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Lexi needs mental help….


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I get those same feelings when playing state am tournaments and it ALWAYS gets the short game.

Lexi has to start tackling the nerves bc if she continues to put herself in those moments (she will) it will get harder and harder as those bad memories will kick in…Subconsciously they will always be there, but finding a healthy way to manage those feelings, whether through breathing or projecting other positive memories, will be crucial for her moving forward.  I felt like she handled the post round moment better this time.   I can’t imagine how she felt post round.  Ugh.

She has the game to win many majors.  I hope she finds it.

 

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3 hours ago, Cwebb said:

Unfortunately, Lexi's continued putting struggles are rooted in really bad mechanics in her stroke.  No amount of the Bob Rotella types or any other variation of telling her to get tougher, is going to change this.  You can't compete in majors as a top tier player, with that bad of a cut across putting stroke.

 

Change the grip, change the stroke.  Work with someone who has experience in doing this

It’s a weird swipey Zalatoris stroke.  But, he’s been making the short ones lately.  Her tour putting stats are good so, not sure we will see her switch to armlock yet…

 

i watched a video with her recently where she spoke about the constant putter and grip changes she’s made throughout her career.  Always searching for the right combo.  I’m no fan of the armlock, but I would not be surprised if I saw her using it in the near future.

 

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I putted with a belly putter until the Fascists at the USGA decided I couldn't.  When I was forced into a stubby, I discovered that my stroke was vastly improved.  Same model putter, just a different weight and length.  Clearly, the answer is to work with a belly, get some confidence, and then work back to a stubby.

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24 minutes ago, Avidswampthing66 said:

It’s a weird swipey Zalatoris stroke.  But, he’s been making the short ones lately.  Her tour putting stats are good so, not sure we will see her switch to armlock yet…

 

i watched a video with her recently where she spoke about the constant putter and grip changes she’s made throughout her career.  Always searching for the right combo.  I’m no fan of the armlock, but I would not be surprised if I saw her using it in the near future.

 

Her issues aren’t below the neck with the putter. 

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2 hours ago, Pym said:

She’s number 7 on tour in strokes gained putting and putted better than most at the kpmg. If we flipped her front 9 and back 9 scores we’d all be talking about what a gutsy charge she made.


It’s a heartbreaking loss for sure but she closed the gap by a lot in the last two days—definitely not a choke. 
 

All players have ugly short putts or other ugly shots every round unless they’re shooting a 65 or something. 
 

Go back and count the ugly shots in the last 36 holes. I bet Lexi had around the second fewest and Chun and around the least. That’s not a choke or a weak mind. 
 

If you were #7 on the LPGA putting would you go find a new coach?

Her “closed the gap” was a result of Chun coming back to the field…not a spirited charge.  At one point late in round 3, thru hole 14 to be exact, Chun was -11….the winning score was -5.  Thru 14 yesterday Lexi was -4…right where she finished.

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53 minutes ago, Avidswampthing66 said:

It’s a weird swipey Zalatoris stroke.  But, he’s been making the short ones lately.  Her tour putting stats are good so, not sure we will see her switch to armlock yet…

 

i watched a video with her recently where she spoke about the constant putter and grip changes she’s made throughout her career.  Always searching for the right combo.  I’m no fan of the armlock, but I would not be surprised if I saw her using it in the near future.

 

or just a traditional putting grip with a 'square' address setup.  I've never understood how anyone could have good feel and mechanics with a claw grip or anything like it.

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Be careful how you use the term "the yips". The term "the yips" has become bastardised but technically it refers to a kind of focal dystonia which is a serious neurological issue that affects a number of musicians and sportspeople. 

 

The way it has been used, however, makes it pretty meaningless. In medical terms it does NOT mean a stroke where you mentally choke up. It is NOT a loose expression for a bad stroke. If you want to look at the medical aspects of this look at Wiki on focal dystonia. 

 

I don't believe Lexi has any kind of focal dystonia, since this would affect her longer putts which are often no worse than other tour players. It does look, as many have said, that she gets a kind of mental blackout in front of pressure putts and can't relax and play a smooth and focussed stroke. So yes, looks like an issue for a sport psychologist. They're pretty good with this kind of thing. 

 

It's worth mentioning that there has been a kind of epidemic of poor short putts affecting some of the top players, and I started a thread on that. Multiple reasons including the grass and undulations of the greens themselves. 

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10 hours ago, Pym said:

She’s number 7 on tour in strokes gained putting and putted better than most at the kpmg. If we flipped her front 9 and back 9 scores we’d all be talking about what a gutsy charge she made.


It’s a heartbreaking loss for sure but she closed the gap by a lot in the last two days—definitely not a choke. 
 

All players have ugly short putts or other ugly shots every round unless they’re shooting a 65 or something. 
 

Go back and count the ugly shots in the last 36 holes. I bet Lexi had around the second fewest and Chun and around the least. That’s not a choke or a weak mind. 
 

If you were #7 on the LPGA putting would you go find a new coach?

Yes. 
 

stats don’t tell it all.  There is no “ under the gun “ stat. She’d be last.  
 

she’s simply running away when the fight or flight choice comes on.  There is a process that Rotella speaks of where you walk those thoughts in from the amygdala and out the back door.    By actively acknowledging them as they come in , you turn  on the logical part of the brain and rebut the ancient auto response we all have to the perception of danger.  
 

so yes. The right person walking her through the what when where and why or her response can let her gain functional control.  I’ve been there.  It’s a very freeing thing.  

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40 minutes ago, bladehunter said:

Yes. 
 

stats don’t tell it all.  There is no “ under the gun “ stat. She’d be last.  
 

she’s simply running away when the fight or flight choice comes on.  There is a process that Rotella speaks of where you walk those thoughts in from the amygdala and out the back door.    By actively acknowledging them as they come in , you turn  on the logical part of the brain and rebut the ancient auto response we all have to the perception of danger.  
 

so yes. The right person walking her through the what when where and why or her response can let her gain functional control.  I’ve been there.  It’s a very freeing thing.  

to me this is sort of a chicken v egg situation. Is it the stuff between the ears that affect technique or is it poor technique that messed with her head over time? 

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34 minutes ago, Golfingfanatic said:

to me this is sort of a chicken v egg situation. Is it the stuff between the ears that affect technique or is it poor technique that messed with her head over time? 

I would say it's more in the head.  Her technique may not be the smoothest but her short game and putting are not "that bad."  She'd take most of the people here from 50 yards and in on a Saturday afternoon.  But she has been absolutely horrible at certain times and that's what is remembered.  And the certain times are under the gun when all the chips are on the table...

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3 minutes ago, bladehunter said:

 at any rate my curiosity comes from a want to see her realize her potential. Not for my eyes. But for her personal health. It’s a great burden to carry KNOWING that you are underachieving despite   your great effort.  
 

 

The Golf Digest article said she has nine runner-up finishes since her last win (I think they may be off one but that's beside the point).  Of course history would be a lot different for many players if X, Y, or Z.  But yesterday, last year's USWO, plus a few more and she'd be putting a completely different spin on her place in the game.  

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1 minute ago, agolf1 said:

The Golf Digest article said she has nine runner-up finishes since her last win (I think they may be off one but that's beside the point).  Of course history would be a lot different for many players if X, Y, or Z.  But yesterday, last year's USWO, plus a few more and she'd be putting a completely different spin on her place in the game.  

Yep. She has the physical tools to be dominant.  And to me - the drive. She keeps coming back for more abuse.    
 

At some point though you have to throw your hands up and say “ enough “.   And then decide to toss a grenade in the middle and blow it all up.  By that I mean dive into the why’s.  And work the problem.  Even if it takes a year to reboot.  
 

 

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2 hours ago, Golfingfanatic said:

to me this is sort of a chicken v egg situation. Is it the stuff between the ears that affect technique or is it poor technique that messed with her head over time? 

She definitely does not subscribe to the Faxon method of continuous motion and maintaining movement in the putter, feet, head and hands.  Not saying she needs to keep it all moving but she basically does the exact opposite on all fronts.  She sets up and then makes that posture move and freezes everything...you can feel the tension through the TV screen after that little lower back/butt posture move she makes.  

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Lexi seems to struggle at close range. That was the case before her recent collapses in majors. It's what inspired all those changes in equipment & grip. 

 

Show me a player that struggles with short putts and I'll bet you $100 it's due to their inability to size up break from that close. There's a myth that 2- and 3-footers never break and that they're always tap-ins. That's obviously not true. If you never learn how to adapt your stroke to short putts that break (especially right-to-left where the ball is above your feet and thus face rotation is amplified) you really shouldn't expect good results.

 

As @bladehunter said, golfers have to go through a long journey of learning how to putt. Putting can be as complicated (and certainly as frustrating) as the long game is. Nobody ever promised that short putts are easy. If you assume they are and that all mistakes are mental, I think you're fooling yourself. 

 

If I worked with Lexi, I'd send her to a putting green and have her spend an hour holing short putts with the Perfect Putter (which is a ramp). You've got to develop some trust in your reads before you start talking about your stroke. 

 

How can you ever make a good, confident stroke if you don't trust your read?  

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55 minutes ago, jt2gt said:

She definitely does not subscribe to the Faxon method of continuous motion and maintaining movement in the putter, feet, head and hands.  Not saying she needs to keep it all moving but she basically does the exact opposite on all fronts.  She sets up and then makes that posture move and freezes everything...you can feel the tension through the TV screen after that little lower back/butt posture move she makes.  

At the end of movement - that’s the moment that the brain is attacking the situation.  It may be that movement ends up being part of her key to walking  those thoughts out and overcoming this.   Because these movements are caused by conscious thought.  Even in a solid routine it’s conscious.  Because you start it on purpose and the loop plays until  it ends.  If the pre recorded loop is playing. Then there’s not room for the subconscious to speak. And that’s what is needed - actual conscious thought to walk out the subconscious reaction that happens to most of us.  
 

It absolutely will not hurt at this point. A little bounce trigger with the putter head. Or a thumb click once  or twice. Something .  

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Ms Thompson did not win a golf competition when she might well have done as she is a very talented golfer. This is not the end of the world. No-one died. She will think about and deal with it. I can see no reason at all why sportpersons in any sport should speak to "the media" after the round, innings, competition etc.etc.. The sports people see what was done and will comment/ write about it etc.. There is no reason why the athletes should do their work for them. I watch all sports events with the volume turned off so that I don't hear the commentators during the events and turn off completely when the final whistle is blow, last pit sunk etc.. The dreadful business of sticking a microphone up an athlete's nose for them to ta;lk to a tennis crowd etc. is a waste of their time and certainly of mine. 

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14 hours ago, Cwebb said:

or just a traditional putting grip with a 'square' address setup.  I've never understood how anyone could have good feel and mechanics with a claw grip or anything like it.

Couldn’t agree more with @Cwebb on this one. Square to square with a normal putting grip. The short miss appears to be an open blade. 
Get a hold of a good all round sports psychologist. Book Brad Faxon for mechanics. I do think this is solvable. 
I also noticed a bit of nervous laughter with her caddie as she gets closer to the hole. That’s the anxiety issue. 
Sometimes when a player is missing constantly from short distances, over time it presents a pre determined issue in the mind. Nothing is pre determined, but the mind is locked on the previous experience. 
Once the mechanics get solid, she can change the way she thinks. IMO mechanics first, then ingrain that. 
There’s many really good short game teachers. I think if the putts fall, and the chipping problems are rectified she’ll become a great player. 
Many have overcome some of the nerviest problems in golf. Kevin Na couldn’t take the club back with his driver.

This one is solvable. 

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1 minute ago, woahnelly said:

Lexi can do all the short game work practice for 12 hrs a day sinking 5 footers - none of that matters when the pressure is on the line. you can't replicate that environment when it's winning time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good players have talked a lot about building a full swing that will "hold up under pressure".  They also need a putting stroke that will hold up.   Funky off plane strokes tend to not be reliable in tougher situations.  If the face isn't square to your path, it's always going to be a confusing battle.

 

Her face isn't square to the path, going back and through

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