Research article
The effect of phosphatidylserine on golf performance
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* Corresponding author: Ralf Jäger ralf.jaeger@increnovo.com
1 Increnovo LLC, 2138 E Lafayette Pl, Milwaukee, WI 53202, USA
2 ISME, Weingartenstrasse 2, D-64546 Mörfelden-Walldorf, Germany
3 Department of Sport and Health, University of Paderborn, Warburger Str. 100, 33098 Paderborn, Germany
4 Department of Sport and Health, Institute of Sports Medicine and Golf Academy, University of Paderborn, Warburger Str. 100, 33098 Paderborn, Germany
Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition 2007, 4:23 doi:10.1186/1550-2783-4-23
Published: 4 December 2007Abstract
Background
A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study was performed to evaluate the effect of oral phosphatidylserine (PS) supplementation on golf performance in healthy young golfers with handicaps of 15–40.
Methods
Perceived stress, heart rate and the quality of the ball flight was evaluated before (pre-test) and after (post-test) 42 days of 200 mg per day PS (n = 10) or placebo (n = 10) intake in the form of a nutritional bar. Subjects teed-off 20 times aiming at a green 135 meters from the tee area.
Results
PS supplementation significantly increased (p < 0.05) the number of good ball flights (mean: pre-test 8.3 ± 3.5, post-test 10.1 ± 3.0), whereas placebo intake (mean: pre-test 7.8 ± 2.4, post-test 7.9 ± 3.6) had no effect. PS supplementation showed a trend towards improving perceived stress levels during teeing-off (mean: pre-test 5.8 ± 2.0, post-test 4.0 ± 2.0, p = 0.07), whereas stress levels remained unchanged in the placebo group (mean: pre-test: 5.1 ± 2.0, post-test: 5.1 ± 3.1). Supplementation did not influence mean heart rate in either group.
Conclusion
It is concluded that six weeks of PS supplementation shows a statistically not significant tendency (p = 0.07) to improve perceived stress levels in golfers and significantly improves (p < 0.05) the number of good ball flights during tee-off which might result in improved golf scores.