ABSTRACT
This is a position paper in which we argue that traditional training (instruction and practice) often fails to optimize playing performance on the course mainly because it does not encourage students to learn to perform golf skills within a playing context as does transfer training. With traditional training, students are taught and practice golf skills in ways and under conditions that are somewhat different than what they experience during play. Thus, many of the ways in which and conditions under which golf skills have to be performed on the course are not practiced and learned. Consequently, essential physical and cognitive skills, pertinent cognitive processing and knowledge applications that are needed to optimize performance during play are not learned during traditional training. We argue that the resulting effect is less than optimum transfer of performance from the practice range to play on the course because students cannot transfer what they have not learned. However, the concern is not with the value of traditional training, but that it is used exclusively or too much and often when transfer training is more appropriate.
