/ Sports

Even players with nerves of steel sometimes turn to mush on greens

June 15, 2004

By BILL NICHOLS / The Dallas Morning News

In becoming one of the finest putters of his era, Mark O'Meara mastered the treacherous greens of Augusta National, the tricky contours of Royal Birkdale and the gnarly poa-annua of Pebble Beach.

His smooth stroke spawned 23 victories in seven countries and five continents.

Yet there he was at the Skins Game last November, flinching uncontrollably on short putts.

He yanked balls left, jerked others right, his trusty putter serving divorce papers on national TV. The magic had vanished, 20 years of putting greatness returned to the genie's bottle, replaced by golf's most dreaded curse – the yips.

The involuntary muscle contractions strike fear in the hearts of major champions. To those who putt for dough, there is no nastier four-letter word.

O'Meara's painful brush with the yips illustrates how the powerful affliction wreaks havoc on even the purest of putters. It drives players to drink, to the psychiatrist's couch and to the hypnotist's chair. It has ruined careers and mystified doctors, its reign of terror sparking new research and unorthodox putting styles.

At this week's U.S. Open, psyches will be challenged by the firm greens at Shinnecock Hills. Anybody with the yips had better get a grip because this major is often decided by pressure putts.

Three years ago, the yips spread like the flu at Southern Hills, where the final threesome three-putted the 72nd hole.

Old malady

The yips have been around since Old Tom Morris but remain a confounding malady. Despite countless opuses written in medical journals, there is no known cure. Even worse, there is no consensus on the cause.

But the most comprehensive research into the phenomenon is currently under way involving European experts from Science & Motion Golf and renowned instructor Hank Haney.

Their work, which will be published in a medical journal, promises to unlock the causes and cures. Using a computerized machine to chart stroke motions, they are identifying where flaws arise, then curing players with drills that incorporate different muscle movements.

Haney helped O'Meara break his fever, convincing him after the Skins Game to try a new grip. O'Meara used "the saw" technique to win his first tournament in more than five years at the Dubai Desert Classic.

"All of a sudden I started rolling the ball better," O'Meara said. "I was alive again. I felt like I could make a putt. Half of the game is on the greens, and if you're not putting well, you can't compete at a high level."

That's why the yips have sent players scurrying for cures. The influx of new putters and grips has increased dramatically the last 10 years, with players willing to try virtually anything to keep a steady hand.

Once criticized by traditionalists, long putters and belly putters are common in PGA Tour bags. Left-hand-low grips, considered radical in 1995, are almost as popular as conventional putters these days. Claw grips and other variations are flourishing.

The use of oversized putters has increased because they eliminate many problems associated with the yips. By anchoring the club on the torso, a player reduces his chances of jerking motions.

Ernie Els has led the most recent charge against belly putters, saying they should be banned. He has plenty of support from traditionalists who believe the putter should not be allowed to rest against the body. Even Vijay Singh, the No. 3 ranked player in the world, thinks they should be banned. But he uses a belly putter because rules permit it.

"I think nerves and skill are part of the game," Els said. "Take a tablet if you can't handle it."

Remedies vary

Ben Hogan, perhaps the greatest shotmaker ever, couldn't beat the yips late in his career.

Sam Snead, who holds the record for PGA Tour wins, battled the yips throughout his storied career. Tom Watson was a dominant player, winning eight majors, but went through a long spell of flinches in his 40s.

The yips drove talented Johnny Miller off the course and into the television booth. Orville Moody trembled so much over three-foot putts that he said his arms felt like spaghetti.

There have been almost as many experimental remedies as victims. Snead pioneered yips relief with his sidesaddle method. Right-hander Blaine McCallister switched to a left-handed putter. Bruce Lietzke was going cross-handed in the early 1980s, then he jumped on the broomstick bandwagon in the '90s.

That decade ushered in some unique styles. Among the early left-hand-low converts were Nick Faldo, Tom Kite, Fred Couples and Paul Azinger. Mike Hulbert went more than a year using only his right hand.

Bernhard Langer has had the most famous turmoil with yips, using a variety of weird grips. The strangest was his Bavarian Stranglehold, which he won the 1993 Masters with.

"The result is what counts," Langer said. "I started several trends. Now, you have half the field using different kinds of grips."

It's not just mental

Experts agree that the yips are a form of focal dystonia, a neurological difficulty that causes contractions in muscles, resulting in jerking or freezing motions. The yips are similar to the dystonias that affect other professions such as surgeons, musicians and writers.

However, most yips studies have dealt with the brain, and tend to associate the ailment with performance anxiety issues, or in sports, choking. Other studies have classified the yips as an over-use syndrome.

Marius Filmalter and Dr. Christian Marquardt, managing directors of Science & Motion Golf, have created a 3D motion analysis machine called Super Sam. The device uses sensors and cameras to spit out images of strokes. Subtle movements are captured, providing instant feedback on flawed motions.

Haney stumbled onto the Super Sam while at the European Teaching Summit in Munich late last year, about the time his star pupil, O'Meara, was struggling at the Skins Game.

Haney noticed that the sign hanging over Super Sam guaranteed a cure for the yips. A few conversations later, Haney, Filmalter and Marquardt became partners. Filmalter is conducting tests at Hank Haney's Golf Ranch in McKinney.

Filmalter and Marquardt believe they are on the verge of a major breakthrough because they can detect the yipping motions, and thus, determine methods for correction. In general, they cure by teaching the muscles new ways to perform old tricks.

Because Sam can isolate the exact point where jerking motions occur, the yips can be corrected through drills, they said. Previous research has been limited because yipping movements could not be detected.

"There is a little psychology involved, but it's a mechanical problem," Filmalter said. "We do exercises similar to how you would treat a person who stutters. If you tell a guy who stutters to say to an audience that he loves his wife, then he will stutter worse. But if he sings the words, he won't stutter at all."

That's good news to Woody Austin. He has driven himself crazy in his quest to exterminate the yips. He has tried hypnosis and every grip and putter. But he still flinches over short putts.

"It's a tough task every day," Austin said. "I'm a nervous wreck on the golf course. If you're a nervous wreck and your hands are twitching, it's going to show up on the short ones. It doesn't take much to get it off line from three feet."

COMMON CURES

Some frequently used styles that can help deal with the yips:

Left hand low

Often called cross-handed, left hand low is done by reversing the hands of a conventional grip. For a right-handed player, that would mean the left hand is below the right. Left hand low quiets the right wrist and promotes a firm follow through.

The claw

The left hand grips the club normally, with the thumb extending down the top of the shaft. The right hand is turned to face away from the body, then brought in from the side so the shaft pinches the skin between the thumb and forefinger. The forefinger and middle finger rest on top of the shaft with the ring finger and pinkie off to the side of the shaft.

The saw

A slight variation of the claw, the saw was coined by Mark O'Meara. This grip mirrors the claw except that the right hand pinches the shaft between the thumb and three fingers. The back of the right hand appears to move parallel to the ground, thus the "sawing" motion.

Belly putter

One of the hottest on tour because it reduces moving parts that can affect a putt. The butt of the club is placed against the stomach. The grip depends on the player. Some putt with the hands together. Others put one hand down low on the shaft. This style immobilizes the wrist and eliminates excessive movement.

Broom handle

The top of the long putter rests against the chest while the right hand grasps the shaft down low. With the putter anchored against the body, the small muscles of the hands and wrists are taken out of the stroke.

E-mail brnichols@dallasnews.com