Swing Bulimic

I couldn't decide whether to put this in swing instruction or under fitness and psychology. So it ended up in General (mods move if you want).

I think I diagnosed myself with swing bulimia. Going along and everything looks alright. Then I get to hole (different hole every round) and I puke up a bunch of strokes. Just like throwing up, it's usually painful to do and I imagine witness.

I know I have the ability to shoot in the 80s. The last few years I've struggled off an on. Usually the first round of golf in the year is horrible as it probably should be. Then I come back and shoot my PB in one of my next 3 rounds. I stay shooting good for a month, then my handicap balloons at the end of the year.

This year I've gone out and managed to struggle through some holes. Wasting shots but managing to keep the numbers down close to bogey. If I sprinkle in a few pars in the round I have a hole some where that I get bulimic on. 9 hole rounds are in the 45-49 range.

I'm really not looking for a bunch of advise on this. Mostly just ranting to get it out of my system.

My main struggle this year is with my irons. I suddenly started topping the ball a bunch this year.

Plan of attack for my next round is to hit a bunch of range balls before the round. Hopefully puke it all out on the range so I'm just dry heaving on the course.

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TaylorMade Rac Lt. These sticks are awesome!!!!

Now featuring brand new TaylorMade Burner Draw 10.5, Stiff Shaft.

That was funny...dry heaving....

Dannyra, surely you know that you are not the only one who suffers from this "disease."

One of my better playing golfing buddies threw up in the sand on a par three yesterday (7 for a quadruple bogey). It was really ugly to witness. He further threw up on at least two other holes during the round. But for that, he had a load of pars and a couple of birdies and ended with an 85 as opposed to what could have been a break 80s day for him.

It is a scary thing to witness. Especially for those of us trying to break 90.
But then Sean O'Haire threw up on the 17th at "TPC" yesterday in front of millions of viewers. Man, what a game!!

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I would suggest that any golfer who says they've never thrown a club is either a liar or a poser. To all of you "gentlemen golfers" out there, respectively..
Jim

Let's put O'Hair's situation in something we can relate to. Here is what happened to me last year....

You are EVEN with 17 & 18 to go and have never shot EVEN or under par before. 17 is the 3rd handicap hole, 18 the 1st. 17's tee shot is either a 5 or 3 wood fade right up the middle OR you can get ballsy and try to fade a big drive over a tree and leave yourself less than 100 yards to the hole? You got the best round of my life going, what do you do?

I went for it Got over the tree, but landed in a trap just beyond the tree. Made bogey and went on to PAR 18. 73 is still my low score.

Now, if money was a factor....

...play for the win or the $972k check????? If that was me, and Sean and I are close in age, sorry, but I am taking the money. Well, at least backing off the aggression on one of the tuffest holes in golf.

BTW, Phil was 1 foot from going in the drink on 18. Don't think the gamble on 17 was worth it. Not worth $600,000 anyway!

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What's in my bag....
Cleveland VP 2 Blade Putter
Ping Tour Wedges, 54 & 60
TaylorMade rac LT2, 4i thru PW
Tour Edge Exotics Iron-Wood 21* 3i - Aldila NV 90 Stiff Shaft
Ping G5 18* 5 Wood - ProLaunch Blue 75 Stiff Shaft
Ping G5 15* 3 Wood - Aldila NV 75 Stiff Shaft
Cleveland HiBore XL 9.5* - Fujikura Fit-On Red Stiff Shaft

Been a while since visiting this post.

At league last week I threw up a few strokes being stupid. Stuck under a pine tree with almost no room under it. I can hit a left handed shot the 50 yards to the green, or punch out backwards. My thought: "Good thing I carry a left handed 4 wood for just such a case." Wiff 1, Almost wiff 2, still under tree. Throw the 4 wood hard into the bag and take out the 3 iron and just tap it out 5 yards from the tree. Ended up with an 8 on the hole. I did play smart the rest of the day and managed to still shoot my handicap.

As far as Sean O'Hair throwing up strokes. I can't blame him for it at all. He did exactly what he needed to do on 17. He went for it. If any pro hits to the middle of the green on 17 when down by 2 strokes, they're scared to win and have no business being on tour. He hit what he thought was an absolute perfect shot and it was very close to being perfect and it kicked off the green. Tough break! Who wouldn't be rattled after that, no chance to win now and you just hit what you thought was a perfect shot. Lost his concentration on the next one.

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TaylorMade Rac Lt. These sticks are awesome!!!!

Now featuring brand new TaylorMade Burner Draw 10.5, Stiff Shaft.

Agreed. I really enjoyed watching the kid compete (except for those 10 minute spans doing pre putt studies). I hope what we saw this weekend is a sign of much more to come from him.

Don't get me wrong, I loved watching him stay close to Phil. He is one of my favorites for a couple reasons.....

1) He plays TaylorMades....
2) His Dad was a real ***** when he was a kid and literally BEAT him to become a better golfer....yes, its paying off now, but he might have been as good OR better if taught with less aggression....
3) He is from West Chester, only about 30 miles from me....

And yes, you have to have a "go-for-it" attitude on the tour at times. Makes for great TV. But Phil drops it right on the green and is most likely going to make par. You know Phil plays a fade, and there is water ALL OVER the left on 18. I just think you could have worked the ball a little right-to-left instead of a fade. If you could get on the LEFT side of the hole within 20 feet, you could still sink it.

What if Sean pars along with Phil, and Sean then goes on to make bird while Phil makes a bogey. You now have a playoff and $600,000 more in your pocket.

Sean and his Father-in-Law didn't consider that. Hell, it would be hard for me to step up there and not go balls to the wall. And it's easy for me to sit here, a guy NEVER in that position to pass judgement. However, I think back to a guy not too long ago who laid up on EVERY par 5 and played them -11....think his name was Zach Johnson Sometimes playing it safe can pay off in more ways than one.

Sorry, but at 24 years of age, it would be nice to pocket some cash, cover my expenses, take 2nd which offers some exemptions, and take 2nd to the 2nd best golfer in the world right now.

Edited a little side note:
***Just got off the phone with my cousin, a teaching pro in FL who does play in some mini-tour events. He is sort-of in agreement with me. However, he doesn't like to rely on someone else making a mistake in order to win. Good point.***

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What's in my bag....
Cleveland VP 2 Blade Putter
Ping Tour Wedges, 54 & 60
TaylorMade rac LT2, 4i thru PW
Tour Edge Exotics Iron-Wood 21* 3i - Aldila NV 90 Stiff Shaft
Ping G5 18* 5 Wood - ProLaunch Blue 75 Stiff Shaft
Ping G5 15* 3 Wood - Aldila NV 75 Stiff Shaft
Cleveland HiBore XL 9.5* - Fujikura Fit-On Red Stiff Shaft

I remember the commentators saying that O'Hair said on Saturday that his 9i was too much club for the 17th, and went with a PW. Now on Sunday, running out of holes, a no room pin placement, he goes with that same 9i? He is a great young player, and perhaps weather conditions played a roll in his club selection, but it seems to me he, or his caddy just had a mental lapse at the wrong time, on the wrong hole.

This assuming the commentators were correct with the information they reported. GJS

Hello golfjunkie, I think as far as the commentators being right, the "proof is now in the pudding" so to speak.

And random, sure wish i'd started playing this game when i was 24. All the friends i had played but i'm afraid i resisted it till very late in life. I do love to play the game though and feel i am doing quite well for an old codger playin only in me second year.

Gettin ready to break 90. Uh, not years old, that would be strokes. Uh, no not that kind, I mean like in golf. Just missed it on Sunday.

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I would suggest that any golfer who says they've never thrown a club is either a liar or a poser. To all of you "gentlemen golfers" out there, respectively..
Jim

Just gotta say that I loved this post... I just know that the next time that I am out playing with me mates that I am going to say that I am a golf bulimic... Great stuff...


Picture a perfect day on a perfect posh course, playing below your handicap just slightly, enjoyable.... THEN a very steep up hill par 3. Hit my 7 iron pin high just off to the right of the green in the rough. Sigh of relieve.... I walk to the ball, carefully read the green---very fast to the down hill side, decide that I better chip to the high side of the pin and land it in the edge of the rough to slow it down before it gets to the green. Pull the shot off perfectly, Ball lofts high and soft, right on aim to the spot that I had picked---this is gonna be a goodie... BOUNCE!!!! I landed the ball on an unseen sprinkler head... Ball bounces and rolls all the way down the hill into deep rough right next to the ladies tees... Packed course, people waiting to tee off, preasure is on... DUFF, @#!$#@, hook, @#$@#$, rough, chip, rolls off again.... AHHHHHHHHHH>>>>>> Gotta love this game.....

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SumoSid
"Moments of Greatness followed by Moments of horror."

So if one of my playing partners on any given day was to induce a bout of bulimic golf by attempting to swallow his driver, should I call Betty Ford.??

And, is the opposite of Bulimic Golf Anorexic Golf...??

Seems maybe Pedro (or any other Bandits who get handicapped way high after tanking on the cap cards) will be anorexic golfers whilst they shave off the strokes and win every piece of "bling" on offer for a month or three...!!!

Mental Post It Note To Self: No more stroke eating up big before a round, maybe that'll stop the throwing up of strokes...

Sensational Thread...
Cheers

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Every time a golfer makes a birdie, he must subsequently make two triple bogeys to restore the fundamental equilibrium of the universe....

Well.... this is how I would like to tie this entire thread together....

The Sean O'Hair story is a great example of what can happen on a course. A Quad Bogey can creep up on anyone. 1 bad shot can lead to another. IF I hit a horrible shot, I try to take as much time as possible until I hit the next shot. Examples being....

- Hitting a really fat shot that goes no where
- Topping a ball (like said in the 1st thread)
- Hit it in the water
- Not excaping the rough and having to hit from it again
- Attempted to get out of a bunker and it stayed in
- Putted OFF the green (we have ALL done it!)
- Chipped from one side of the green to another
- Trying to chip on the green and leaving it short
- Leaving the green AFTER being on in regulation and 3 putting (might be the most frustrating thing in golf, because you had to have hit 2 pretty good shots in a row to end up puking up a putt)

When these kind of things happen, you can't rush to recover. You need to slow down, take a breathe, relax, and try to clear the previous shot out of your mind. You then need to go through your routine as normal. DON'T RUSH!

It can be hard to do, and I have seen plently of people take 3 swings to get out of the sand. They just rush up to the ball and try again.

It's very much mental. You know that physically you can hit the shot, but your mind might not allow it until you get your mind back on the task, which is properly executing the shot.

Where I have had success recovering from a bad shot....
1) Vent. Get it out. Let it out at the site from which you hit the bad shot.
2) Once you leave this site, start thinking about the next shot as a whole new shot. Don't think about the past. Don't think about your score. Only thing that should be on your mind is executing the next shot.

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What's in my bag....
Cleveland VP 2 Blade Putter
Ping Tour Wedges, 54 & 60
TaylorMade rac LT2, 4i thru PW
Tour Edge Exotics Iron-Wood 21* 3i - Aldila NV 90 Stiff Shaft
Ping G5 18* 5 Wood - ProLaunch Blue 75 Stiff Shaft
Ping G5 15* 3 Wood - Aldila NV 75 Stiff Shaft
Cleveland HiBore XL 9.5* - Fujikura Fit-On Red Stiff Shaft