Midlothian ’ s Scott Reisenweaver ( Salisbury CC ) didn ’ t just tweak his putting stroke to beat the yips — he did a complete 180 .
THE YIPS
How one of the VSGA ’ s top senior amateurs overcame the mysterious physical condition by DAVE POND
GOLF IS A SPORT OF PREPARATION , practice and performance . Hours of work over countless days , weeks , months and years can give you the smoothest of swings and the strongest of mental approaches .
But what happens when everything is clicking , you ’ ve just hit the approach shot of your life — then four-putt from less than 10 feet out , unable to control the smallest of movements ?
It could be a case of “ the yips .” A mysterious condition that affects golfers without prejudice or permission , the yips seemingly strike some of the sport ’ s elite with the same frequency they hamper local duffers .
“ The yips is a disorder in which golfers complain of an involuntary movement — a twitch , a jerk , a flinch — at the time they putt or even when they chip ,” wrote Mayo Clinic writer Jim McVeigh in 2018 . “ This interferes with their ability to perform that activity .”
No one knows better than Midlothian ’ s Scott Reisenweaver ( Salisbury CC ), who ’ s spent much of the last year and a half identifying , battling and working to overcome the yips .
“ I was playing in a four-ball down in Williamsburg , and on the seventh hole , I yipped a two-foot putt ,” said Reisenweaver , a VSGA Senior Amateur semifinalist . “ That was the first time I can remember it happening , and it freaked me out . Then I started doing it the rest of the round , and I didn ’ t know what was going on .”
CONFIDENCE SHATTERING On those short putts , Reisenweaver began to notice that his arm would lock up , which kept him from getting the head of the putter past the ball . On slightly longer putts , he would experience arm spasms .
“ I almost felt like I was gonna throw up — I felt so anxious ,” he said . “ I just couldn ’ t control what was going to happen next .
CHRIS LANG
36 V IRGINIA G OLFER | N OVEMBER / D ECEMBER 2020
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