The Lydia/Leadbetter Split

Besides the new DJ Rule, the big news this past week was Lydia Ko's split with David Leadbetter, her teacher for the remaining 3 years.

Everybody has their very own thoughts about why this has passed off, although you can say it became simply par for the direction. Lydia has now officially changed caddies and teachers inside the ultimate couple of months, and phrase is that she is going to exchange gadget quickly (from Callaway to PXG). This form of factor clearly is not unusual in the pro ranks -- male or lady -- and it is no longer like she hasn't carried out this sort of component earlier than.

But Lydia hasn't played all that well since the Olympics. You can read this reprint of a recent Golf World article by Jaime Diaz that speculates on a variety of possible reasons for the split, as well as a Golf Digest post from Ryan Herrington this past week that suggests declining play may be the reason.

Among the ones possible motives given are:

• dissatisfaction with Leadbetter's 'A Swing,' which was supposed to help Lydia get longer and more accurate (she declined in both distance off the tee and GIR this past season)
• tensions with her caddie
• increased competition from players like Jutanugarn and Henderson
• burnout, and
• other possible but unnamed distractions.

Are any of them to blame? It's anybody's guess. Given that she's been experimenting with swing changes that look more like her old swing, the 'A Swing' seems a likely culprit, although she did win her first two majors while using it. It may have proved too difficult for her to stay in form over a long period of time.

My very own experiments with the 'A Swing' while the book got here out more or less 18 months ago convinced me that it isn't for all and sundry. I turned into unable to make the swing efficiently even as soon as, notwithstanding knowledge the ideas and working a few with the drills within the ebook. With this sort of busy yr due to the Olympics, Lydia can also have certainly got tired and couldn't muster the essential awareness to carry out the swing continuously. After all, the 'A Swing' is highly one of a kind from her vintage swing.

It wouldn't take much to push me toward a possible case of temporary burnout as the primary reason, given the fact that Lydia stated after the Tour Championship that she intended to get away from golf for a while. (Diaz's article includes her famous quote: “Month off. Don’t touch my clubs. I think they are sick of me too.”) And it's probably coupled with the realization that her old swing seemed to work well even when she was tired.

Perhaps it's no more than a desire to simplify. Take a month off, clear the cobwebs out of her head. Don't touch the clubs for a month, then come back to practice with the old swing that she knows so well with new equipment. Start the 2017 season with a new caddie, a fresh voice in her ear.

But then again, maybe this isn't such a mystery at all. Lydia's birthday is April 24. She'll turn 20, no longer a teenager. Maybe, just maybe these are her first steps toward reinventing herself as an adult and she feels the off-season is the best time to do it.

Hmmm... It works for me.