Matthew Wolff Withdrawal....

[Kjboisen]

Perhaps he is seeking to fulfill other areas of his life while he is healing for injury. Social security etc. I think people tend to forget what the sacrifice is for tour players to make it. You give up a lot. You travel a lot. Yes you can earn a lot and have a lot of networking opportunities with others on tour but to create genuine relationships is harder for some people than others. Who knows. Nobody knows but him... but I wish him the best

[Ferguson]

16 hours ago, ctmason_98 said:

I see this so much now and it legitimately makes me sad. Human beings are human beings. 
 

No one is asking anyone to “feel bad” for him. 
 

Another refrain is, “I don’t feel sorry for <this person> my attention is on <person in a worse situation>.”  Now we have to prioritize empathy. Fantastic. 

 

This calls for a survey.

 

1. Do you feel sorry for him, knowing the mental issues on being on tour? 

2. Do you think he's a jerk in that he has millions and no one should feel bad for him?

3. Do you think he deserved the moniker, "the next Tiger Woods" or not?

4.  How many people would have helped him move a boulder? 

 

 

[BlackDiamondPar5]

19 hours ago, TiScape said:

When someone posts what is obviously just “troll nonsense”, I think it’s best to just completely ignore them (as I post about it 😂) The attention is what they seek. Don’t give it too them and let their posts get buried. 

Actually it can be fun to goad trolls here, because on WRX it will accelerate their inevitable fate of being banned. 

 

I see this in @Blonde Line Lizardfuture... 

[Frankensteins Monster]

All speculation at this point, but if he is indeed moving closer to college, and doing to hang with the boys, he's not mentally ready for adult life and wants to replicate the life where there was really no responsibilities.

[MK7Golf21]

22 minutes ago, Frankensteins Monster said:

All speculation at this point, but if he is indeed moving closer to college, and doing to hang with the boys, he's not mentally ready for adult life and wants to replicate the life where there was really no responsibilities.

Yea, wait until he is close to 30 and realizes he wasted an opportunity to make millions and set himself up for the rest of his life because he wanted to “have fun G”

[GolfTurkey]

One of the things people with unusual swings will always have to deal with is being able to shut out the naysayers when they are playing badly.
 

It’s easy to ignore them when playing well, but how does he shut out the “maybe they’re right” thoughts when he’s playing badly? I wonder if he’s asked Furyk for advice.
 

It’s kind of like he has to make things more orthodox and get it over with, or learn how to stick his fingers in his ears for the rest of his career (I know there are possibly mental and/or physical issues, but there has also been evidence of swing changes)

[me05501]

16 hours ago, bubbagump said:

That transition from college to "real life" daily grind is legit, and no joke.  Takes time to find that balance and come to a routine and understanding of purpose of life after debatably the most carefree and enjoyable time in most peoples lives.  Add in the constant travel and isolating lifestyle of the PGAT,  for sure have empathy for Wolff and they are enormous changes for most people, let alone a 22 year old.  

 

Agree 100%. 

 

I think most of us can admit it took some time to mature after college and into our first few jobs. I know I was very green at 22 and only slightly less so at 25. I'm sure I rubbed a lot of people the wrong way as I was trying to figure out how adults are meant to behave. 

 

With the PGA Tour you've got several very hard dynamics working with or against you depending on your attitude and ambition. Technically, if you have a Tour card you have achieved your dream job and there's unlimited upside. There's also unlimited downside. And I expect that the social life of a Tour member can be really difficult to navigate. At the end of the day they're all in competition with each other on the course and off. There may not be a lot of people a young player can trust. Their agent and coach and sponsors aren't always going to be around to buck them up.

 

Gotta be very lonely at times. 

 

[cardoustie]

I see a young guy that hurt his wrist and then lost confidence in his game

 

He has now played terribly on an extended streak and is miserable, maybe overly so based on his age and his sky high expectations of himself based on nothing but massive success at all stages in life so far (NCAA, early win)

 

The kid went from top dog in college to an average tour guy.   He needs to realize being an everyday tour guy is still incredible.  If there are some mental issues this will require some professional help, outside of GG

 

Hope he can figure it out and get back at it, wish him the best

[JaNelson38]

2 hours ago, cardoustie said:

I see a young guy that hurt his wrist and then lost confidence in his game

 

He has now played terribly on an extended streak and is miserable, maybe overly so based on his age and his sky high expectations of himself based on nothing but massive success at all stages in life so far (NCAA, early win)

 

The kid went from top dog in college to an average tour guy.   He needs to realize being an everyday tour guy is still incredible.  If there are some mental issues this will require some professional help, outside of GG

 

Hope he can figure it out and get back at it, wish him the best

 

Yup.  Being a big fish in a little pond to suddenly being a little fish in a big pond is a bridge too far for a lot of people.  This happens in every walk of life.  And traveling a lot can rub lots of people the wrong way if you're not prepared for it, especailly if you're a "home body" so to speak.  Lots of us look at Tour life and think of it as a vacation ('they get to play golf for a living...') but it really is a grind.  The school experience - both college and high school - are woefully lacking in getting young adults actually ready for the real world.

 

He's fully exempt for next year on tour.  He should take as much time as he needs to get his mind and body right.  

 

 

[smturner1203]

14 hours ago, bladehunter said:

True - but.   That reminds me of a line in a song.  “ I hate those people who love to tell you , money is the root of all that kills .  They have never been poor , They have never had the joy of a welfare Christmas “.  
 

some truth in both perspectives I’d say.  If you’ve started where I did , it is incredibly hard to empathize with a kid who has a mom who cares , a college education paid for , and a pro career with a win already.  
 

 

that being said. I also understand mental hurdles , and that lots of times we build them ourselves.  That aspect I can empathize with.  I hope he gets over that hurdle soon and realizes his upside.  

But why is it hard? I didn't come from anything, but I can still have empathy. He had zero control over who his parents are, he worked his a** off to get a golf scholarship, and he worked his a** off to win on tour. 

 

As others have said, all of his hurdles are purely speculative at the moment. But someone's upbringing shouldn't determine whether or not they deserve empathy from other humans. 

[bladehunter]

23 minutes ago, smturner1203 said:

But why is it hard? I didn't come from anything, but I can still have empathy. He had zero control over who his parents are, he worked his a** off to get a golf scholarship, and he worked his a** off to win on tour. 

 

As others have said, all of his hurdles are purely speculative at the moment. But someone's upbringing shouldn't determine whether or not they deserve empathy from other humans. 

I didn’t use the word deserve.  If we want to get into the philosophical weeds , we can argue that no one deserves anything but death.  Flawed creatures that we are.....But I digress. 

Sure it’s speculative.  I’m just giving my spec on it.  I’m a guy who is like a shark.  If I quit moving I’ll die.  No doubt product of my environment.  I can’t help but dream about where I’d have gone if I had those head starts.  Make no mistake.  You can pin half of every college scholarship to parents , the other half is due to a kid who only saw one way out.   I’m a parent of a genetically gifted 12 year old.  He’s spoiled.  And  I know how hard it is to make him see the side of the coin I automatically see.  I’d guess he doesn’t see or know that lense either. 
 

Kind of like someone complaint that their pie isn’t hot enough.   The starving man would love to have that pie frozen . 
 

which was my point.  That his mental hurdles are likely self made , as most of ours are.  If he gains the perspective to see what he has , he will go ahead and take advantage and retire with a couple majors and a fat account and happy family.  Or .... he can quit now and learn what he wasted later in life as he sees further past his nose.  
 

 

 

or.  Maybe his wrist just hurts. 😂.  All pure speculation.  I’m just commenting on the abstract idea that we can all empathize with everyone.  Truth is we cannot in a genuine way.    We haven’t all had the same experiences. I don’t think we can truly understand what we havent experienced.  
 

 

[Soloman1]

The problem may be that he's lost so much weight that he's disappeared?

 

 

[Cpr3584]

Seems like a nice young man and I hope he gets it figured out. I do agree it seems swing/short game related. Furyk's loop looks more free-flowing, Wolff's looks uncomfortable. Look at the iron man Berhard Langer. Just a simple action with arms and hips. thats the swing many should be striving for. 

[smturner1203]

1 hour ago, bladehunter said:

I didn’t use the word deserve.  If we want to get into the philosophical weeds , we can argue that no one deserves anything but death.  Flawed creatures that we are.....But I digress. 

Sure it’s speculative.  I’m just giving my spec on it.  I’m a guy who is like a shark.  If I quit moving I’ll die.  No doubt product of my environment.  I can’t help but dream about where I’d have gone if I had those head starts.  Make no mistake.  You can pin half of every college scholarship to parents , the other half is due to a kid who only saw one way out.   I’m a parent of a genetically gifted 12 year old.  He’s spoiled.  And  I know how hard it is to make him see the side of the coin I automatically see.  I’d guess he doesn’t see or know that lense either. 
 

Kind of like someone complaint that their pie isn’t hot enough.   The starving man would love to have that pie frozen . 
 

which was my point.  That his mental hurdles are likely self made , as most of ours are.  If he gains the perspective to see what he has , he will go ahead and take advantage and retire with a couple majors and a fat account and happy family.  Or .... he can quit now and learn what he wasted later in life as he sees further past his nose.  
 

 

 

or.  Maybe his wrist just hurts. 😂.  All pure speculation.  I’m just commenting on the abstract idea that we can all empathize with everyone.  Truth is we cannot in a genuine way.    We haven’t all had the same experiences. I don’t think we can truly understand what we havent experienced.  
 

 

We're all lambs to the cosmic slaughter, I get it. 

 

You didn't say "deserve", but you said it's difficult to have empathy for him. I just don't understand that sentence I suppose. It almost takes more effort to do that than it takes to say, "You know what? Yeah, sucks for him that he's going through some stuff, hope he figures it out." 

 

As for the scholarship thing, can you explain that a bit more? I would imagine there are 100 kids left to go to JuCo for every student athlete that gets a full ride to a D1 school. No matter how much parents contribute, the kid still has to put in the work to be good. Unless he's John Daly 2.0 or something. 

 

Sometimes it takes a low point to gain perspective on something. Maybe this will be that low point for Matt, maybe it won't. Hell, I had no idea what I was doing with my life until I was well into my 20's (still don't most of the time) and this guy is, what, 21/22? I just find it strange that some people need to experience trauma themselves to acknowledge that trauma sucks. 

 

I haven't personally lost anyone to COVID, but man do I feel terrible for my friends that have. 

[bubbagump]

16 hours ago, m d g said:

First, I was doing a job that I trained for in college and not just anybody could have walked in a done it. Just like getting on the PGA Tour, it's an 'opportunity' I earned by going to school and breaking down doors until I got hired.

 

Second, are you really comparing a 60 hour/week job at $40k with life on the PGA tour and millions already in his pocket. Really? They are not the same thing.

 

If he's unhappy with his $5.7 million in career earnings (excluding endorsement money) he can retire right now, invest it conservatively, and live like a king in Oklahoma.

 

Nah, wasn't comparing the two, that seemed to be the angle you took with introducing your 40k job scenario as some baseline.    I was just referring to the transition that he has spoken about having a hard time with, and understanding that.   

Edited May 13, 2021 by bubbagump

[bladehunter]

32 minutes ago, smturner1203 said:

We're all lambs to the cosmic slaughter, I get it. 

 

You didn't say "deserve", but you said it's difficult to have empathy for him. I just don't understand that sentence I suppose. It almost takes more effort to do that than it takes to say, "You know what? Yeah, sucks for him that he's going through some stuff, hope he figures it out." 

 

As for the scholarship thing, can you explain that a bit more? I would imagine there are 100 kids left to go to JuCo for every student athlete that gets a full ride to a D1 school. No matter how much parents contribute, the kid still has to put in the work to be good. Unless he's John Daly 2.0 or something. 

 

Sometimes it takes a low point to gain perspective on something. Maybe this will be that low point for Matt, maybe it won't. Hell, I had no idea what I was doing with my life until I was well into my 20's (still don't most of the time) and this guy is, what, 21/22? I just find it strange that some people need to experience trauma themselves to acknowledge that trauma sucks. 

 

I haven't personally lost anyone to COVID, but man do I feel terrible for my friends that have. 

Saying it sucks and knowing it sucks , aren’t the same , I guess is what I mean.  
 

 

 

I’m just giving an honest review of my ability to empathize with someone who has a parent let alone a supportive one  , and has “ made it “ by that young age , and can’t find the strength to carry on.  I have zero points of reference for empathizing with that.  As for figuring it out well into your 20s.  I guess all that is relative too.  I don’t think I had it figured out either.  I don’t think I have some of it figured out now.  And I’m 41.  But I know more than 22 year old me knew.  But 22 year old me had been on his own for 4 years already.  And a business owner for 2 ..... I had no option but to push.  He has options.  I just can’t connect with that.  
 

 I can however  SYMPATHIZE  with the human struggle bus we all ride on.  But like I said earlier. Most of that is self inflicted if we’re honest.    As in he’s  in his own way currently. ( assuming he’s struggling with growing up ).   I hope he gets there before he wastes his 20s.   I have zero bad feeling towards the guy.  But if I had his ear I’d shake it. And  let him know how many would give a digit or two to restart with that  deck of cards.  
 

again. I’m just giving honest commentary/opinion   on the guesswork THats being done here.  New concrete info could change my opinion 180 degrees. 

 

 

 

 

 

[aenemated]

7 hours ago, me05501 said:

I think most of us can admit it took some time to mature after college and into our first few jobs. I know I was very green at 22 and only slightly less so at 25. I'm sure I rubbed a lot of people the wrong way as I was trying to figure out how adults are meant to behave. 

 

Yup. I was a complete little idiot a****** at that age as I was a dotcommer making WAY more than I should have. I can't imagine how I'd have been with all the spotlight, attention, pressure and money of tour life. 

[bscinstnct]

1 hour ago, bladehunter said:

Saying it sucks and knowing it sucks , aren’t the same , I guess is what I mean.  
 

 

 

I’m just giving an honest review of my ability to empathize with someone who has a parent let alone a supportive one  , and has “ made it “ by that young age , and can’t find the strength to carry on.  I have zero points of reference for empathizing with that.  As for figuring it out well into your 20s.  I guess all that is relative too.  I don’t think I had it figured out either.  I don’t think I have some of it figured out now.  And I’m 41.  But I know more than 22 year old me knew.  But 22 year old me had been on his own for 4 years already.  And a business owner for 2 ..... I had no option but to push.  He has options.  I just can’t connect with that.  
 

 I can however  SYMPATHIZE  with the human struggle bus we all ride on.  But like I said earlier. Most of that is self inflicted if we’re honest.    As in he’s  in his own way currently. ( assuming he’s struggling with growing up ).   I hope he gets there before he wastes his 20s.   I have zero bad feeling towards the guy.  But if I had his ear I’d shake it. And  let him know how many would give a digit or two to restart with that  deck of cards.  
 

again. I’m just giving honest commentary/opinion   on the guesswork THats being done here.  New concrete info could change my opinion 180 degrees. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good stuff, blade. To your post and with zero idea if it applies to MW...

 

I agree with your wise point that we ourselves create so much of our own misery. Part of getting older and wiser is to not just say, but to mean the adages...

 

Don’t sweat the small stuff

 

Be thankful every day for the opportunity to live that day with what you have. Got 2 legs? Well, there’s a lot of people who don’t.

 

Healthy mind in a healthy body. This one I found to be very key to being vibrant and of good spirit

 

But, for some, they are not capable of seeing things this way no matter how much they work on it. Could be a variety of reason. But it’s not their fault, they just can’t.

I knew a kid who was from a beautiful family (truly, I knew them since childhood, much more loving than my family, lol 🤣) Great athlete, smart, good looking. But he developed a mental imbalance and eventually couldn’t overcome it and we lost him. 
 

[me05501]

1 minute ago, aenemated said:

 

Yup. I was a complete little idiot a****** at that age as I was a dotcommer making WAY more than I should have. I can't imagine how I'd have been with all the spotlight, attention, pressure and money of tour life. 

 

Exactly. And one of the only things that kept me sort of sane was the idea that I was working my way up to my eventual dream job. It's quite a mind game for your first job to BE your dream job. 

[aenemated]

5 minutes ago, me05501 said:

 

Exactly. And one of the only things that kept me sort of sane was the idea that I was working my way up to my eventual dream job. It's quite a mind game for your first job to BE your dream job. 

 

Yup. I knew I wanted to be a programmer when I was, like, 10 years old. I guess I never imagined anyone would actually PAY me to do stuff I just thought was super fun. Then I go from making $4.25/hr (plus tips!) delivering pizza to $40k/yr right outta college (in 1998) ... man, I thought I was the richest, coolest guy on earth. 

Edited May 13, 2021 by aenemated

[bladehunter]

1 hour ago, bscinstnct said:

 

Good stuff, blade. To your post and with zero idea if it applies to MW...

 

I agree with your wise point that we ourselves create so much of our own misery. Part of getting older and wiser is to not just say, but to mean the adages...

 

Don’t sweat the small stuff

 

Be thankful every day for the opportunity to live that day with what you have. Got 2 legs? Well, there’s a lot of people who don’t.

 

Healthy mind in a healthy body. This one I found to be very key to being vibrant and of good spirit

 

But, for some, they are not capable of seeing things this way no matter how much they work on it. Could be a variety of reason. But it’s not their fault, they just can’t.

I knew a kid who was from a beautiful family (truly, I knew them since childhood, much more loving than my family, lol 🤣) Great athlete, smart, good looking. But he developed a mental imbalance and eventually couldn’t overcome it and we lost him. 
 

Yep.  That’s why I said that.  I’ve been on both sides of it.  I finally old enough to realize that 99 % of my perceived obstacles are made by me.  We limit ourselves daily without even knowing it.  
 

but I get the dark holes too.  I’ve been in several.  Nobody wants to hear that so I’ll spare you.  But that i can empathize with.  If it’s mental demons that’s entirely different than wanting to still be close to moms bosom.  
 

and we don’t know what it is.  For sure.  But I just hate to see a kid in despair.  That’s why I always comment on these type things.  

[grm24]

10 hours ago, cardoustie said:

The kid went from top dog in college to an average tour guy. 

Do average tour guys get to #12 world ranking as he did last fall? He's still ranked 27th. Average tour guys don't don't get ranked that high.

[TiScape]

8 hours ago, Soloman1 said:

The problem may be that he's lost so much weight that he's disappeared?

 

 

I picked up on your tongue-and-cheek in this one! The visual showing his weight as “0 lbs” was a huge help! 😂 

[indianagolf2]

If short game is that bad go see instructors...stan utley...David orr...im sure there r others...

[Soloman1]

2 hours ago, TiScape said:

I picked up on your tongue-and-cheek in this one! The visual showing his weight as “0 lbs” was a huge help! 😂 

 

 

I considered putting a big red circle around it with a huge arrow pointing to it. I know that's important now.

 

(Oh, and the phrase is "tongue-in-cheek." I trust you appreciate that I say it to help you avoid embarrassment some other time in the future.)

[kredik]

Hasnt been the same since that "ruling" in the desert -all downhill since...get better Elvis!!!

 

https://golf.com/instruction/rules/how-matthew-wolff-lost-stroke-rules-video-review/

[ALIF]

I think his wrist injury was more serious than was publicized. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had a fracture or some sort of a delayed union or nonunion going on and will eventually require surgical intervention to get it to heal.

Edited May 14, 2021 by ALIF

[TiScape]

4 hours ago, Soloman1 said:

 

 

I considered putting a big red circle around it with a huge arrow pointing to it. I know that's important now.

 

(Oh, and the phrase is "tongue-in-cheek." I trust you appreciate that I say it to help you avoid embarrassment some other time in the future.)

I think what’s important is that you realize sarcasm and tongue-IN-cheek doesn’t always come across online. I trust you appreciate me telling you this so in the future if someone thinks one of your posts is serious and responds in a way that you don’t like, you can simply acknowledge the misunderstanding instead of being condescending. And I don’t think you need huge arrows or big red circles. A classic smiley turned upside down  🙃 or lol emoji 😂 are what most people use. 

Edited May 14, 2021 by TiScape

[thesamwise]

On 5/12/2021 at 1:27 PM, Soloman1 said:

He's only made about $2million (not including sponsor contracts) so far this year and tour life can be a stressful transition for a 22 year old.

 

 

Of course, getting drafted at 18 years old during the Vietnam War, making a couple hundred dollars per month with some bonuses like $60 extra per month for hostile fire (combat) pay likely can't compare to the stress of professional golf.

 

 

 

This is a great point and a really relevant comment! Keep them coming, hoss!

[AndersUK]

No doubt it is difficult for him.  Injury problems aside, he has a mildly manic personality, which I can relate to VERY much. It is easy to wind people up the wrong way when you had no intention of doing so and actually go out of your way to make people happy but end up coming across as a jerk.  I assure you that most of the time it is not intentional.  No need to ask me how I know.

 

When you are out of the public eye it is infinitely easier to accept who you are but when you are thrust into the spotlight you end up fighting who you are against how you think people want you to be. 

 

I think he is a great personality for golf and he is young enough to get through such difficulties.  I am sure Andrew Johnstone went through a similar stage.