TAKING SWING CHANGES TO THE COURSE Eric Alpenfels and Dr. Bob Christina Pinehurst Golf Academy

TAKING SWING CHANGES TO THE COURSE DEPENDS ON MANY FACTORS SUCH AS THE HOW COMPLEX THE SWING CHANGES ARE TO LEARN HOW EFFECTIVELY THEY ARE TAUGHT STUDENT’S LEARNING CAPABILITIES, PREVIOUS LEARNING, MOTIVATION, etc. WAY AND CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH THEY ARE PRACTICED

TODAY’S PRESENTATION FOCUSES ON THE WAY AND CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH SWING CHANGES ARE PRACTICED

THE WAY AND CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH SWING CHANGES ARE PRACTICED AFFECTS HOW WELL THEY ARE LEARNEDREMEMBERED TRANSFERRED TO PLAY

IN OTHER WORDS ALL WAYS AND CONDITIONS OF PRACTICE DO NOT PRODUCE THE SAME LEARNING, RETENTION AND TRANSFER BENEFITS SOME WAYS AND CONDITIONS ARE MORE EFFECTIVE THAN OTHERS

FOR EXAMPLE, ONE STUDY WE ASKED WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO PRACTICE USING A DRILL TO LEARN A SWING CHANGE? (Alpenfels & Christina, 2007) (Alpenfels & Christina, 2007)

STUDY METHOD Participants – 78 adults (48 males & 30 females); handicaps ranged from 4 to 38 (M = 18.6) Randomly assigned to six different practice groups (13 per group) with groups balanced for handicap, gender & age Participant’s used their own six iron and practiced the Hit-the-Tee Drill

STUDY METH OD A total of 54 swings per practice method Warm-up Pre-Test Pre-Test Practice Practice Post-Test Post-Test Swing and shot performance measured by a launch monitor & IClub

HIT-THE-TEE DRILL

HERE’S HOW THE DRILLS WERE PRACTICED

THE RESULTS

WHY DID GROUP 1 HIT IT SO MUCH LONGER? SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED THEIR SWING PATH & SWUNG CLUBHEAD MORE DOWN THE TARGET LINE FOLLOWING DRILL PRACTICE IMPROVED SWING PATH CREATED BETTER CONTACT, GREATER CLUBHEAD & BALL SPEED, WHICH PRODUCED MORE YARDS

RETURNING TO THE QUESTION OF THIS STUDY WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO PRACTICE USING A DRILL PRACTICE USING A DRILL OR TRAINING AID TO OR TRAINING AID TO LEARN A SWING CHANGE? LEARN A SWING CHANGE?

PRACTICE CYCLE OF THREE PERFORM THE SWING 1. DRILL-NO BALL = UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF THE DRILL OR TRAINING AID WITHOUT HITTING A BALL 2. DRILL- BALL = UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF THE DRILL OR TRAINING AID WHILE HITTING A BALL 3. NO DRILL-BALL = WITHOUT THE DRILL OR TRAINING AID WHILE HITTING A BALL

IN ANOTHER STUDY WE ASKED WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO PRACTICE WITH A DRILL TO TAKE THAT LEARNING TO THE THAT LEARNING TO THE COURSE? COURSE? Christina, Alpenfels & Santiago (2008) Christina, Alpenfels & Santiago (2008)

TWO MAJOR METHODS OF PRACTICE WERE STUDIED TRADITIONAL – SKILL IS PRACTICED UNDER NON-PLAYING CONDITIONS TRANSFER – SKILL IS PRACTICED UNDER PLAYING CONDITIONS

COMPARISON OF TRADITIONAL AND TRANSFER METHODS OF PRACTICE TRADITIONAL METHOD ATTENTION FOCUSED ON PRACTICING THE DRILL-GUIDED SWING IN A PRACTICE CONTEXT COGNITIVELY CHALLENGED TO THINK ABOUT & LEARN HOW TO PERFORM THE SWING WHILE PRACTICING THE DRILL TRANSFER METHOD ATTENTION FOCUSED ON PRACTICING THE ON PRACTICING THE DRILL-GUIDED SWING IN DRILL-GUIDED SWING IN A PLAYING CONTEXT A PLAYING CONTEXTCOGNITIVELY CHALLENGED TO THINK CHALLENGED TO THINK ABOUT & DO PLAYING ABOUT & DO PLAYING THINGS WHILE THINGS WHILE PRACTICING THE DRILL PRACTICING THE DRILL TO LEARN THE SWING TO LEARN THE SWING

COMPARISON OF TRADITIONAL AND TRANSFER METHODS OF PRACTICE (CONT’D) TRADITIONAL METHOD PRODUCES A SWING THAT WAS SWING THAT WAS LEARNED IN LEARNED IN ISOLATION OF A ISOLATION OF A PLAYING CONTEXT PLAYING CONTEXT TRADITIONAL METHOD PRODUCES A SWING THAT WAS SWING THAT WAS LEARNED IN A LEARNED IN A PLAYING CONTEXT PLAYING CONTEXT

STUDY METHOD Participants = 30 (male = 25; female = 5); handicaps ranged from 1 to 15 (M = 6.6); age range = 18 – 22 years Transfer and Traditional Practice Groups = Participants randomly assigned to the groups with the restriction that n = 15 per group & there be a balance of handicap, gender & age. Golf Skill = Driver Swing (launch monitor & IClub measures) & Drive Accuracy (number of drives in fairway (33 yards wide, rough 15 yards on each side & beyond rough)

FEET-TOGETHER DRILL HEELS WERE ABOUT 6 INCHES APART WIDER STANCE TAKEN FOR A DRIVER SWING BALL WAS TEED UP

PRACTICE GROUP CONDITIONS TRADITIONAL GROUP FEET-TOGETHER DRILL PRACTICE CYCLE OF 3 NO PRE-POST-SHOT ROUTINES NOT INSTRUCTED TO PLAY TO ANY TARGET ON THE RANGE NO SHOT ACCOUNTABILITY, BUT NOTED THE COMPLETION OF THE CYCLE OF 3 NOTED THE COMPLETION OF THE CYCLE OF 3 TRANSFER GROUP FEET-TOGETHER DRILL PRACTICE CYCLE OF 3 PRE-POST-SHOT ROUTINES PLAYED TO A TARGET IN EACH OF 3 DIFFERENT FAIRWAYS SHOT ACCOUNTABILITY; NOTED THE ACCURACY OF EACH DRIVE

“PRACTICE CYCLE OF 3” USED FOR BOTH GROUPS 1. DRILL – NO BALL = ONE FULL PRACTICE SWING WITH FEET TOGETHER 2. DRILL – BALL = ONE FULL PRACTICE SWING DRIVING A BALL WITH FEET TOGETHER 3. NO DRILL – BALL = ONE FULL SWING DRIVING A BALL USING REGULAR STANCE

PRACTICE PROCEDURES FOR BOTH GROUPS 15 PRACTICE CYCLES OF THREE PER DAY = 45 TOTAL SWINGS PER DAY 3 CONSECUTIVE DAYS OF PRACTICE TOTALING 135 DRIVER SWINGS NO PLAY OR ADDITIONAL PRACTICE DURING THE 3 DAYS

TESTING PROCEDURES _________________DAYS 1, 2, 3_________________ PRE-TEST - PRACTICE – POST-TEST PRE-TEST - PRACTICE – POST-TEST ON RANGE ON RANGE ____________________DAY 3___________________ TRANSFER TEST TRANSFER TEST ON 1 ST TEE OF COURSE ON 1 ST TEE OF COURSE 10 MINUTES AFTER POST-TEST 10 MINUTES AFTER POST-TEST 3 PRACTICE SWINGS IN LAUNCH MONITOR & ICLUB TEST CONDITIONS; 3 DRIVES MEASURED; EACH DRIVE PLAYED TO A TARGET AS IN A MEDAL ROUND TEST CONDITIONS; 3 DRIVES MEASURED; EACH DRIVE PLAYED TO A TARGET AS IN A MEDAL ROUND

RESULTS: EQUALITY OF GROUPS AT THE OUTSET OF THE STUDY SWING PERFORMANCE AND DRIVING ACCURACY WERE STATISTICALLY THE SAME FOR BOTH GROUPS

RESULTS: OVER 3 DAYS OF DRILL PRACTICE SWING SPEED, BALL SPEED, ANGLE OF APPROACH, & CLUB-FACE ANGLE SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGED ABOUT THE SAME FOR BOTH GROUPS BOTH GROUPS SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED ABOUT THE SAME IN DRIVING ACCURACY

RESULTS: TRANSFER FROM THE POST-TEST ON DAY 3 TO THE FIRST TEE NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES OR GROUP DIFFERENCES IN SWING PERFORMANCE TRANSFER GROUP MAINTAINED THEIR DRIVING ACCURACY, BUT THE TRADITIONAL GROUP GOT APPRECIABLY WORSE

CONCLUSION GREATER POSITIVE TRANSFER OF LEARNING FROM THE RANGE TO A GOLF COURSE ENVIRONMENT OCCURS WHEN A DRILL TO MAKE SWING CHANGES IS PRACTICED IN MORE OF A PLAYING CONTEXT THAN A NON-PLAYING CONTEXT

RETURNING TO THE QUESTION OF THIS STUDY WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO PRACTICE WITH A DRILL TO PRACTICE WITH A DRILL TO TAKE THAT LEARNING TO TAKE THAT LEARNING TO THE COURSE? THE COURSE?

TRANSFER PRACTICE PRACTICE WITH THE DRILL IN THE WAY AND UNDER THE CONDITIONS YOU PLAY

WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT MORE RESEARCH IS NEEDED TO REPLICATE OUR FINDINGS & EXTEND THEM BEYOND IMMEDIATE TRANSFER TO DETERMINE THE EXTENT TO WHICH THEY CAN BE GENERALIZED TO HIGHER HANDICAP GOLFERS & BEGINNERS TO DETERMINE THE EXTENT TO WHICH PRACTICING IN MORE OF A PLAYING CONTEXT IS APPROPRIATE & EFFECTIVE FOR USE WITH OTHER DRILLS OR TRAINING AIDS

THANK YOU