilst i clear my head and enjoy a rest. also itll let my body rest.

56 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

I'm guessing you snapped all the shafts.  You could always have them re-shafted.  But I'd suggest getting all new or used clubs.  Don't go back to what you had.  You need a whole new, fresh look.  Then sell all the old heads on Ebay.

Hi There

I do have the heads. Theyre old Ping I's.

Even though im a very short hitter, i always preferred Dynamic Gold shafts. Always felt a certain way, distance didnt bother me too much.

I hit an 8 iron 150 and i dont need any more than that. 7 iron 160 etc. thats fine for me.

I did have Nippon Modus 105s in those irons but never really liked them. Just felt like "nothing". Actually to me FELT quite stiff, even though they arent.

Thanks for the help!

[DrvFrShow]

That's not exactly a short hitter. That's average.

[3jacker]

Anyone's who's played this game for any length of time can likely relate.   You have a particularly bad case of whatever it is, but yeah, it can be frustrating to the point of infuriating.  

I second the opinion that a nice long break is in order. Long enough to where when you return, everything feels uncomfortable.  Then concentrate on setup/alignment/grip (you know, the things everybody can get right regardless of ability). 

Good luck.  I know what it's like to have a love/hate relationship with golf. I took up flyfishing as a fallback sport. Much more relaxing, have never broken my fly rods. 

Golf is a crazy game. 

[snapfade]

Take a break, remember why you loved the game, remember you are fortunate to be able to physically and financialy play, think of all of the positives, and then go see a professional. 

[70sSanO]

Nothing is worse than just staring at the ball and your mind is so cluttered that you can't even get started.  Sooner or later, you make a forced takeaway and then nothing but bad things happen.

Ironically I decided to break the cardinal rule, I started my takeaway with my right hand.  It was almost like my brain was at a loss of words.  I thought it would really cause problems, but the club found it way where it needed to go and it didn't change the downswing.  I don't know if it will stick, but for now it seems to have removed a lot of tension.

John

[Carl3]

On 3/9/2020 at 3:15 PM, DuckhookDenny said:

 

Even though im a very short hitter, i always preferred Dynamic Gold shafts. Always felt a certain way, distance didnt bother me too much.

I hit an 8 iron 150 and i dont need any more than that. 7 iron 160 etc. thats fine for me.

 

LOL. Scratch or better potential complaining about being a very short hitter. I would say that improvement would begin with a proper perspective of your game. With a swing speed that would average over 270 yard carry:

 

On 3/9/2020 at 4:32 PM, DrvFrShow said:

That's not exactly a short hitter. That's average.

Or above average.

Edited March 21, 2020 by Carl3

[DrvFrShow]

Depends upon the lofts of the clubs. Game improvement iron lofts for 7 irons are between 27 and 30 degrees these days. That table is for PGA tour lofted clubs. 

 

[DuckDuckFoose]

I feel for ya man I do, last year was the same thing for me albeit my scores were always higher. Mid 90s with a couple fluke days in the 80s. Had a stretch in August where I couldnt even get a pitching wedge off the turf. I decided to call it a year because it wasnt bringing any joy. Picked up the clubs last week for the first time and the front 9 was a lot of the same. I was with some friends so I didnt leave, but I told myself that this was going to be the last 9 I played, if it wasnt fun anymore then why do it was my rationale. For some reason it was like an epic relief that I didnt need to hit a certain score, a certain shot, or even golf again. Not that my swing was great to begin with but I was hitting nice draws, put one on a par three to about two feet. Ended up shooting 40 on the back, which is a good score for me. I'm not assuming how you dealt with the mental game, but I've read the zen golf book, and some others and I can say for me is that you cant force a good mental state, It's like forcing a swing. You have to truly allow the mental part to happen. I've said I was done before, but for the first time I actually believed in swinging free, and having no responsiblity to play ever and it opened my game back up. Played again this week before the courses were shut down, and while my score wasnt amazing I had more fun than I have had in awhile. Golf cant be forced, I've learned, and neither cant the mind. 

[MOODY]

This sounds like me except I was never as good and a way shorter hitter.  Keep us informed about what you find out, maybe it will help me also.