American golfer explains why he's playing with his mouth taped shut

A golfer has resorted to taping his own mouth shut as he attempts to improve his form, and behaviour, on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Ryan McCormick, from New Jersey, has endured a frustrating time of late. He dropped down to the Korn Ferry Tour after losing his PGA Tour card, and his performances have been far-from-perfect.

As a result, the 33-year-old has struggled to control his anger on the golf course. McCormick has explored several different approaches, including reading books and taking to others. but nothing has worked.

He even took drastic action at the Club Car Championship in Savannah, Georgia, on Friday afternoon, when he taped his mouth shut so he would ultimately stop getting mad at himself.

"I’ve been having not-so-fun a time this year on the golf course," McCormick explained.

"‘I’ve been getting pretty angry and mad so I’ve tried a lot of things and I just figured I’d shut myself up and put tape over my mouth. At this point, I’ve tried about everything, I’ve read a lot of books, I’ve talked to a few people."

He added: "I’m just too angry on the golf course so I’ve run out of ideas.

So how did he get on? McCormick carded a second-round 72 at the tournament, which is the Korn Ferry Tour’s first domestic stop of 2025. It meant he was four shots back from the cut line.

"I was hoping maybe that it would help me," the American said. "I can’t say that it did or didn’t. It certainly makes you breathe. I felt like Bane, like Batman, muzzle myself.

"I mean, I’m not like proud. I don’t want to create an experience for my playing partners that’s not fair. And, you know, it’s not fair to me either or other people. Having a tough time, and that was my solution today."

You're probably wondering – how did McCormick manage to communicate with his caddie on Friday.

“Mostly just writing down the numbers,” he said. "I would just point and ask him for a read sometimes. It made things a lot simpler, I’ll tell you that.”