The Golfers Report

View Video  by John Dodegge

Researchers at the Mayo Clinic found that 33 percent to 48 percent of all serious golfers have experienced the yips, and that golfers who have played for more than 25 years, appear to be most prone to the condition. Keep these statistics in mind.

The yips occur mostly on short putts. Why? Well on long putts no one expects us to make the putt, so we just focus on getting into the circle of friendship for a gimme. But those short putts are the ones that give us fits. Each of us handles that pressure differently, but if you consistently miss those short putts, your nerves may take over and you get the yips. We know from the statistics above, that golfers with the yips didn’t start out putting that way. Their setup routine changed from trying to make the putt, to being terribly afraid of missing the putt – and the result is an involuntary stab at the ball.

Much of the advice on fixing the yips, involves making some dramatic change to your putting style: switch to a long putter, switch to claw grip, or left hand low, or look at the hole while you putt. John Dodegge’s approach is a little different. Since golfers with the yips are long time players, he feels that inside every person with yips, is a person with a natural putting stroke that was developed over years of playing golf. John’s approach to fixing the yips, is to help you reconnect with that natural stroke, rather than adopt a radically new putting style.

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To see more related videos like this one click on Golf Technique Problems