Eveliina Salonen is a bad putter – a really bad putter.
That doesn’t mean she’s never been a good putter. Or that she’ll never be a good putter again. But right now, the truth of the matter is flat-out brutal – look away if you’re squeamish:
There’s never been a sorrier excuse for a “professional putt” in disc golf history.
Label that take “hyperbole” all you like, but THIS is becoming a once-a-round blooper:
If you’re looking for a silver-lining, though, Salonen’s gag-inducing putt’s not a product of a lack of talent or preparation or anything like that – plain and simple, she’s got a bad case of the yips.
She’s not in horrible company:
- Rick Ankiel
- Chris Johnson
- Mike Vanderjagt
- Russell Westbrook
There’s WAY more where that came from, too.
Thankfully, Salonen’s career is hardly over. She’s only 23 years old. Even at the professional level, the disc golf community is tight. The very women she competes with for career-sustaining cash will undoubtedly lend a helping hand. It might take some time, but she’ll get through this.
And the sooner, the better – from the 2022 Music City Open:
- Eveliina hit a mere 18% of her C1X putts.
- She “gained” an abysmal -16.10 strokes with that effort.
- That was good enough for 34th-best in an FPO field of … 34 golfers.
That kind of putting performance isn’t fitting of the sixth-best FPO player in the world.
You know who it is fitting of, though?
You, me and every other “disc golfer” with too many discs and an unnecessary Pound bag.
It doesn’t have to be putting, either. Getting inside of your own head on the disc golf course looks different for everybody. Some can’t putt. Others struggle to approach. There’s lots that goes into a backhand huck – don’t overthink it: footwork, reach back, power pocket, etc.
If you’ve played long enough, your game’s experienced something “yippy” a time or two.
A few years back, on longer courses, I couldn’t not foot fault during mid-fairway run-ups. I’d smash the disc with my plant foot every single time. True to form, nobody ever called me on it, but I knew what I was doing. Because of it, the end result was almost always a trash throw.
For years, leading up to this experience, I’d never had an issue with foot faults. Similarly, before this season, Salonen’s putt had never looked this awful. I didn’t do anything major to overcome my foot-faulting problem: I’d practice my run-up in a field – slow, steady and under control.
Eventually, it got better – I don’t think about it anymore.
Unlike me, Eveliina has actual disc golf ability – she’s forgotten more than I’ll ever know about how to play the game. She’ll (continue to) work on her putt. She’ll figure it out. And when she does – coupled with her off-the-tee talent – she’ll be a Finnish force to be reckoned with …
Until then, it’ll be more of the same: Paige Pierce, Catrina Allen and Kristin Tattar.
*** yawn ***
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