Hey Fellow Golfer - 

Thank you for reading this week’s More Pars Than Bogeys Newsletter.

You can click here to read the online version of this week’s newsletter.

P.S. If you’re interested in learning more about how mindset coaching and hypnotherapy can help you get unstuck from the proverbial bunker of poor performance on the course and in your business, click here to schedule a coaching discovery call with me. 

Imagine yourself standing over the 18th hole, preparing to step up and sink a four-foot putt you’ve made dozens of times…

As you begin to sink into your alignment and posture, you begin thinking about missing the putt, how far back to go on your backswing, and how much strength to put behind the ball. 

You also allow yourself to begin seeing and feeling what it will be like if you miss the putt. Your hands become tense, and your grip tightens, which leads to you taking a jab at the ball and missing the putt.

This miss strengthens your anxiety around short putts, making the next one feel even more challenging. 

You know how to hit a putt.

You know how to chip the ball.

If you don’t, there’s no shortage of videos online or coaches nearby who can help you do either.

Your yip problem isn’t a lack of knowledge problem.

The yips is a mindset problem. 

The yips come from fear, mental overthinking, loss of trust in your abilities, and perfectionism. 

The pressure to perform and the fear of embarrassment amplify the issue, leading to emotional distress and physical tension. 

These factors create a cycle that is hard to break, where each mistake reinforces anxiety and self-doubt, making it increasingly difficult to play confidently and naturally.

The result: the game of golf yips your heart repeatedly.

Sounds familiar?

In today’s newsletter, you’ll learn the underlying reason for a case of the yips, why self-diagnosing yourself as a golfer with the yips is so detrimental, and tactical steps you can take today to play to your potential.

Let’s tee off!

The Yips Defined

The yips can be characterized by a sudden, involuntary loss of fine motor skills in specific parts of your game - typically putting or chipping.

The yips are caused by a combination of mental overthinking, fear, and emotional distress, which promote anxiety and tension, the two enemies of a fluid, consistent swing.

While the yips are often associated with putting or chipping, they can occur in any part of the game and typically worsen under pressure.

Key Characteristics of the Yips:

• Involuntary Movements: Whether it’s a jerky putting stroke, a sudden hesitation before a chip, or a shaky grip, the yips cause uncharacteristic physical responses.
  

• Overthinking Simple Shots: If you’ve self-diagnosed yourself with a case of the yips, you’re more likely to overanalyze your technique, focusing on minor details or mistakes instead of trusting your muscle memory and training.
  

• Anxiety Under Pressure: The yips are most likely to appear in high-pressure situations where you must perform perfectly. They may also arise when you fear embarrassing yourself in front of others (remember that this primal fear kept you alive centuries ago and is still as prominent as ever).
  

• Loss of Confidence: As the short misses and routine shots accumulate, your self-confidence erodes, causing you to feel out of control of your game and less capable of recovering from mistakes.

The Core of the Yip Problem

At the core of your yip problem is fear.

This fear permeates your self-talk, thoughts, beliefs, and internal locus of control. It also manifests physically as tension and tightness in your body.

Even more, it breeds doubt, distrust, hopelessness, and helplessness.

Sounds like a potent recipe for a poor shot to me!

If you’re struggling with the yips, there’s a fear-based mental block holding you back. 

This fear shows up as a lack of commitment to your shot, which typically looks like:

• Initiating your backswing on a putt only to de-commit and jab at the ball

• Initiating your backswing on a chip only to second-guess yourself and either chunk it or hit it thin

It’s important to remember that this fear is normal and part of your DNA.

Humans are a tribal species. 

Centuries ago, your ancestor’s lives depended on being a part of a tribe. 

Anything that risked being kicked out of the tribe induced a deep-rooted sense of fear to serve as a red flag to stop the behavior immediately because the consequence of being ostracized from the tribe was death.

• If your tribe judged you for your behavior, the risk of being kicked out exponentially increases.

• If your tribe abandoned you, well, it’s likely a matter of days before you’re impending death.

• And, of course, if your tribe rejected you, you’re ultimately abandoned, and, well, death by starvation or saber-tooth tiger ensued…

Bleek times, I know.

As a result, you and I are biologically hardwired with three core fears, what I like to refer to as the Fear JAR.

• Fear of Judgment.

• Fear of Abandonment.

• Fear of Rejection.

Each of these core fears is rooted in helping you survive.

Yes, these seem too primal, simple, and silly to be prevalent today.

But they are.

On the surface, these fears typically manifest as fear of:

• Failure

• Embarrassment

• Success

I dedicated an entire newsletter to helping you understand your fear of success - this is the topic I work on most with my competitive golfers. 

Click here to read it next.

Below is a list of additional contributing factors that may lead to a case of self-diagnosed yips. 

What Triggers the Yips

Several elements of the game, past outcomes, and worries about potential future outcomes may trigger the yips. 

The list below is meant to bring awareness to what may have triggered yips in the past and to also help you recognize how much of these elements are in control and a non-factor when you’re doing the appropriate mental and emotional work away from the game. 

1. Performance Pressure: High expectations during a round or specific shot, particularly in competitive situations, often trigger the yips. The fear of failure or the need to perform perfectly can create anxiety, leading to overthinking and physical tension.

2. Fear of Embarrassment: You’re more likely to experience the yips when you’re overly focused on what others think about your abilities or index as a golfer - this may be more pronounced with regular playing partners or new friends you met five minutes before the round.

Whether it's missing an easy shot in front of peers, friends, or colleagues, the fear of looking incompetent or embarrassing yourself magnifies anxiety and contributes to shaky execution.

3. Overthinking Simple Shots: Over-analyzing the mechanics of routine shots, like short putts or chip shots, often leads to the yips. Instead of trusting muscle memory, you focus too much on technical details, disrupting your swing's natural flow and rhythm.

4. Previous Failures: Past mistakes, particularly on specific shots or types of putts, create mental blocks. If you’ve repeatedly missed short putts or chunked chip shots, you may anticipate failure, triggering the yips when faced with similar situations.

This occurs on a macro level, too, such as when stepping on the tee box of a hole you shanked into the water last round or, when arriving at a course that got the best of you last time you played. 

5. Loss of Confidence: A general lack of trust in your abilities, often after a series of poor performances or failures, can contribute to the yips. This eroded confidence makes it difficult to execute even basic shots without doubt creeping in.

A lot of the work I do with my clients is around turning up the dial of confidence and turning down (or off) the dial for self-doubt. 

Click here to schedule a free Mental Game Strategy session to learn how I can help you improve your confidence on and off the course.

6. Perfectionism: If you’re an avid golfer, I have a hunch you have extremely high standards and expectations for yourself. Although this characteristic may have served you well in the past, it can also trigger the yips when you encounter a period of things not going well or as planned.

The need for perfection adds pressure and causes anxiety, particularly on shots where precision is key.

Click here to read more about the dark side of perfection.

7. Social or Competitive Anxiety: Playing with better golfers, in tournaments, or with potential business clients can increase nervousness and self-consciousness, heightening the likelihood of the yips. The pressure to perform well in front of others amplifies stress.

8. Tension and Physical Fatigue: Physical tension (often caused by anxiety) tightens muscles, leading to jerky or hesitant movements. Additionally, fatigue from long rounds or practice sessions can cause a lack of smoothness, making you prone to the yips, particularly late in a round.

9. Over-reliance on Technique Adjustments: Constantly changing or tweaking swing mechanics, stance, or grip in search of perfection can lead to inconsistency and confusion, triggering the yips. Stop doing this mid-round and instead play with the swing and technique you have so that you can execute a committed swing with each shot. 

10. Negative Self-talk: A negative or critical self-talk pattern, especially after bad shots, can trigger the yips. Self-defeating thoughts like "I always miss this putt" or "I’ll never make it out of the bunker" create mental barriers that disrupt performance.

Learn how and why you need to audit and update your self-talk here. 

11. Over-practice and Burnout: Over-practicing specific shots, especially without mental breaks or relaxation techniques, can lead to mental fatigue and tension, which can trigger the yips. Burnout from constantly pushing for improvement can lead to diminishing returns and a loss of focus.

Curious about how I’m using hypnosis to help my clients dramatically reduce their handicap index and shoot lifetime low rounds?

You can learn more specifically about hypnosis (what it is not, what it is, how it works, and how I use it to help my clients unlock their potential) in either of these recent resources:

• “How Hypnosis Can Help You Improve Your Golf Game.”

• Episode #7 of the Scratch Golfer’s Mindset Podcast

• Grab your free hypnosis audio recording to play your best round

Plus, click here to learn how and why my clients are experiencing tremendous benefits on and off the course. 

Your Yip Solution Mistake

The most detrimental mistake you can make when attempting to overcome your yip problem is labeling a recent mistake or period of poor performance as a case of the yips.

The moment you self-diagnose yourself with a case of the yips, you begin to assume the identity of a golfer with them. 

Your identity is composed of the words you use to speak to and about yourself, your thoughts, your beliefs, your habits, and your results.

If you declare you have a case of the yips, this negative energy and identity will permeate downstream to every aspect listed above.

You begin to consciously and subconsciously find it easier to play as a golfer with a case of the yips!

Stop self-diagnosing yourself and attaching to the label of a golfer with the yips. Instead, consider reframing a recent period of mistakes or poor play as simply that - nothing more. 

And use the time to identify weaknesses and areas of focus to prioritize during practice sessions. 

8 Effective Steps to Overcome the Yips

Overcoming the yips requires a combination of mental strategies, physical techniques, and consistent practice. 

Since the yips are often rooted in fear, anxiety, overthinking, and physical tension, the goal is to address both the mental and physical aspects of the problem. 

Here’s a list of effective steps to detach from this label and play to your potential.

1. Avoid Self-Diagnosing a Case of the Yips

• What to do: The first step is to detach from this label and candidly reflect on recent mistakes and poor performance. Use this as an opportunity to prioritize and update your approach to training and practice.
  

• Why it helps: If you declare you have a case of the yips, then this negative energy and identity permeate downstream to every aspect listed above. You begin to consciously and subconsciously find it easier to play as a golfer with a case of the yips!

2. Shift Your Focus: Process Over Results

• What to do: Instead of fixating on the outcome (e.g., making the putt or perfecting a chip), focus on the process.
  
  Focus on your pre-shot routine, breathing, and staying in the present moment. Break down each shot into manageable steps (stance, grip, alignment) and focus on executing them carefully, not perfectly.
  

• Why it helps: Obsessing over results amplifies anxiety. Focusing on the process reduces overthinking and allows muscle memory to take over, promoting smoother execution.

3. Practice Mindfulness and Deep Breathing

• What to do: Incorporate mindfulness techniques, such as paying attention to your body and surroundings during your pre-shot routine. Combine this with deep, controlled breathing, especially before pressure shots or putts.
  
  Here are five of my favorite mid-round breathing strategies to help you reclaim emotional control.
  

• Why it helps: Mindfulness and deep breathing help calm the nervous system, reducing physical tension and anxiety. They also keep you grounded in the present moment, preventing your mind from wandering into negative thoughts or past mistakes.

4. Reframe Negative Thoughts

• What to do: Replace negative or self-defeating thoughts ("I’m going to miss this putt") with neutral or positive affirmations ("I’ve practiced this shot; I can do it" or "I’m focusing on a smooth stroke").
  
  Use phrases that emphasize effort and execution over perfection. Remember, your words matter.
  

• Why it helps: Negative thoughts increase anxiety and tension, which fuel the yips. Positive or neutral affirmations help reduce mental clutter and build confidence, allowing you to trust your natural abilities.

5. Simplify Your Technique

• What to do: Go back to basics. Whether it’s putting or chipping, focus on a simplified version of your mechanics. Avoid overanalyzing your technique during play - stick to a few key fundamentals you can rely on.
  
  During practice sessions, break down your swing or stroke into smaller components and focus on one aspect at a time.
  

• Why it helps: The yips are often triggered by overthinking and over-complicating technique. By simplifying your swing or stroke, you can regain a sense of control and consistency.

As a Golf Hypnotherapist, I use hypnosis to uncover the fears, beliefs, and behaviors holding you back so that we can unlearn or upgrade them to help you play to your potential. 

Click here to schedule a free Mental Game Strategy session to learn how I can help you build confidence and shoot lower scores. 

6. Gradual Desensitization Through Practice

• What to do: Practice hitting shots that typically trigger the yips (e.g., short putts, delicate chips) in a low-pressure environment. Start with shorter, easier putts or chips, and gradually build up to longer, more difficult ones. During practice, visualize positive outcomes and stay relaxed.
  

• Why it helps: This gradual exposure helps desensitize you to the shots that cause anxiety. Repeated successful execution in practice rebuilds confidence, helping you feel more at ease during rounds.

7. Use Visualization and Imagery

• What to do: Before rounds or practice sessions, visualize yourself executing successful putts or chip shots. Imagine the feeling of a smooth, confident stroke and the ball rolling into the hole. Use this imagery to build a positive mental association with the shots that typically cause the yips.
  

• Why it helps: Visualization is a powerful mental tool that primes your brain for success. It helps rewire your mind to expect positive outcomes rather than reinforcing the fear of failure.
  
  Grab my free “play your best round” hypnosis recording.

8. Work with a Golf Hypnotherapist

• What to do: If the yips (or your prolonged period of poor performance) persist, consider working with a golf hypnotherapist. They can help you develop tailored mental strategies, work on emotional regulation, and address underlying fear and anxiety contributing to the recent struggles.
  

• Why it helps: Hypnosis is a fast and effective change modality that gets to the core of the underlying problem, allowing you to nip it in the bud rather than put a short-term band-aid on it.
  
  The best part is that the results you experience shine brightly on and off the course.
  
  Click here to schedule a free Mental Game Strategy session to learn how I can help you overcome the yips and play to your potential.

Your Next Step

Every newsletter will conclude with a suggested action step and further resources on the topic we discussed.

After reading today’s newsletter, go back and review it once more. Get clear on the core fear contributing to your recent bout of poor performance and start taking the appropriate action to overcome it. 

Thank you for reading today’s newsletter.

If you found it valuable, share it with a fellow golfer ready to take their game to the next level.

Until next time,

Paul

P.S. What did you think of today’s newsletter? Reply back / drop a comment below to let me know.

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Thank you for reading.

When you're ready, there are three ways I can help you:

1. Listen to The Scratch Golfer’s Mindset Podcast: Whether you’re an occasional amateur, a weekend regular, or a competitor seeking a tournament trophy or your pro card, this podcast will help you overcome the mental hazards of your mind to shoot more pars than bogeys. Start listening.
   

2. Overcome the Mental Hazards of Your Mind: How Hypnosis Can Help You Shoot Lower Scores: Whether you spend two or ten hours at the range each week, if you don’t learn to address and overcome your mind's mental and emotional hazards, you’ll remain stuck in the proverbial bunker of poor performance playing well short of your potential. Shoot More Pars.
   

3. 1-1 Mindset Coaching and Hypnotherapy for Golfers: I help golfers overcome the emotional and mental hazards of their minds to shoot lower scores (and have more fun) using hypnosis. Book a free Golf Mental Game Strategy Call Today.