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Published on: March 21, 2019
Head-putter coordination patterns in expert and less skilled golfers.
Timothy D Lee1, Tadao Ishikura, Stefan Kegel
1McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. scapps@mcmaster.ca
Journal of Motor Behavior
|July 17, 2008
Summary
Expert golfers use a different coordination pattern (egocentric) than less skilled golfers (allocentric) when putting. These fundamental differences in movement strategies were observed regardless of putt distance or ball presence.
Area of Science:
- Sports Science
- Motor Control
- Biomechanics
Background:
- Expertise in sports like golf is often associated with superior performance.
- Understanding the underlying motor control strategies differentiating experts from novices is crucial for skill acquisition and coaching.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the coordination patterns of expert and less skilled golfers during putting.
- To determine if these coordination patterns differ based on skill level, putt distance, or the presence of a ball.
Main Methods:
- Participants included expert and less skilled golfers performing putting tasks on an indoor surface.
- Trials involved putts towards targets at 1, 3, and 5 meters, with and without a ball present.
- Kinematic data, including head and putter displacement and velocity profiles, were analyzed.
Main Results:
- Experts outperformed less skilled golfers across various outcome and kinematic measures.
- Less skilled golfers exhibited high positive correlations between head and putter movement (allocentric coordination).
- Expert golfers showed high negative correlations (egocentric coordination), indicating distinct movement strategies.
Conclusions:
- Fundamental differences in putting coordination modes exist between expert and less skilled golfers.
- These differences, characterized by allocentric versus egocentric coordination, are not influenced by putt distance or ball presence.
- Findings challenge traditional beliefs about putting mechanics and offer insights into expert motor control.
