Wim Van Lier */**, John Van Der Kamp */*** and Geert J.p. Savelsbergh */**/****
(*) Research Institute Move, Faculty of Human Movement Sciences, VU University Amsterdam, The Netherlands
(**) Academy for Physical Education, University of Professional Education, Amsterdam
(***) Institute of Human Performance, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
(****) Research Institute for Biomedical Research into Human Movement and Health, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK
Citation
Van Lier, W., Van Der Kamp, J., J.p. Savelsbergh, G. (2010). Gaze in Golf putting: Effects of slope. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 41(2), 160-176.
Abstract
We introduced a sideward slope to the putting surface (i.e., 0 %, 1% and 2% slopes) to examine the effects of task complexity on visual search behaviour during golf putting. Seventeen high-skilled golf players were divided into two groups on the basis of their overall putting performance. Slope did not affect the number of holed putts, but it did significantly influence the type of miss. A significantly higher proportion of balls were missed at the low side than at the high side of the hole, the effect being more pronounced for the group of less successful participants. With respect to gaze, it was found that increasing the steepness of the slope resulted in more fixations to the high side of the hole. Furthermore, the participants also spent less time viewing the ball for the steeper slopes. The final fixation durations were not affected by steepness of slope. It is argued that in dealing with a sloped green, the prime adjustment in gaze is in the spatial domain rather than in the temporal domain.
Keywords: Action, Gaze, Golf putting, Task complexity, Slope, Visual search