Author(s)

Chen Liyuan ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China

Corresponding Author

Chen Liyuan

ABSTRACT

Over-the-Top (OTT) in the driver swing is conventionally treated as a club-head path error, yet a specific subgroup—relatively stable with irons or at reduced speed but with recurrent OTT at full driver speed—resists path correction. This article presents a falsifiable theoretical hypothesis and research agenda. It proposes that, within this subtype, OTT may not originate as a proximal path error but may instead represent the downstream geometric projection of a sequencing reorganization occurring when, under high task demand, the lead-leg braking threshold and/or the scapular stability threshold is approached or crossed. Defining the bandwidth for stable, non-compensatory sequencing as the lower of the two thresholds (B = min), we distinguish four threshold combinations, derive parametric predictions, and set a subtype-first, then-screen, then-verify-transfer pathway. Framed within a constraints-led perspective—the threshold an organismic constraint, full-speed or distance-pursuit driving a task constraint—OTT emerges from their interaction, offering a testable account of its speed and club specificity. We juxtapose competing explanations (address error, top-of-backswing structure, release timing, an internal shift of attentional focus, and a common upstream driver) and design three pre-registration-oriented studies testing the timing of compensation versus path deviation, the transfer of targeted training, and the predictive validity of subtyping. We do not claim to have proven a single cause; we offer a hypothesis testable by subsequent biomechanical and training-intervention research.

KEYWORDS

Golf; Over-the-Top; Kinematic sequence; Scapular stability; Compensation threshold; Lead-leg braking; Constraints-led approach

CITE THIS PAPER

Chen Liyuan. A Threshold–Compensation Hypothesis for Driver Over-the-Top: Subtyping, Screening, and a Research Agenda. Journal of Human Movement Science (2026) Vol. 7, No. 1, 36-45. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/jhms.2026.070106.

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