Being a professional athlete is not only physically demanding but the mental strength needed to play at the top level can also have an effect on an athletes psyche.
The Dallas Cowboys kicker Brett Maher has had a case of the yips over the last couple of weeks.
He had converted 50 of his last 53 extra points previously but then missed five consecutive attempts prompting the Cowboys coaching staff to deny him a chance at a field goal at a crucial stage against the 49ers in the Divisional Playoff game.
Here are a list of professional athletes that have developed psychological problems that affected their game.
Markelle Fultz
The 76ers had high hopes for the graduate of the University of Washington and the 1.93m point/shooting guard was drafted as the number one overall pick in 2017 after a stellar college career.
Fultz was plagued by a shoulder injury early in his rookie season and the injury clearly hampered him as he shot 33% from the field and failed to attempt a single shot from outside the arc.
A trainer remarked that Fultz has caught a case of the yips, however, Fultz denied this.
He now plays for the Orlando Magic.
Mackey Sasser
Mackey Sasser was a catcher for the New York Mets, who suffered psychological problems of the likes baseball had never seen before.
After an injury during a game in 1990 when Jim Presley slid into home base colliding with Sasser in the head, he suffered issues that would inadvertently end his career.
“It felt like the ball was glued to my hand,” is how he described the feeling when he struggled to throw the ball back to the pitcher, a problem that seemed irreversible once it had started.
An ESPN 30 for 30 short was made about Sasser’s story and delves into the problems faced by some athletes with similar problems.
Rick Ankiel
Rick Ankiel was a solid pitcher in his first season in the National League Division Series in 2000.
He started Game 1 of the NLDS and had a shutout through two innings, up until it all went pear shaped in the third.
He started Game 2 of the NLCS against the Mets, however, he was removed after the first inning after throwing five wild pitches past the catcher.
This incredible break down in his performance cost him big time as he was sent down to the minors the following season.
He did however return to the majors in 2004, as an outfielder, and finished his career with a .240 batting average and 76 home runs.
Nick Anderson
Nick Anderson was shooting 70% from the free throw line over his career and had the opportunity to ice Game 1 of the 1995 NBA Finals against the Houston Rockets.
He missed four consecutive free throws, gave up possession and watched on as Houston went on to drain a three-pointer.
The Rockets won that game and swept the series.
Anderson never recovered from his failure in the clutch moments of that game and shot at around 40% from the free throw line for the rest of his career.
Eric Bristow
Eric Bristow was one of the best darts players in the world before he started suffering from the well known (amongst darts players at least) condition of Dartitis.
Dartitis is a psychological affliction which effects the players ability to release the dart as they normally would.
Bristow’s career was cut drastically short because of this.
Anna Kournikova
Anna Kournikova’s career was not overly successful or long, however she was more than capable on the court.
One area she did have a problem with was double faults, however.
She served 17 of them in the match highlighted below and once served 31 double faults!
Remarkably, she actually won the match at the Australian Open in 1999 despite this outrageous stat.
Some will argue this is not a similar case to the others on the list and merely a lack of talent.
You be the judge.
Steve Hooker
At one stage the Australian Pole-vaulter held every major title available to him – the Commonwealth Games, Continental Cup, World Championship, World Indoor Championships and the Olympic Games.
The Gold Medalist at the Beijing Olympics described his fall from grace as losing his ‘Auto-Pilot’.
The awareness to aggressively execute the life-threatening plant and ride of the vaulting pole had seemingly deserted him in an instant, ending his career prematurely.
Scott Boswell
Scott Boswell was an average pace bowler for Leicestershire, however, he never bowled an over quite like he did in this 2001 final.
Seemingly out of nowhere, he was completely taken over by the ‘yips’, bowling eight wides in one over.
Years later, The Guardian sought him out and he explained “I just couldn’t let go of the ball. I wanted to get on with it, so I began to rush. The more I panicked, the more I rushed.”
Charles Barkley
To finish off, we couldn’t help but mention this one.
If you have never seen ex NBA Superstar and Hall of Famer Charles Barkley attempt to swing a golf club then you are in for a treat.