Does a player choke due to his swing/mental issues/other?

[supercow]

Does a player choke due to his swing/mental issues/other?

[MountainHip]

I think that most people have 2 or 3 bad shots in a row, due to the swing, then the secondary factor is all mental.

[jcrew]

i think that's the whole point of using the term "choke"
anyone can have a bad swing and just do badly but there's a reason you use particularly like when someone is under pressure or mental stress or anything. definitely mental.

[DBake]

Mental. As jcrew said everyone makes bad shots, those who are mentaly stronger can minimize those mistakes.

[blue_crush]

this topic couldn't have come at a better time...lol recently I was playing with my boss on the course and at the 4th hole we were even par... then I see him take a call and hear, " I told you we were going to play, no I'm not comming home right now, we need to talk about this later, what, no I said I'm playing and finishing my round, I'll be home when I get there"... he walks to the tee box and simply smoothers the ball into the ground and it goes 12ft... grabs his 3w and does it again, now to 20yds.. it took him 4 holes to shake off that call, and 7shots above par for the front nine..lol I hate to laugh, but I don't answer the cell phone for just that reason..
I have an emergency text I can see if I choose..
I agree that bad swings can cause some of the shots, but the mental part that goes on after the bad shot can add to more bad shots.. and work or other distractions can pile up on a person and cause them to really have a bad day on the course... but then theres always that cold one in the clubhouse to make one forget it all his worries and say what the hell...

[gillman52]

My experience has been that making a few putts early has an extremely positive effect, while missing a few can create some serious self doubt. The mental aspect in putting reigns supreme.

[Ben]

I think that most people have 2 or 3 bad shots in a row, due to the swing, then the secondary factor is all mental.

I second that.

My experience has been that making a few putts early has an extremely positive effect, while missing a few can create some serious self doubt. The mental aspect in putting reigns supreme.

I'd also like to second this.

[Diggitydog]

My mental meltdowns come after a few bad swings or mental scar tissue from previous experiences on certain holes or whatever. I used to miss to the right bad when I missed. I could go from stroking it 300 down the fairway to slicing 2 fairways over in a heartbeat without warning. The slice would seemingly appear from nowhere like a Tsunami. I did this enough times that any sign of a fade when I wasn't wanting a fade or more was severely damaging to my confidence. If there's one thing that will GUARANTEE bad shots it is a lack of confidence. No confidence = tight muscles = no release = balls all over the place, mostly right.

The thing I've worked on to keep my game together when my swing isn't working 100% is to have a few keys before the round that I can go back to in my swing. I had a bad habit of going into driving range mode the second I would hit a bad shot. My mental state went into mechanics. That will create terrible shots as well. Bottom line. Mental will be the destruction of a round more than my swing.

[iacas]

I'm on record (in the podcasts) as saying there's no such thing as a "physical" choke - it's all mental. Oftentimes it manifests itself in a physical form - a bad shot - but it ALWAYS begins as a mental issue.

If it's just a bad shot without the mental issue, it's just a bad shot. If it's a bad shot with the mental issue, it's a choke - even if it happens on Thursday.