Open AccessThe Dutch Yips Study: Results of a Survey Among Golfers
Author(s) -
Erik van Wensen,
Hester J. van der Zaag-Loonen,
Bart P. van de Warrenburg
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
tremor and other hyperkinetic movements
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2160-8288
DOI - 10.5334/tohm.636
Subject(s) - medicine , physical therapy , medline , physical medicine and rehabilitation , law , political science
Background: The yips in golf is currently regarded as a task-specific movement disorder, with variable phenomenology and of unclear etiology. There is some overlap with task-specific dystonia (TSD), which has also been reported in other sports. The objective was to further characterize the yips in terms of its prevalence and related factors. Methods: Recreational golfers from one of the larger golf clubs in the Netherlands aged 18 years or older, filled in an anonymous, web-based questionnaire with items on demographic, medical and lifestyle factors, specific yips-relevant items, as well as fanaticism, familial presence of yips, obsessive-compulsive traits, and a dystonia questionnaire. Results: In total, 234 golfers (26%) completed the questionnaire, among whom 52 (22%, 95% CI: 17–28%) reported to suffer from the yips. In comparison to their non-yips counterparts, the yips group was characterized by a larger proportion of men, more current or past smoking, better golf skills, longer history of playing golf, and more familial yips occurrence. Discussion: Golfer’s self-reported yips may be very frequent in a group of responding amateur golfers and associated factors seems to include male gender, current or past smoking, extensive golf experience and skills, and a positive family history of the yips. Further work to better understand the origin and nature of the yips is needed.