2019 DGPT Championship Charlotte, NC Oct 18- 20

[KaBooM]

The common characterization that I disagree with in terms of judging mental game is that, seemingly, both of your arguments equate the act of making mistakes with a "lower score" on the mental fortitude exam. Correct me if I'm misreading that.

However, the fact that Catrina can 3-putt from birdie to bogey from inside the circle, and then immediately Eagle the following hole by canning a circle's-edge tester is more important to me as a whole than the singular fact that she drove well on 12 and then missed putts. If her mental game was weak, she would have lost after 12, and double down after she goes Eagle-Birdie then Double Bogey on 15. Recognizing fallibility and imperfection inherent in the player and still achieving greatness despite it is the ultimate display of mental fortitude in my eyes.

The way I see it, executing to perfection doesn't mean your mental game is the best, that means your preparation was on point. Mental game is about getting back up when golf lands a haymaker on your temple, having a clear mind when things are going well is EZ. I can't think of a more foundation-shaking event on a golf course than missing something inside of 10'.

Let me ask it this way-

Would we also say in this case, if Catrina has poor mental fortitude, that Paige also does?

Paige has round-by-round rollercoasters where she will play a course to near-perfection and then the next day tag first available tree 5 times in the first 6 holes.

Usually, I agree with your take on things but not on this issue. There is a much greater mental component to putting than there is to stroking long bombs and intermediate shots, which have a much greater athletic component to them. The mind is much more active -- miss/make, high/low, right/left, too strong/too weak -- these are all thoughts that can cloud a mind of a non-confident putter in the ~ 30 seconds before putting. Long field shots and drives are a more athletic act and much less vulnerable to "mind games". It's like certain NBA players with free throws, who go through long stretches of the "yips", where there game action shots are not impacted the same way. Also, Cat can get easily frustrated by her putting woes and give extra strokes away by "mailing it in" -- this is "mentally weak" as it costs here strokes when she is still in the hunt. Yes, she gets credit for righting the ship later in the round but it does obviate the fact that her mental weakness allows her to miss a 4 foot putt in frustration just because she had missed a 15 foot putt right beforehand.

 

[PoorPutter]

Wow that step-putt at 7:22 is very illegal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-P7ASKb59OQ

 

[ToddL]

Wow that step-putt at 7:22 is very illegal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-P7ASKb59OQ

There's about 4 frames of him leaving contact with the lie but still holding the disc. I've certainly seen a lot worse.

 

[Mocheez]

Wow that step-putt at 7:22 is very illegal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-P7ASKb59OQ

It was but it's hard to definitively call a foot fault without the aid of slow motion.

 

[PoorPutter]

There's about 4 frames of him leaving contact with the lie but still holding the disc. I've certainly seen a lot worse.

Well yeah every time Hokom putts, hahahaha.

 

[DiscFifty]

It was but it's hard to definitively call a foot fault without the aid of slow motion.

nah.... it gets worse.....