The aim of this article is to discuss the role strength and conditioning plays within golf, critically analyse the current research available as well as ascertain how strength and conditioning can be best utilised to improve adolescent golf performance.
Golf is a globally popular sport with approximately 67 million people playing it regularly (Golf Course Industry, 2021). There are technical, tactical and physical components that players are required to master in order to excel (Coughlan et al., 2020). Technical and tactical skill development have been the main focus of training for golf since its foundation in the 14th century (Keogh et al., 2009), however physical preparation is now an important aspect. Initially popularised by the arrival of Tiger Woods to the PGA tour in 1996, golfers are now anatomically very different to how they were 30 years ago (Hellstrom, 2009; Davies & DiSaia, 2018; Son, Park, Han et al., 2018). Strength and conditioning is a more prominent feature of the game and lately there has been a resurgence in the focus of resistance training for increasing strength, power and club head speed (CHS) (Oduka et al., 2002). The visible success of players like Bryson Dechambeau driving the ball 400 yards on tour adds to the suggestion that this is a supremely important part of the game. In fact, increasing these characteristics has been shown to lower a player’s handicap and therefore benefit overall performance (Fradkin et al., 2004). Analysis of driving distance has shown that an increase of 20 yards can reduce scores by up to 0.75 shots per round in elite golfers, and the relevance of this is even greater as the players ability decreases (Brodie, 2014). Therefore, for aspiring young golfers an emphasis on increasing driving distance should be a major priority. However, it is important to note that this should not come at the determent of focussing on competency and accuracy of movement.
When analysing the phases of the golf swing, various authors claim either four distinct phases (Loock, Grace & Semple, 2013). Most however, chose to adopt a five phase model as shown in Figure 1 (McHardy & Pollard, 2005). The term ‘modern’ golf swing refers to the change in style in recent years, where players aim to increase upper torso rotation whilst simultaneously limiting rotation at the hips in order to maximise rotational torque during the downswing (Chu, Sell & Lephart, 2010) this is now commonly referred to as the ‘X-factor’ (Myers et al., 2008).
The swing is broken down accordingly, back swing: ball address to top of back swing; Forward swing: top of swing to club horizontal (early part of down swing); Acceleration: horizontal club to impact (late part of down swing); Early follow through: impact to horizontal club and Late follow through: horizontal to completion of swing (McHardy & Pollard 2005). It is claimed that just two muscle groups are needed for an effective golf swing and without sufficient strength within these areas it is unlikely the golfer will have effective control over their swing (Bensted, 2012). Although this is a clear over simplification, the most crucial points of the golf swing are the transition between backswing and downswing as well as the club’s impact with the golf ball (Burden, Grimshaw & Wallace, 1998). These are the points at which regulation of the pelvic, upper torso and shoulder rotation (Gorman, 2001), as well as control of movement variation at the point of impact with the golf ball, in order to maximise consistency, are most important. It is therefore paramount that skilled golfers have good strength in these areas in order to control the downswing effectively.
When comparing skilled with unskilled golfers, skilled golfers had less variability of body movements during these points (Choi et al., 2014). There is evidence to suggest that one of the crucial skills in more proficient golfers is their ability to limit movement variability between torso and pelvic rotation during the downswing (Beak et al., 2013). Furthermore, Myers et al. (2008) showed that ball velocity can be increased by improving separation between the pelvis and upper torso at the transition point between the backswing and the forward swing. The X-factor was hypothesised to be the difference between skilled and unskilled golfers (Cheetham, Martin, Meetham & St Laurent, 2000; Gould, Oliver, Lloyd et al., 2018). However, when analysed more carefully it was not simply the players ability to maximise the X-factor that made the difference. It was the specific point within the golf swing where the X-factor was present and the players ability to control the X-factor throughout the entire swing that was the significant difference. Additionally, it is suggested that because the start of the swing is initiated by the movement of the pelvis, the strength and control of the musculature surrounding the trunk and hips is most important to any golfer (Belcher, Jobe & Pink, 1995). This is potentially so important that Loock et al. (2013) made it the key theme of a review article, assessing the core muscle activation and its significance. The literature is clear about the essential role the core musculature plays during sport (McGill, 2010). With regard to golf, training of this area has been linked to improvements in flexibility, overall strength and shot performance (Kim, 2009). The core system plays a decisive role in the transfer of forces from the lower body through the rotation of the torso and eventually to the clubs point of impact with the ball (Loock et al., 2013). All of this must be done under specific time constraints and requiring sufficient control. Therefore, core strength and control can improve a golfer’s ability to maximise the aforementioned X-factor and therefore has the potential to improve overall golf performance.
The golf swing, takes approximately 0.86s, with the downswing making up 0.3s of that (Read & Lloyd, 2014) and CHS is around 100mph (Marta, Sivla & Castro, 2012), so a player’s ability to control this velocity in such a short space of time is vital, if they wish to be successful. The majority of the force is generated by the legs but a major part is caused by the rotational forces around the trunk and shoulders (Myers et al., 2008), the aforementioned X-factor (Chetham et al., 2000). It would appear that age is significant when assessing force development during the golf swing (Lewis et al., 2016). It was shown by Lewis et al. (2016) that players below 30 years use their lower body more effectively to generate force, whereas older golfers used more upper body strength. The authors therefore suggested that lower body strength exercises and upper body power exercises would be best placed to improve CHS, certainly within professional golfers. However, when considering adolescent golfers, especially those with low training ages it would potentially be most beneficial to focus on basic lower body strength development as well as movement competency (Faigenbaum, Lloyd & Oliver, 2019). It is worth mentioning though, that younger golfers (<30years) seem to improve less than older golfers (>50years), this may be because younger golfers tend to be better players and therefore have less improvement to make overall (Uthoff et al., 2021). Although it appears Uthoff et al. (2021) didn’t consider adolescent golfers (<18years) within this data, young golfers have relatively less experience and have spent less time training to improve, therefore, they should have a lot of room for improvement.
Golf has been well researched and specific characteristics are well documented within the literature. However, youth golf is less well supported and there are limits to the current research, as well as areas that require further development. Shaw et al. (2021) highlight areas which are indicators of high levels of performance in adolescent golf, the number of studies is limited but consists of; strength (Gordon et al., 2009; Hellstrom, 2008; Keogh, Manewick & Maulder, 2009; Wells, Elmi & Thomas, 2009), power (Helstrom, 2008; Read, Lloyd, De Ste Croix & Oliver, 2013; Wells, Elmi & Thomas, 2009) flexibility (Sell et al., 2007; Wells et al., 2009), balance (Loock & Grace, 2013; Sell et al., 2007; Wells et al., 2009) and movement competency (Gould, Oliver, Lloyd et al., 2019). Balance and movement competency are the least well documented, however there is evidence to suggest that there is correlation between movement competency and performance outcomes such as CHS and ball carry (Speariett & Armstrong, 2020) as well as its relationship to the Golf Specific Functional Movement Screen (GSFMS) (Gould et al., 2019). It would therefore be prudent, given the limitation of studies focussed on this area to expand the research base.
Uthoff et al. (2021) conducted a review of specific and non-specific resistance training interventions on CHS, which is one of the most important measures of overall golf performance (Lewis et al., 2016). Non-specific, refers to common resistance exercises you would perform in a gym setting whereas specific training refers to movements that closely resemble the golf swing. The review found a lack of specific resistance training methods present within the research, however the interventions that did exist provided significant improvement in CHS (Choi, Kim & Oh, 2017; Seiler, Skaanes, Kirkesola, 2006). Combining non-specific and specific training methods also had a moderate positive effect on both CHS and hitting distance (Alvarez, Sedano Cuadarado & Redondo, 2012; Fletcher & Hartwell, 2004; Hegedus, Hardesty, Sunderland, Hegedus & Smolgia, 2016; Kim, 2010; Lephart, Smoliga, Myers, Sell & Tsai, 2007; Parker, Leagerhem, Hellstrom & Olsson, 2017; Tan, 1999). Therefore, considering the positive effect of specific training methods, and the limit in terms of quantity of these studies, increasing the number of studies assessing the effects of golf specific training interventions would be beneficial to the strength and conditioning and golf industries.
The late Ramsay McMaster was a golf performance specialist who with the support of the Australian Institute for Sport championed the use of golf specific posture training. Posture training involves the coordination of upper and lower body golf specific mechanics, whilst isometrically contracting stabilising muscles around the shoulder, scapula, upper thoracic and cervical spine using rubber bands and performing fast paced lower body movements like stomping or rotations. This is a highly specific training intervention and one that focuses attention on the core musculature whilst maintaining good golf posture. The aim is to improve separation between upper and lower body movements and specific practice will aid the reduction of movement variability (McMaster, 2006). Therefore, if this training method is able to elicit these improvements then it has huge potential for improve golfing performance.
The primary role of any s&c intervention is to improve performance as well as maintain the capability of an athlete throughout their career. Brealy & Bishop (2019) stated that the best positive impact an athlete can get from taking part in a s&c program is reducing the chance of injury. Although the proposed research will not focus on reducing the likelihood of injury specifically, it is important to highlight that because of the repetitive nature of the sport, coaches must support golfers to have a swing they can repeat up to 2000 times a week (Cochran & Stobbs, 1999) without causing injury. Certainly, the most common injuries in amateur golfers are overuse injuries as a result of poor biomechanics (McHardy, Pollard & Lou, 2006). However, flexibility and range of motion (ROM) around a joint have been shown to reduce the likelihood of injury as well as improve performance measures within sports movements and furthermore improve the probability that the golfer will do well (McNeal & Sands, 2006). Therefore, it is logical to assume that given the positive effect that specific training has had on performance (Uthoff et al., 2021), the use of ROM and flexibility training to improve longevity should be prioritised by golfers in order to play better whilst remaining fit enough to compete.
Throughout the research it is evident that strength (Cummings et al., 2018; Hegedus et al., 2016; Thompson & Osness, 2004; Alvarez et al., 2012), plyometric (Bliss et al., 2015) and combined training (Fletcher & Hartwell, 2004) has a positive impact on various golf performance measures. However, most of the studies available focus on the effects of generalised conditioning programs. Further studies are needed to investigate golf-specific strength and conditioning programs and how they affect golf performance (Smith Callister & Lubans, 2011).
Ehlert (2020) systematically reviewed s&c within golf, where the interventions lasted between 5 and 18 weeks, a mean of 9.2 ± 2.9 weeks. According to the review conducted by Uthoff et al. (2021), interventions lasted between 6 and 12 weeks in length. An eight-week intervention produced the highest percentage increase in CHS and ball carry irrespective of the type of training prescribed. Therefore, it could be argued that an intervention length of eight weeks is the optimum time period in order to give the best chance of yielding positive results.
In summary, golf is a hugely popular and competitive sport. The differences between the top golfers are tiny and can make all the difference between being successful or not. For young, talented, aspiring golfers, knowing which training methods to focus on in order to give themselves the best chance of turning professional is important. There is a distinct lack of evidence to promote the use of golf specific resistance training, however the evidence that does exist is positive and significant (Choi et al., 2017). According to multiple studies, improving flexibility and segmental control leads to improvements in performance characteristics such as CHS and ball carry (Myers et al., 2008) which in turn translate to lower handicaps (Fradkin et al., 2004) and improved performance (Brodie, 2014). Multiple review articles have expressed a need for more specific training studies in this area (Uthoff et al., 2021; Shaw et al., 2021; Ehlert, 2020; Smith et al., 2011). Therefore, this study aims to identify whether Ramsay McMaster’s posture training has a significant impact on a golfers’ golf specific movement and consequently does that improve certain performance characteristics in talented adolescent golfers. Junior golfers often have a higher variability within their golf swing which leads to a lack of consistency (Beak et al., 2013), hence stability, flexibility and general strength improvements are imperative during adolescence if the young golfer wishes to improve.
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