Understanding Golf Skill Learning Dr. Bob Christina, Professor Emeritus Assistant Men’s Golf Coach University of North Carolina at Greensboro The Pinehurst Golf Academy Precision Golf School

“Teaching Without Knowing How Students Learn is Like Practicing Medicine Without Knowing How the Body Functions” 2

What is Golf Skill Learning ? The process of finding solutions to movement problems Finger Sequence Skill 3

What Happens as a Result of Learning a Golf Skill? Movements reliably change Shot outcomes reliably change A new solution (motor program) is developed and stored in memory Neural networks and biochemical substances reliably change 4

Computer Program and Motor Program Analogy C0MPUTER PROGRAM (Sequence of Instructions) CPU, CIRCUITRYOUTPUT 5 MOTOR PROGRAM (Sequence of Instructions) CENTRAL NERVOUS and MUSCULAR SYSTEM GOLF SKILL MOVEMENTS

How Does the Motor Program for a Golf Skill Come About? From the interaction of a student repeatedly performing the skill in one or more learning environments 6

Process of Learning a Motor Program 7

How Do You Know if Golf Skill Learning Has Occurred? It is inferred from reliable movement and shot outcome changes that are the result of physical practice 8

“Can Learning Be Taking Place in the Absence of Observable Changes in Golf Skill Movements or Shot Performance?” 9

Does Learning Always Lead to Correct Technique and Improvement? No---Practice of incorrect golf skill movements can be learned just as well as practice of correct movements 10

Golf Skill Learning is a Continuous Process 11 But Students Appear to Learn Golf Skills in Three Distinct Phases

Students Return to the Early Phase When Learning Major Swing Changes 12

Learning Desirable Swing Changes Requires Physical practice (with relevant feedback) to develop a new or modified motor program and change neural networks and biochemical substances 13

The Amount of Physical Practice Needed Depends on Factors Such as The student’s motivation to learn the swing changes The influence of the old swing on learning the new swing The capabilities of the student to learn the swing change movements 14

The Amount of Physical Practice Depends on Factors Such as How effectively the swing changes are taught How effectively the swing change movements are practiced How complex the swing change movements are to learn 15

How Complex the Swing Changes Are to Learn Depends on how complicated it is for the brain to develop a motor program capable of controlling the lower levels of the central nervous system (CNS) so that the swing change movements can be performed 16

Finger Sequence Skill You Know What I Want You to Do, But You Just Can’t Do It! Why Not?

“Could it be that Your Brain Doesn’t Yet Know How to Control the Lower Levels of Your CNS so that Your Fingers Can Perform the Skill?” 18

Executive Role Overall responsibility Motor program Subordinate Role Carry out the details of the motor program Golf Skill Movement

20 Executive Role Overall responsibility Motor program Executive Role Overall responsibility Motor program Subordinate Role Carry out the details of the motor program Golf Skill Movement

Motor Neuron Pools at Segment Levels of the Spinal Cord 21

Motor Unit 22

Why Can’t You Do the Finger Sequence Skill? Your brain hasn’t learned to control the lower levels of your CNS so that the Finger Sequence Skill can be performed 23

How Does the Brain Learn to Control the Lower Levels of the CNS? One hypothesis holds that: “Learning is largely the progressive inhibition of unwanted motor neurons until the desired movements are achieved” 24

How Does the Brain Learn to Control the Lower Levels of the CNS? One hypothesis holds that: “Learning is largely the progressive inhibition of unwanted motor neurons while activating the wanted motoneurons until the desired movements are achieved” 25

Unwanted Motor Neurons are Selectively Inhibited Early Learning Too many motor neurons fire (wanted and unwanted) Golf swing with movement errors Later Learning Wanted motor neurons fire; unwanted inhibited Golf swing with no movement errors 26

WHAT THE BRAIN LEARNS IS THE INHIBITION PATTERN TO SETS OF UNWANTED MOTONEURONS AND THE “ACTIVATION PATTERN” TO THE SETS OF MOTONEURONS THAT GENERATE THE DESIRED MOVEMENTS THESE PATTERNS ARE CENTRAL TO THE MOTOR PROGRAM

CONTINUED PRACTICE TO IMPROVE A GOLF SKILL “IS SIMPLY A PROGRESSIVELY MORE SUCCESSFUL REPRESSION OF UNWANTED MOTONEURONS WHILE THE WANTED MOTONEURONS ARE ACTIVATED”

A STUDENT’S GOLF SKILL LEVEL “REFLECTS THE LEVEL OF INHIBITION LEARNED UP TO THAT TIME” 29

PERFORMANCE OF A WELL- LEARNED GOLF SKILL “IS PREDETERMINED BY SETS OF MOTONEURONS THAT ARE PERMITTED TO FIRE”

IN SUMMARY “GOLF SKILL LEARNING LARGELY INVOLVES THE PROCESS OF PROGRESSIVELY INHIBITING UNWANTED MOTOR UNITS UNTIL ONLY DESIRED MOTOR UNITS ARE ALLOWED TO FIRE”

Learning Styles Belief: Learning is more effective if a student is taught in the way(s) he or she likes to learn Evidence: Research evidence supporting this belief is weak, at best 32

2009 STATEMENT ABOUT LEARNING STYLES “... at present, there is no adequate evidence base to justify incorporating learning-styles assessments into general educational practices.” Pashler, McDaniel, Rohrer & Bjork (2009). Learning styles: A review of concepts and evidence. Psychological Science in the Public Interest 33

Learning Styles Are the various ways students prefer to learn new golf skills if they were in charge of the teaching Students can learn in different ways, but prefer to learn in a certain way or ways 34

Learning Styles Can flex and adapt to different contexts, and change as each student learns and develops The way a student prefers to learn may not be the best way to promote the most effective learning 35

Concluding Recommendations Discover each student’s learning style or balance of styles Adapt your teaching in relation to the student’s style(s) when it --is important to make the student feel comfortable --is the best way to promote the most effective learning 36

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION 37