Research for the use of virtual reality (VR) in training has in the recent years been a hot topic, with new VR equipment being developed each year. In this experimental study, the aim was to examine whether VR training would alter cortical activity and transfer learning from VR to real life perfor-mance.
METHODS: Novice golf players were divided into a VR training group (TG) (n=9) and a control group (CG) (n=9). Both groups performed a test and retest with 10-14 days between tests. The tests consisted of 50 golf putts on artificial grass while wearing an electroencephalography (EEG) system. Between tests, TG performed three training sessions of 180 putts in a VR golf application with a minimum of 1 day rest between each training session. The main outcome of the tests was radial error (cm) and EEG frequency power, along with balls holed during training.
RESULTS: No difference was found after the intervention in the cortical activity at any frequency band between TG and CG. However, a significant increase in performance radial error was seen between TG and CG after the intervention (p = 0.001), along with a significant increase in putts holed in VR between every training session (p < 0.05)
CONCLUSION: The present study concludes that VR can be used to increase real life perfor-mance for novice golfers, but not alter the cortical activation. A more comprehensive study will have to be conducted to investigate whether cortical changes will occur when VR performance hits a plateau.