Everyone who plays golf at any level knows that one minute, you can feel great about your game, and the next, you can feel like a beginner again.
It’s even common for professional golfers to encounter problems with their swings and make significant changes to address them.
Fortunately, it’s rare for PGA and DP World Tour players to struggle so much that they no longer feel comfortable playing golf at all.
That’s what happened to one former European Ryder Cup competitor a few years ago, who has now shared his emotional story.
Chris Wood was ‘completely humiliated’ with his golf swing
Chris Wood won the BMW PGA Championship in May 2016 and climbed to 22nd in the world rankings, which effectively secured his place on the European Ryder Cup team.
The then-28-year-old seemingly had a bright future ahead of him until he started to struggle with both his golf swing and mental health.
Wood’s game was in a “horrendous place” technically, and poor results soon followed. At his lowest point, he recalls losing eight balls in one round at a pro-am event in India and feeling “completely humiliated.”
“I’d fear going to the range,” he told Bunkered. “You’re thinking everyone’s looking at you, but they’re not.
“Practice rounds, you want to play on your own, too. I’d get the driver out thinking, ‘Is there anyone around or is there anyone on that other hole?’
“You’re not in the present at all. What chance have you got? Absolutely no chance. But you can’t escape it. It absolutely takes over your whole world.”
Wood finally got to the bottom of his problems in 2023, when he was in close contact with doctors and didn’t compete in a single event all season.
The Englishman now feels much happier and has returned to competition. He has recently played in tournaments all over the world and desperately wants to regain his DP World Tour card.
Michael Kim sends an encouraging message to Chris Wood
PGA Tour fans will know that Michael Kim is one of the most active players on social media, from analyzing his rounds to answering questions.
Well, Kim recently posted a thoughtful message to Wood on X after reading about his trials and tribulations.
“A process that I know all too well… I know too many golfers who lost careers through something similar. So great that Chris has started to get out of the darkness,” he commented.
“There’s a lot of talk about how drivers are sooo easy to hit these days (which is true in general), but the speed and the high launch low spin nudges golfers’ swings to go in a certain direction, which can be really bad for some.
“With the driver, it’s more of a physical swing issue, which evolves into a mental issue. I didn’t get going in the correct direction until my swing changed, and then I was able to figure things out mentally.”
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