
What are the yips in sports?
According to the Mayo Clinic, “The yips are involuntary wrist spasms that occur most commonly when golfers are trying to putt.” In other words, yips have not been linked to anything physical within your body to cause those spasms. Unfortunately, that means that the yips are a result of something mental which can make them difficult to overcome.
What are the symptoms of the yips in golf?
While the origin remains unknown we can agree on the symptoms associated with the yips. And that is the involuntary movements that happen during a live swing at a live ball. The typical scenario will see a golfer performing one or two practice swings perfectly fine, only to see the live swing failing to reproduce the movements involved prior.
Who are some famous golfers with the yips?
Apr 18, 2022 · In golf, the yips can occur on the putting green, tee box, bunker play, and chipping. Putting and chipping are the two most common areas yips can creep into a player’s game because they require an incredible amount of soft-touch and quiet hands.
How common are the putter yips?
What Can You Do about Golf Yips? The Cause of the Yips. According to studies at Arizona State University and the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, the yips is not anxiety or nervousness — ... Tommy Armour Coins the Term. The Yips in Other Sports. Change Your Grip. Change Your Putter.

How do you get past the golf yips?
2:153:12How to Get Rid of the Yips in your Golf Game - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSo practice under pressure try and hold five in a row before you move on to go and do something.MoreSo practice under pressure try and hold five in a row before you move on to go and do something. Different try and have a competition. Against somebody else on the putting.
Why is it called yips?
It causes involuntary muscle spasms when you're trying to perform a specific movement. Commonly, the yips are associated with baseball players and golfers. The term “yips” was coined by Tommy Armour, a professional golf player, in the early 1900s. Other athletes can develop the yips, too.Jan 11, 2021
Are the yips mental?
However, the yips can also affect people who play other sports — such as cricket, darts and baseball. It was once thought that the yips were always associated with performance anxiety. However, it now appears that some people have the yips due to a neurological condition affecting specific muscles (focal dystonia).
What causes golf yips?
The yips come from a fear of missing putts — which causes you to miss putts. Try to remove the fear itself, accept that you'll miss putts, and the yips will disappear along the way.May 6, 2020
Why are yips bad?
Why Having the Yips is a Problem. Suffering from the yips can be fatal for a game of golf because it leads to catastrophic shots. It can strike anytime, regardless of the club being used. Indeed, whereas a lengthy distance to the cup can lead to a 3-putt situation at worst, executing a putt with the yips can easily send the ball off ...
Is there consensus on the origin of yips?
Mysterious Origin, Normally Associated with the Short Game. All kidding aside, it is true that there is no consensus on the origin of the yips. But while it can impact all types of golf shots it is normally associated with the short game.
The Cause of the Yips
According to studies at Arizona State University and the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, the yips is not anxiety or nervousness — it’s a neurological condition.
Tommy Armour Coins the Term
The word “yips” was coined by touring pro and golf instructor Tommy Armour.
Change Your Grip
Among tactics recommended by the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota is changing your grip, which introduces different muscles into the stroke.
Change Your Putter
Some golfers like Phil Mickelson are renowned for changing their putters.
What are yips in golf?
Here’s the technical definition from the Mayo Clinic (yes, there’s even a real definition for the yips): “The yips are involuntary wrist spasms that occur most commonly when golfers are trying to putt. However, the yips can also affect people who play other sports — such as cricket, darts and baseball.
How to cure chipping yips?
One of the best ways to calm nerves and cure your chipping yips is to master your pre-shot routine. This is so helpful because a good routine will help control your mind and go unconscious.
Who is Bernhard Langer?
Bernhard Langer, a legendary golfer, battled putting yips most of his career. But he kept switching grips, putters, and never gave up. Heck, he even won the Masters twice! To improve in golf (or any sport), you have to put in the work. Hoping and wishing aren’t strategies for success.
Is golf a mental game?
Proving once again that golf is more of a mental game than anything else. The “S” word (aka shanks) is part mechanics and part mental but I would argue it’s more mechanics than anything else. The “Y” word (aka the yips) on the other hand, is much more mental than mechanical.
Why is hypnotherapy so effective?
The reason that hypnotherapy is so effective is because it helps you reprogram your unconscious mind which runs 95% of your life. In a near sleep hypnotic state, your mind is incredibly impressionable. During this time, it will help you access parts to your mind that usually aren’t accessible during waking hours.
Which is better, a blade or a mallet putter?
Thanks to the toe hang of blade putters, it’s easy to shut it and square the face at impact. On the other hand, mallet putters work better for golfers who prefer a straight back, straight through putting.
Who helped Rory McIlroy with his flatstick?
I read a story recently about Rory McIlroy struggling with his flatstick and sought the help of putting legend Brad Faxon. When they went to the putting green, Rory instinctively grabbed his putter to roll some puts.
What is a yips in sports?
The yips is the colloquial term for a sudden and unexplained loss of skills in experienced athletes. Symptoms of the yips are losing fine motor skills and psychological issues that impact on the muscle memory and decision making of the player which creates a failure to perform basic skills of the sport. Common treatments undertaken by athletes include clinical sport psychology therapy as well as refocusing attention on the underlying biomechanics of their physical actions. The impact varies widely. A yips event may last a short time before the athlete regains their composure or it can require longer term adjustments to technique before recovery occurs. The worst cases are those where the athlete does not recover at all, forcing the player to abandon the sport at the highest level .
What is a yip in baseball?
In baseball. In baseball, the yips usually manifests itself as a sudden inability to throw the baseball accurately. Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Steve Blass is an example; from 1964 to 1972, he was a dominant pitcher and All-Star; however, beginning in 1973, he suddenly lost his command, issuing 84 walks in 88. +.
How many times has Stephen Hendry won a snooker title?
Stephen Hendry, seven times snooker World Champion, said after his loss to Mark Williams in the 2011 UK Championship that he had been suffering from the yips for ten years, and that the condition had affected his ability to cue through the ball, causing him great difficulty in regaining his old form.
What is a yip in cricket?
In cricket, the yips applies mostly to bowlers and seems predominantly to affect left-arm spinners. The affliction seems to involve bowlers having trouble releasing the ball at the end of their action. An example of this was Keith Medlycott, who having reached the England squad was forced to abandon the sport. Another player, Gavin Hamilton, having played a Test as an all-rounder, largely abandoned his right-arm medium pace bowling, following the yips. He did not make another Test appearance, but has enjoyed a One Day International career for Scotland, predominantly as a specialist batsman. Collins Obuya was one of the stars of Kenya's 2003 World Cup—he gained a contract with Warwickshire on the back of it—but soon afterward his game fell apart when he developed the yips.
When was Luke Hagerty drafted?
On April 26, 2018, he was drafted in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft, 25th overall, by the Baltimore Ravens . ESPN featured a story about Luke Hagerty's comeback from the yips in 2019. He never played after being drafted #32 overall by the Chicago Cubs in the 2002 draft.
Most Get It Wrong
Even the famous Mayo clinic did a study on it and concluded that it’s caused by “focal dystonia” from overuse of certain muscles. Yeah, right. This makes no sense…
The real solution to fixing this is in
Clearing all the negativity stored in the cellular intelligence of your body (The inner mind or unconscious mind) from your past experiences with putting, especially the fingers, hands, arms, etc.
Full Swing Driver Yips
If you are struggling with the full swing yips then please don’t suffer in silence, drop me an email or call me. I hope I can help you just as I have helped lots of golfers with these problems over the last 20 years that I have been coaching yippers of all varieties.
Kevin Na Yips
Kevin Na had such a bad case of the yips that he could not pull the trigger on his tee shots. He had the driving yips, something I have helped many people overcome. He got so used to overanalysing his shots that his mind became stuck.
