Coach and player perceptions of quality practice and the relationship to intercollegiate golf performance

This study examined coach and player perceptions of quality practice and explored the relationship between perceptions of quality practice and intercollegiate golf performance. The secondary purpose of this study was to develop a valid and reliable measurement instrument to examine coach and player perceptions of quality practice. An expert panel of coaches and players was used to establish the validity of the 40-item, Quality Practice Questionnaire. The reliability analysis produced a very-high total score reliability of 0.93.; A letter of invitation was sent to each NCAA I women's golf program. Sixty-seven teams, comprised of 66 head coaches and 518 players, participated in this study. According to the 1998 NCAA I Fall ratings, 27 of the top-50 rated golf teams (54%) participated in this study. Therefore, 27 of the 67 (40%) teams that participated were rated in the top-50; whereas, 40 of the 67 (60%) teams that participated were not rated in the top-50. Consequently, these 67 teams and 584 respondents were representative of all NCAA I women's golf programs.; A comparison of the Quality Practice Profiles of coaches and players demonstrated that: (a) Coaches consistently rated the dimensions of quality practice higher than players rated the dimensions of quality practice; and (b) Coaches perceived quality practice to have a greater influence on tournament performance than players perceived quality practice to have on tournament performance. A comparison of the Quality Practice Profiles of less-experienced, experienced, and more-experienced coaches and players revealed no significant interaction between status and experience. In addition, a significant main effect emerged for status; however, no significant main effect emerged for experience.; Average score (for 18-holes) was used to distinguish between the skill-levels of the players. A comparison of the Quality Practice Profiles of highly-skilled, average-skilled, and less-skilled players revealed a significant main effect for skill-level. Specifically, differences in perceptions of quality practice were found for: (a) goal-directed practice, (b) random and variable practice, (c) the influence of quality practice on tournament performance, and (d) the overall quality practice score. The overall trend was for scores to increase as skill-level increased. These results suggested a positive relationship between perceptions of quality practice and skill-level.