When Did Tiger Woods Have the Yips and How Did He Overcome It?

Published 06/25/2022, 4:30 PM EDT

Getting yips would be the deadliest nightmare for any professional golfer, as it might break one’s career. However, did you know that the greatest golfer of all time, Tiger Woods, had the yips as well? And he did overcome it and even won a major?

During late 2014 and early 2015, the golf world started to notice the former world No. 1 struggling with chipping yips. In the 2015 Phoenix Open, the golfer couldn’t even hit a chip shot or pitch shot onto the green.

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According to reports, he also had struggled with the same during the Hero World Challenge. His chipping yips led him to have bogeys and terrible results. Notably, Woods couldn’t make the cut in the 2015 Phoenix Open as he scored an 81 in round 1 and 74 in round 2.

What are yips, and how did the GOAT overcome it?

The yips are involuntary wrist spasms that occur most commonly when golfers are trying to putt. Notably, many consider anxiety and stress to cause the golfers to have yips.

When Tiger Woods had struggled with it during the Phoenix Open, reports claimed that the chipping yips would never go away. Yet, he no longer had the yips when he returned after a year-long break to rehabilitate from microdiscectomy surgery.

What Is the ’Tiger Slam’ and When Did Tiger Woods Achieve It?

Woods had never revealed how he got over the yips he had. However, some golf instructors have shared their opinion on how he might have overcome it. “Tiger didn’t have the chipping yips because of a mental issue. It was physical,” said the famous golf instructor David Leadbetter.

Furthermore, many golf instructors had the same opinion, “Right-hand-only drills helped him a lot.” Hank Hanley, who had once trained Woods, said, “He’s obviously found something in a technique change that’s been working… to a degree… and that’s great.” Additionally, he added, “When you have the yips, they’re in there. It’s just a matter of how you try to manage them.”

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Tiger Woods won his 15th major after overcoming his yips!

Woods won his 15th major title at the 2019 Masters Tournament with a 1-shot lead. Notably, it was his first major win since the 2008 U.S. Open. The Augusta National event was a fine example of how he no longer experienced the chipping yips.

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The golfers consider having yips means their career is over. However, the golf legend proved it wrong and even won a major tournament. It is like the golf instructor Hank Hanley said, “It’s just a matter of how you try to manage them.” And Tiger Woods managed it very well.

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Written by:

Anjana Prabhakaran is a Golf content writer at EssentiallySports. She has completed her Master's degree in Public Administration and considers researching as one of her hobbies. As her family is interested in sports, Anjana grew up watching every sport on television.

Edited by:

Jito Tenson

When Did Tiger Woods Have the Yips and How Did He Overcome It?

What are yips, and how did the GOAT overcome it?

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Tiger Woods won his 15th major after overcoming his yips!