As someone who has gained and lost plenty of weight in my golfing lifetime, I have found that the changing modest amounts of weight really hasn't changed my golf game much.  I may hit the ball a little further or shorter, but I adjust pretty well for the kind of goals I set for my game, i.e., shoot in the low 80s.

For professionals, though, they get into such a groove with their swing that it might seem prohibitive for them to get into better shape.  Last week's LPGA Tour winner Angela Stanford underwent a serious body transformation in the last couple of years.  She has lost a significant amount of weight, toned up her body, and looks really good.  If I remember right, I've heard her publicly talk about the impact that the weight loss had on her game - for the negative at first.  It has since seemingly turned into a serious positive with three wins in her last seven starts.

So, what about Phil Mickelson?  Phil's looking slimmer these days.  He's lost some of the gut and has dropped a lot of the man boobs that made Stevie Williams' use of a Colin Montgomerie story with Lefty as the main character make sense.  What impact has that had on his golf game, which is currently is ragged shape?

The Golf Blog ponders:

Phil looks a lot fitter and trimmer than 2007, but his weight loss may take some getting used to. We've seen this before with David Duval (who became a fitness fanatic and then was never the same), and Darren Clarke (who slimmed down for a short time without results). When you played with one body shape for years, the muscle memory will probably be thrown off with a new body shape.

Tell me from your experiences with weight loss (or gain).  How has it impacted your game?

Thanks to Jay Busbee for the link action.