There’s nothing that gets golf fans riled up like slow play.
Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Cantlay and Brian Harman have become public enemy number one in the men’s game because of how long it takes them to navigate a round of golf.
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And in the women’s game, there’s a new player who has emerged who has fired up the golfing world with her pre-shot routine. Bailey Shoemaker took 75 seconds to hit a shot after addressing the ball at the Augusta Women’s Open.
She received a torrent of criticism for it online, but there is a good reason for her long routine.
Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images
Golf fans slam Bailey Shoemaker for slow play at Augusta Women’s Open
Shoemaker’s routine was painful to watch. She went through various practice swings and movements for over a minute before eventually playing her shot. Shoemaker looked scared to hit the ball.
That caused one X user to post, “My lord. Please leave the course.” Another added, “This should be an automatic DQ. No place for this in the game. Horrifying behavior that The Ridler needs to deal with swiftly and forcefully!”
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“Horrible to watch and would be horrendous to play with this individual in a game. Worse than Keegan’s ‘multiple club twirl and back off’ about 10 times! I wonder how long it takes her to play 18 holes? Too long”, was the sentiment from one X user, and they weren’t the only one to compare it to other PGA Tour slow players.
“OMG – I saw this. Infuriating. Like watching Brian Harmon or Patrick Cantlay,” agreed another angry fan.
It’s a relatable experience for all of us. We’ve all been stuck behind a slow player, and with rage bubbling as we wait on the tee box. Shoemaker’s play gave this user flashbacks to a week ago:
“Golf should have a 5 second clock, address it and go, maybe 2 seconds, what on earth are people thinking or doing over the ball, work it out on the range, played with a random last week that did this and got us two holes behind, brutal.”
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But because of Shoemaker’s apparent mental yips, some fans expressed empathy for her:
“I legit have stress dreams about this exact scenario. Either I can’t pull the trigger, or there’s something impeding my backswing on the tee box. It’s wild that this is the reality for the gal here. Feel for her (and her playing partners!)”
And it turns out, there is a real reason for why her pre-shot routine is so long.
The reason for Bailey Shoemaker’s slow pre-shot routine
Shoemaker’s routine may be infuriating to watch, but there’s a good reason for it. Last October, she underwent arm surgery after playing through intense pain for months.
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While she’s healthy now, she still has to convince her body to swing the club as it hasn’t yet registered that there will be no pain.
According to her college coach, Justin Silverstein, Shoemaker used to be one of the fastest players he’s ever coached, so it’s sad to see her in this state.
The pre-shot routine is all an attempt to convince her body to swing the club, so hopefully, as she readjusts, she can begin to swing freely again.
There is still a question as to whether she is ready to be out there yet. This routine is bound to affect everyone she plays with.
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