Mid-round meltdown & recovery

[BLURR]

So, over the weekend, I played in a tourney and had a complete putting meltdown about halfway through the first round. Normally, I can keep my shit together and finish decent, but for some odd reason, it didn't come back around. Anybody got any good tips on how to help get it back on track once the wheels fall off? I was the Ray Charles of putting for the entire day. I even had a 5-jack on a hole. I haven't done that since I first started playing. I also air balled so many putts from 20 feet it's not even funny. Up until this tourney, I was consistently shooting 980-1010 rated golf...and then boom 860 rated over the weekend all because the the wheels went bye bye.

[Dig It]

So, over the weekend, I played in a tourney and had a complete putting meltdown about halfway through the first round. Normally, I can keep my shit together and finish decent, but for some odd reason, it didn't come back around. Anybody got any good tips on how to help get it back on track once the wheels fall off? I was the Ray Charles of putting for the entire day. I even had a 5-jack on a hole. I haven't done that since I first started playing. I also air balled so many putts from 20 feet it's not even funny. Up until this tourney, I was consistently shooting 980-1010 rated golf...and then boom 860 rated over the weekend all because the the wheels went bye bye.

My personal experience is my mind becomes clouded as the round goes on. I play my best when my mind is empty on every drive, up-shot and every putt. I have to actively clear my mind at the start of the round and it's a battle to keep it clear through the round. It doesn't always happen because fatigue can start to play a role, but when my mind is clear I play how my body knows how to play.

[nohr]

The key to consistent putting is to find a routine and stick with it. Also try to forget mistakes as soon as possible. If you release a putt incorrectly take a little time to think about what you did wrong but move on with life. Having a routine should allow you to concentrate and make the putt. If you are far out and even think about "Man this is going to be hard" "I hope I don't sail past" it is time to lay up. You mind has already pretty much told you aren't going to make the putt.

[JR]

I guess the remedy depends on the cause. I have forgotten how to putt in the past. If your execution of the physical part of the throw changed like mine did over the winter a few years back that alone would explain the difference at least initially. When everything goes awry like it did for you it is almost guaranteed that the mental game suffers from frustration and anxiety of knowing you lost the wheels and the fear of the next putt and the rest of the event and career weighing in your mind. Each of those things will compound the error. It is no wonder such a slump can last for a long while. To check the mechanical part the first thing to see is if your arm motion is snake strike quick in the end from having extremely loose muscles everywhere not just the arm. For me stiffness of the arm alone ruined my putting after one winter. I laid up everything to so close i couldn't miss and took many extra strokes for that for a few weeks until i figured out the arm stiffness issue. Mentally the head needs to be empty before and during the putting. Forgetting adversity and bad previous results helps in that. Think of titties if nothing else works for clearing the mind. No joke do whatever you have to do to get to the happy place. Of calm mental state.

[JHern]

This happened to me during my last tournament, about mid-way through my first round, when I laid up within 5' of the basket, tossed the disc into the heart of the chains, and heard the disc fall out as I was leaning over to pick up my mini. I never recovered from that, and after that happened I couldn't hit a putt to save my life. My 2nd and 3rd round ratings dropped below 900, it was my worst tournament, ever. It was the most frustrating thing I've experienced in disc golf, and I wasn't having much fun until I just gave up on trying to play well, and focused on simply having fun...still, my putting never came back.

Right now I need a routine. I need a better putting motion. I need to relax more. I need everything and I have nothing. I'm a total putting disaster. I was a better putter as a newbie than I am now.

[BLURR]

The thing that sucked the most about the meltdown, is that the rest of my game was on key. Smashing drives, throwing great mid's and approaches. I just couldn't hit the basket from 10/20/30/40 ft. I am thinking about going up in weight on my putters. Having gained quite a bit more strength in the last 6 months, the light putter that I am accustomed to(169g) feels very funky all of a sudden. I grabbed a max weight putter yesterday and threw a few putts in the backyard and felt much more comfortable/confident with it. Perhaps just a switch up in the putter can tweak my mental game a bit. I do need to refocus my mental aspect that is for sure.

[victorb]

Though it sucks to do with the shorter courses in my area, if I'm feeling way out of it I really focus on laying up or playing very conservative for pars. I know when my mindset is weak that I just need to stop bleeding strokes away until I can clear my head and try to get the groove back.

It's doubly difficult when you're Laying up for pars and people are being aggressive and getting birdies, but limiting the damage is more often than not the proper strategy for me.

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk

[Whiz]

This sounds like more of a mental "meltdown" than a physical issue. My mental game in terms of putting has gotten much better lately. One thing that has been working very, very well for me lately is to visualize in my head the putter flying into the basket exactly as I am hoping to putt it. It is kind of like a mini-movie. Sometimes I may replay the movie a few times. If I don't feel like the line I am imagining is a good one, I will step back and figure out a better line (usually higher or lower). If I am visualizing the putt well, I can usually throw a decent putt, regardless of whether it sticks or not.

The second thing is definitely having a consistent routine. Even more importantly, your estimation of how well you are putting should be centered around whether or not you are executing your routine, NOT whether or not you are making putts. If you are doing your routine you are probably going to be putting confidently (assuming you have a routine you are confident in).

I played a round today and putted great. Some putts were high, some were low, but I followed my routine and, despite all of my putts not going in, stayed positive and did not let the misses affect my play. I hope this helps.

[Spinthrift]

Blurr - Do you stay focused on your target after you release your putter, or are you seduced by the disc, watching it to see what happens? I have found it important to lead the disc to the target - laser-gunsight-like - especially when the stroke is iffy or confidence lacking. I'm a devotee of routine, too, even using it for what others consider gimme putts (ever miss a 5-footer?).

The best thing that ever happened to my putting (and my game) was good friend Whiz recommending Dr. Bob Rotella's books. His principals are solid as granite. Tonight I happen to be reading "Putting Out of Your Mind" for the third time. It sounds like you may benefit from the chapter "How Good Putters Think," though everything Rotella says is worthy. Following his tenets makes me feel like I've got a secret weapon in my bag.

I especially like "The Golfer's Mind" and "Golf is a Game of Confidence," but all six of his are helpful (there's a seventh being released soon). He deals a good bit with just the circumstances you describe. For me, like for JHern, a bad break or choked shot used to put my round into a death spiral. My attitude was dictated by how good my last shot was. I'd go from elated to sullen on the same hole. And while it's taking time to break my established (faulty) behavior, my confidence is no longer shaky, and I'm having a lot more fun.

[JR]

A solid routine and self confidence are the keys to putting a past mistake or unlucky spit out behind you and nailing the rest of the putts. You lost the strokes already there's nothing you can change in the score card afterward. You can only fuck yourself for the next putt if you go on a rampage mentally like King Kong. But it is good to let the negative feelings out and vent if you need to but only for a while. You need to be ice cold on the comeback putt and on the next tee etc.