David Duval - wtf happened to him?

Culchie

I heard that Seve Ballesteros blamed his dramatic fall from greatness to tripping over his kids bicycle, hurting his back and all the follow on complications that changed his swing etc.....

I half believe that, but Seve had a good innings...... but David Duval ..... he was world No 1 for a while and then woooosh, just disintegrated.

WTF happened to him?

OilBeefHooked2

Culchie wrote: »

I heard that Seve Ballesteros blamed his dramatic fall from greatness to tripping over his kids bicycle, hurting his back and all the follow on complications that changed his swing etc.....

I half believe that, but Seve had a good innings...... but David Duval ..... he was world No 1 for a while and then woooosh, just disintegrated.

WTF happened to him?

Great question, it's amazing to think he was no.1 when Tiger was just emerging, and then all of sudden he lost his "mojo" and now struggles to break 80:eek:.

Trampas

I heard rumours that he was taking some juice and he had to stop otherwise he would be fcuked.

Hence his downfall.

Could be just a myth but just what I heard

WHIP IT!

I remember reading somewhere that he had been convinced to change his shot-shape by a fellow pro/coach/mind guru/quack to take his game to another level.

I think he played a cut and it was suggested to him that a draw was the way forward and this turned out to be the beginning of the end... He's also had some personal problems as well I think and just a general "falling out of love with the game" situation...

I would guess though that most of his problems in tournament play are mental. I'm sure he still shoots low rounds and great shots in practise. You just don't lose the kind of talent he had.

jampotjim

His final round 59 *cant remember the tournament* still goes down as one of the best rounds I have ever seen...

2nd to 18 was magic and finished with a proper nervy 10footer or so.

Mister Sifter

Personal problems and a general falling out of love with the game a few years back.

His wife had a very difficult pregnancy i think. But the details were never really fully disclosed.

Even when he won the British Open he was down on the game. A journalist once said he travelled in the car back with him from the final day and the car was like a funeral car with little or no celebrating.

He's back playing again now and i still follow his progress. He still gets in to tournaments because he's in the top 30 all time pga tour earners. I think that runs out after this year though.

He hasn't made a cut all year (from 5-6 attempts or so). Read his coach saying recently that he's practicing well again and looking for like the Duval of old, and Duval himself even said a few months back that the ryder cup was his aim this year. No chance of that but good to see he has high targets still.

If i remember rightly, he was widely hated back in his prime.

A.Partridge

Graeme1982 wrote: »

If i remember rightly, he was widely hated back in his prime.

that was because he was the first player to wear black wrap-around shades while he was playing and it was felt that he was cold and unfriendly as a result.

However, I don't believe this to be the case because when Europe won the Ryder Cup at the Belfry David Duval was one of just three American players who spent all night with the European team celebrating their win.

Apparently, he's a very good sport and most of the European golfers have great time for him.

Mister Sifter

A.Partridge wrote: »

that was because he was the first player to wear black wrap-around shades while he was playing and it was felt that he was cold and unfriendly as a result.

I don't think it was all to do with the sunglasses. I think he was very quiet and he's very personal and doesn't let anyone get close to him easily so he was considered a bit aloof.

There's more than a few like that on tour though. Mickelson isn't exactly mr popular by all accounts.

WHIP IT!

Graeme1982 wrote: »

I don't think it was all to do with the sunglasses. I think he was very quiet and he's very personal and doesn't let anyone get close to him easily so he was considered a bit aloof.

There's more than a few like that on tour though. Mickelson isn't exactly mr popular by all accounts.

I suppose Faldo was a little like that as well... Michael Jordan too, Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry in their prime as well... The cost of greatness maybe? Or a necessary sacrifice to become great?

neckedit

Duval was, like a lot of us, fond of the dinner table. After a lot off success playing the way he was, that is with quiet a stocky build, he went on a fittness programme and returned a very fit and stronger player but at the time his short game suffered, pundits put it down to over working some of the wrong muscle groups, not really neededto play good golf, H then suffered some back, wrist and shoulder injuries, couple that with some apparently serious personal problems, his game slipped away from him. I know a guy who meet with him at an after party for a tourmament,(don't recall which one) but by all accounts a top bloke and a good aul laugh.

Sandwich

His swing was unorthodox, and while he was indeed a super player at his best, I allways felt he was just a hairline away from hitting the ball really badly. In fact, his swing, even at his best, made him look out of place at the top of world golf (it was a position fully deserved at the time though). I would feel that maybe his swing was just a little too much on a knife edge for reliable year-in-year-out reliability : especially, if he went on a weight programme as mentioned above which threw a delicately timed swing completely out of whack.

PhilipMarlowe

He shot the equal low round at the 2006 US Open (-2 68, was -4 after 13)

Marshy

Yeah I've been really disappointed watching Duval (or rather not watching him) struggle so badly for so long now. Back in the early 00s he was one of the players I really liked watching and I was delighted when he won the Open having had the invidious title of being the best player not to have won one before that.

Sadly that was his last win however. All form seems to have deserted him. I do hope he does eventually return to some of that form of the past because no-one like to see anybody shoot such high scores having reached such highs.

Trampas

the mad thing about it. The last couple of players who have won the open in the year ending in 1 career have fallen apart shortly after the win 91 Ian Baker Finch, 81 Bill Rogers, 71 Lee Trevino (Look what happened a couple of years later)

eagle eye

He has not given up trying to get it back in fairness to him. It seems that every time he is just about to get back into the game something else goes wrong.
He had a good run in a tournament in Asia about a year ago which I think Tiger ended up winning.
His driving has been his biggest problem for a long time.
There have been many rumours as to what happened to him.
Many injuries have been mention, and there was also talk of him suffering from vertigo.
Its very sad to see such a great golfer fall to the depths he has, but don't forget Steve Stricker and what he has accomplished.
So you never know he could still turn it around.

Mister Sifter

fair play ... he made the cut this weekend. 7 over and well back but has to be progres.

fred funk }{

I'm delighted to see him showing some form of old. He seems like the Duval of years ago when he won the open. He must have really got the head down and sorted out his game.

Matt Santos

I am delighted to Duval at the top of the leaderboard this weekend.
True he was indeed one of three that partied all night with the europeans after the Belfry.
Meet him in Waterville a couple of years back.
I was sitting on a couch only a few feet from him and got talkin about the course. It took me a few minutes talking to him to realise who it was!!
Without the glasses he looks very different and out of typical golf apperail he looks like anything but a past No.1 Golfer in the World.
True gent as was said and I really hope he goes deep this weekend

WHIP IT!

As big a Tiger fan as I am, the fact that old favourites likes Norman and Duval - as well as the defending champ, Harrington -are all in the thick of it this week is the best news the British Open could've had.

If these three are in contention over the weekend then I don't think anyone will be thinking too much about Woods.

Here's to a day spent in front of the TV!

PhilipMarlowe

Shame he melted on Saturday with an 83 (Justin Rose had 82). His other 3 rounds of 73, 69 and then 71 on Sunday would have had him right there had he been able to hang on to anything decent on Saturday.
Still fantastic to see him back and hopefully he'll get something positive from it.

Smyth

I enjoyed watching his 1st and 2nd round. Shows there might be a glimmer of hope. The commentators were talking about him and said the reason for his downfall was because he was convinced to change his swing to make his game even better. Aparently, this frigged up his muscle memory and he couldn't get his original game back. Shame really, I remember him and tiger playing off in Augusta...amazing golf. He's a real character.