Does it help your game to be OCD?

[Lihu]

Is it better to be OCD so that you do the exact same thing every time before you take your swing?

Would you categorize golfers as more OCD than in other activity? Except Archery. . .

http://thesandtrap.com/t/34024/am-i-ocd-or-does-everyone-do-this

http://thesandtrap.com/t/59858/new-to-the-game-already-developing-superstitions-ocd-rituals-lol

If you answered the poll with anything above 5 please post your handicap in this thread. . .

[GolfLug]

I am not horribly obsessive and only about where my club face points at setup.

[drifterdon]

I can see where being obsessive may have a benefit but being compulsive doesn't sound like it would be a good idea.

[billchao]

No idea. I'm neither compulsive nor good at golf. I doubt it's related.

[Lihu]

No idea. I'm neither compulsive nor good at golf. I doubt it's related.

IDK either, that's why I am asking. . .

[dfreuter415]

I'm obsessive (to a point) with the placement of the clubs in my golf bag, preshot routines, and golf ettiquette. After that, I like having variables in my wardrobe, selection of the ball I will be playing that day, club selection that goes in my bag or for different shots, and, of course, my 19th hole beverage.

Cheers!

[trickyputt]

Hey #6! I finally got a poll right! Yeah there is a lot of mechanical, but balance, mentally, and honest assessment of the shot environment is also a really big deal, so I actually dont have time to obsess.

[Jgarner]

I have an 8.6 index right now and it has dropped 3 strokes a year for the past 2 years. With that being said , my game only improved when I learned to manage my ocd. I had to stop wearing a watch for several years because I would obsess over time. I stopped using a range finder because I obsessed over exact distances. I stopped putting a line on my ball because I would obsess over putt alignment ( I would Remark my ball several times before putting) Since I stopped doing these things my game got much better and my enjoyment and passion for the game increased. So in the end I would say that a little ' controllable ocd' might be good for the practice range, in a real game it is crippling.

[Fourputt]

Having a consistent routine is considered a necessary part of playing consistently.  Being OCD to extremes is rarely beneficial in any endeavor.  I'm about the least OCD person you'd ever want to meet, but I try to follow the same routine for every shot.  It helps to settle my mind and focus on the business at hand.

[boogielicious]

Having a consistent routine is considered a necessary part of playing consistently.  Being OCD to extremes is rarely beneficial in any endeavor.  I'm about the least OCD person you'd ever want to meet, but I try to follow the same routine for every shot.  It helps to settle my mind and focus on the business at hand.

I agree with Rick here.  Having a routine and being OCD are not entirely the same thing.  I try to keep my pre-shot the same.  I've worked on shortening it as well.  But real OCD is a disorder that can have serious effects on your life.

I would ask the question differently.  If your pre-shot routine or putting routine is interrupted or forced to change for any reason, does it affect your composure?

[golf-noob-bruce]

To answer the question posed in the title: No. I think being compulsive about your routine makes it more difficult to adapt to things outside of your control.

[RussUK]

Wouldnt say im OCD in golf but when i lock the door at home i have to check the handle 6 times, but that has to be done in groups of 3 i.e. three pushes then another 3. not with another 2 people stood next to me. That would be just plain weird

[Patch]

At this stage of my life, my obsessive, compulsive disorder, if I actually have one, is just to have fun doing what ever I'm doing at the time. Staying busy, while having fun is a good thing for me. OCD does not enter into my playing golf. I don't think it ever did for that matter, so I voted for number one.  My golf game became better with self taught knowledge of swinging the club head, and a smart practice regimen. I don't relate that to having a disorder, or being compulsive.

Now, I have in the past said the game probably consumed me, but that was only because I enjoyed playing golf so much that I let a $20K bass boat basically dry rot in my garage from non use.

To me, doing everything exactly the same way every time would tend to get boring, and most likely complacency would set in. This is why  I don't wig out when things don't go my way on the golf course. Something different has happened, and now I need to deal with it. It's more interesting.

Another thing I believe is that OCD is also used in the same health process with depression. Depression, which is linked to  OCD is medical issue that doctors treat with medicines, and professional counseling. I don't think I need medical intervention in my golf game.

[Lihu]

Wouldnt say im OCD in golf but when i lock the door at home i have to check the handle 6 times, but that has to be done in groups of 3 i.e. three pushes then another 3. not with another 2 people stood next to me. That would be just plain weird

As a kid, I lived in New York City for a few months. I remember that we had four locks and one of those bars across the floor, and one leaning against the door. The funny part of this is we were in a decent part of town. It was just something the tenants got used to doing living in other parts of the city, so they felt that a high rise in Riverside Drive should have this feature. I guess the occupants can be categorized as OCD?

[GolfLug]

I thought about this some more. I think I may have mistaken what I 'focus' on as OCD when I voted without giving it much thought. I do not have OCD about anything, let alone golf. Have to be exacting in lot of things everyday life because of my profession but OCD is a prison. Wanting to exacting about distance, positions for putts etc., is not OCD in my opinion. These things are not compulsions above reason. The term gets thrown around a little too lightly.

I think OCD about anything especially in golf can be detrimental to the game of golf as in anything else in life.

On a biological level OCD keeps one from keeping all 5 senses engaged in the surroundings. Specifically vision and touch (feel?). But in particular it is very damaging to proprioception, which I think might trump all other athletic and 'mental' virtues in terms of golf.

'OCD' away all you want. Chances are you are just more focused or particular about certain things. Be aware of surroundings as much as possible.

[rkim291968]

In Liu's thread context, I read OCD as being overly methodical.    I think those folks have advantage over non-methodical people.   E.g, if I routinely make 2 practice swings before every shot, I will definitely score better but I don't.

[Lihu]

I thought about this some more. I think I may have mistaken what I 'focus' on as OCD when I voted without giving it much thought. I do not have OCD about anything, let alone golf. Have to be exacting in lot of things everyday life because of my profession but OCD is a prison. Wanting to exacting about distance, positions for putts etc., is not OCD in my opinion. These things are not compulsions above reason. The term gets thrown around a little too lightly.

I think OCD about anything especially in golf can be detrimental to the game of golf as in anything else in life.

On a biological level OCD keeps one from keeping all 5 senses engaged in the surroundings. Specifically vision and touch (feel?). But in particular it is very damaging to proprioception, which I think might trump all other athletic and 'mental' virtues in terms of golf.

'OCD' away all you want. Chances are you are just more focused or particular about certain things. Be aware of surroundings as much as possible.

I suppose one major flaw in my poll is that real OCD people would be disturbed by the inaccuracy and looseness of my use of the term (acronym) OCD?

So, to clarify, what I mean is in the colloquial usage of OCD. . .

In Lihu's thread context, I read OCD as being overly methodical.    I think those folks have advantage over non-methodical people.   E.g, if I routinely make 2 practice swings before every shot, I will definitely score better but I don't.

Right, this is what I mean. . .

[Golfingdad]

I suppose one major flaw in my poll is that real OCD people would be disturbed by the inaccuracy and looseness of my use of the term (acronym) OCD?

So, to clarify, what I mean is in the colloquial usage of OCD. . .

Right, this is what I mean. . .

In retrospect, a better term would have simply been Obsessive or Methodical, and you could have just left off the Compulsive and especially the Disorder part.  But, no matter, it's not a huge deal.

In Liu's thread context, I read OCD as being overly methodical.    I think those folks have advantage over non-methodical people.   E.g, if I routinely make 2 practice swings before every shot, I will definitely score better but I don't.

I kind of disagree.  Having a pre-shot routine is quite important, however I don't think its something that should qualify as methodical, but rather, quite the opposite.  If you're robotically thinking "I. must. make. two. practice. swings." before every shot then you're concentrating on the routine when you should be concentrating on the shot.  The routine is a way to GET AWAY from all of the "intrusive thoughts" and other things that take you concentration away from the shot at hand.  Get the routine down pat and it's simply a trigger to get yourself to focus.

Consequently, I think being obsessive or methodical about things is a detriment.

Oh, and how come you only want the handicaps of the people who post 5 and higher on your scale?