ADD and Exceptional Athletes

I was reading about Bubba Watson and his psychologist was talking about ADD in relation to Payne Stewart. Evidently the late Payne Stewart was easily distracted which may have account for his lack of an overall stellar career (11 wins) when his talent was obviously superior.

The Doctor said that when the pressure went extremely high Stewart was forced to focus and we would see the true talent come out. (2 US Open titles.)

It may made consider the other athletes that may fit this mold.

Great Players in crunch time, but average during the rest of the game.

1. Big Ben in Pittsburgh- He is a totally different player in the last 5 minutes.

2. John Daly-Two Majors the only time he was in contention. What natural talent.

3. Eli Manning. Even at Ole Miss he would lead people at the end of a game.

4. Reggie Jackson- He may the most obvious, I hated him, but it was magical.

5. Joe Montana

It also makes you appreciate people like M Jordan, Woods, P Manning, and Larry Bird that delivered day in and day out.

You wonder what is in the head of people like Couples, Greg Norman, Farve, and Arod.

They have all of the talent and a history of having breakdowns in crunch time or just not showing up.

The Moral of the Story:

Fear playing against someone with ADD that is an under achiever with worlds of talent.

If the money or pressure gets high enough, you may see the animal awaken.

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