Impact of Physical Strain on Mental Game: Ian Baker-Finch's Tale

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Transcript

00:00Take me through to where eventually you lost confidence in the game.

00:05Was it physical that led to the mental challenges?

00:10Did I hear injuries were maybe involved a little bit, shoulder?

00:15Yeah, that was more towards the end.

00:18I just wore myself out.

00:19It may have started with playing 35 to 40 tournaments every year for 15 years as well.

00:24It probably didn't help.

00:25So was there a particular shot that started just showing up out of nowhere that you couldn't figure out?

00:30It didn't happen straight away.

00:32In 92, I had a chance to win the Masters, eventually finished sixth.

00:37I putted bad the last day.

00:39I had a chance to win the US Open at Pebble.

00:43I finished second at the Players' Championship.

00:47Played pretty well through the US Tour.

00:49Finished, I think I was about 15th or 16th.

00:52Had finished top 20 at the Open.

00:56I played okay, but at the end of the year, I was 24th in the world rankings.

01:00And I was so pissed off.

01:01I was so angry at myself for having dropped from top 10 down to 24th.

01:05I didn't even go to the World Championship of Golf.

01:08It was top 25.

01:09I were invited.

01:09I said, no, I don't deserve to be there.

01:11I'm not playing.

01:12And that was really my mindset.

01:15I had let myself down that year, I felt.

01:19So in 93, I started trying to change things.

01:22What had caused my demise down to 24th in the world rankings in 92?

01:26So expectations were over the beginning.

01:28Exactly right.

01:29I look back on it now and think what an idiot I was.

01:33And I tried to hit the ball farther.

01:37And that changed my swing.

01:39I tried to flatten my path.

01:41Tried to get my wrist this way and get it a little deeper on the way down when I'd always

01:45been a cupper.

01:46I mean, I couldn't miss a fairway if I tried in the old way.

01:49It just dripped down left to right about three yards every time.