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September 11, 2004

Yips it's David Duval

Two weeks in a row Mr. Yips, I mean David Duval, has made the cut. Last week up in Boston was the 1st cut Duval had made in 15 months. David Duval worked with Hank Haney last month. Is Hank Haney really that good of an instructor or is this just a fluke? Only time will tell.

Haney has been working with Duval on weakening his grip to give him more control throughout his swing. This will apparently eliminate big shanks and give him a flatter more consistent trajectory. I personally don't think this will be a cure all for Duval. Once a golfer gets into a slump and starts shanking it all over the golf course he will have thoughts in his head that will last a lifetime. Every round Duval plays he will always stand over at least a couple of shots and think about whether or not he is going to shank it. Trust me, I've been there, done that and still do it.

Unless Duval gets himself a great sports psychologist he will never be the David Duval that won 11 times in 18 months in the late 90's. Maybe a shrink could even get him to smile when he hits a good shot. I think a miracle worker, not a shrink might be needed for that.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

the difference between you and david duval is that you've never won a major, shot 59 or played professionally. so to say that he'll always be thinking about the shanks sounds more like you're projecting your swing thought onto duval. why does duval need a psychologist to return to his old form? he didn't have a psychologist when he was won of the best players in the world -- but he did have a coach. and if you watched duval talk to BR after last weeks round, he was smiling from ear to ear. i think you're way off the mark on this one.

Anonymous said...

the difference between you and david duval is that you've never won a major, shot 59 or played professionally. so to say that he'll always be thinking about the shanks sounds more like you're projecting your swing thought onto duval. why does duval need a psychologist to return to his old form? he didn't have a psychologist when he was won of the best players in the world -- but he did have a coach. and if you watched duval talk to BR after last weeks round, he was smiling from ear to ear. i think you're way off the mark on this one.

Anonymous said...

To say that david will be considering a shank on every round that he plays is absolutely insane. even through the slump that he has been in he has struck his irons very well. it is the inconsistent driver that has gotten him into trouble. also, david duval has worked with bob rotella for a long time on the mental side of the game. Obviously you don't consider him a good mental coach, maybe some suggestions would be appreciated.

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