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Dr Ben Langdown

Dr Ben Langdown

Profile summary

  • Central Academic Staff
  • Senior Lecturer in Sports Coaching
  • Faculty of Wellbeing, Education & Language Studies
  • School of Education, Childhood, Youth & Sport
  • Sport & Fitness
  • ben.langdown

Web links

Professional biography

Ben is a senior lecturer in Sports Coaching on the Sport and Fitness qualifications at the Open University. Previously he was head of Sports Science at The PGA National Training Academy at The Belfry from 2005-2016. Ben has a PhD in the field of golf biomechanics and motor control, studying movement variability and strength and conditioning for golf. He has published various journal papers in the area of golf and sports science. Specifically, Ben's research focuses on athlete monitoring, warm-up protocols, and training interventions in the sport of golf. Ben is also a Strength and Conditioning Coach for England Golf and for >15 years has provided biomechanics and training support to golfers from amateurs through to European (Men’s and Ladies’) Tours and a European Senior Tour Season Champion. Ben has presented at four World Golf Fitness Summits and the 2018 World Scientific Congress of Golf, where he also acted as an invited review panel member supporting education for >150 academics/coaches. He has delivered various invited keynote workshops with international organisations, including England Golf, The PGAs of GB&I, Spain, Czech Republic and Slovakia with all adopting his applied approaches. Most recently, Ben has developed the AMI Sports: Golf athlete monitoring app allowing further insight into golfers’ practice, tournaments, training and daily wellbeing.

 

Follow Ben on Twitter (@BenLangdown)

Follow AMI Sports on Instagram

Follow the Sport and Fitness qualification team on Twitter (@OU_Sport) 

Click here to read the Sport and Fitness team blog
 

Research interests

Ben's research interests lie within all aspects of golf performance, athlete monitoring, sports biomechanics, motor control, junior development and strength and conditioning. Some of his academic publications can be viewed by clicking on the 'publications' tab above.

Ben has presented his research at four World Golf Fitness Summits in The USA, at the World Scientific Congress for Golf and been a keynote workshop presenter for many organisations across Europe including The PGAs of Czech Republic, Spain, Ireland, and The PGA of GB&I at coaching CPD workshops.

 

Click here to view Ben's ResearchGate profile

Articles written by Ben on the Sport and Fitness team blog can be found here

Ben is Chair of the Sport Research group and their blog can be found here

 

Teaching interests

Ben is module team chair for E236 - Applying Sports and Exercise Sciences to Coaching. He is lead for the Digital Champion Group for the school of Early Childhood, Youth and Sport. This group aim to promote, support, facilitate and engage colleagues in new innovations and digital pedagogies that can support student experience, research and scholarship. Ben is also involved in innovative enterprise projects taking sports science research into the commercial sector.

Impact and engagement

Ben's research has impact upon the education material of sports coaches, most noteably on The PGA's FdSc in Professional Golf. Here his research into warm-up protocols, training behaviours and practices and perceptions of sports science in golf etc. has influenced the design of their residential and online teaching material.

 

Ben has completed the Medici Enterprise Training programme (2019) and is involved in enterprise projects developing sports technology using evidence from his research and publications.

External collaborations

Consultancy:

Alongside his OU role Ben works with many elite amateur and professional golfers (since 2006) providing strength and conditioning support. Ben is the strength and conditioning coach for England Golf's West Midlands U18 squads: 2012-present.

Journal Reviews:

Ben is an Associate Editor for the International Journal of Golf Science and has reviewed papers for other journals including Sports Biomechanics, Journal of Sports Sciences and Journal of Sport and Exercise Science.

 

Ben is currently undertaking a research project for Therabody Inc. into the use of percussive therapy in golf. 

Publications

Associations between total physical activity levels and academic performance in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis (2024-07)
Trott, Mike; Kentzer, Nichola; Horne, Jo; Langdown, Ben and Smith, Lee
Journal of Education and Health Promotion, 13, Article 273(1)

Acute effects of different warm-up protocols on junior golfers’ drive performance (2024)
Goswami, C.L.; Shepherd, A.J.; Langdown, B.L.; Knight, J.M. and Maguire, A.J.
International Journal of Strength and Conditioning ((In press))

The impact of protocol designs for using massage guns on lower body flexibility: A randomised cross-over design study (2024)
Sams, Lorna; Langdown, Ben; Simons, Joan and Vseteckova, Jitka
Journal of Bodywork & Movement Therapies ((In press))

Integrating strength and conditioning training and golf practice during the golf season: approaches and perceptions of highly skilled golfers (2023)
Bliss, Alex and Langdown, Ben L.
International Journal of Sports Science and Coaching, 18(5) (pp. 1605-1614)

The Effect Of Percussive Therapy On Musculoskeletal Performance And Experiences Of Pain: A Systematic Literature Review (2023)
Sams, Lorna; Langdown, Ben L.; Simons, Joan and Vseteckova, Jitka
International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy, 18(2) (pp. 309-327)

Integration of golf practise and strength and conditioning in golf: Insights from professional golf coaches (2023)
Bliss, Alex and Langdown, Ben
International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 19(4) (pp. 1469-1478)

The Influence of an 8-Week Strength and Corrective Exercise Intervention on the Overhead Deep Squat and Golf Swing Kinematics (2022)
Langdown, Ben; Bridge, Matt W. and Li, Francois-Xavier
Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research

An investigation into the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic upon golfers’ strength and conditioning and golf practice (2022)
Langdown, Ben and Ehlert, Alex
International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 18(5) (pp. 1615-1628)

Sports science for golf: A survey of high-skilled golfers’ “perceptions” and “practices” (2020)
Wells, J.E.T. and Langdown, B.
Journal of Sports Sciences, 38(8) (pp. 918-927)

Acute effects of different warm-up protocols on highly skilled golfers’ drive performance (2019)
Langdown, Ben L.; Wells, Jack E.T.; Graham, Sean and Bridge, Matt W.
Journal of Sports Sciences, 37(6) (pp. 656-664)

Impact Position Variability in Golfers of Differing Skill Level (2013-12)
Langdown, Ben; Li, Francois-Xavier and Bridge, Matt
International Journal of Golf Science, 2(2) (pp. 142-151)

Address position variability in golfers of differing skill level (2013-08)
Langdown, Ben L.; Li, Francois-Xavier and Bridge, Matt
International Journal of Golf Science, 2(1) (pp. 1-9)

Movement variability in the golf swing (2012-06)
Langdown, Ben L.; Li, Francois-Xavier and Bridge, Matt
Sports Biomechanics, 11(2) (pp. 273-287)

The Junior Golfer (2023)
Langdown, Ben
In: Bliss, Alex ed. Strength and Conditioning for Golf: A Guide for Coaches and Players (pp. 101-122)
ISBN : 9780367567859 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : London

Warming-up for Golf (2023)
Wells, Jack and Langdown, Ben
In: Bliss, A. ed. Strength and Conditioning for Golf: A Guide for Coaches and Players (pp. 55-74)
ISBN : 9780367567859 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : London

Meeting a Golfer's Needs: Needs Analysis, Profiling, and Coaching Considerations in Strength and Conditioning (2023)
Langdown, Ben and Wells, Jack
In: Bliss, A. ed. Strength and Conditioning for Golf: A Guide for Coaches and Players (pp. 11-33)
ISBN : 9780367567859 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : London

Developing a movement culture in the first ten years (2021)
Langdown, Ben
In: Bailey, Richard; Agans, Jennifer P.; Côté, Jean; Daly-Smith, Andy and Tomporowski, Phillip D. eds. Physical Activity and Sport During the First Ten Years of Life: Multidisciplinary Perspectives
ISBN : 9780429352645 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : London

Promoting Physical Development and Activity in Early Childhood: Practical Ideas for Early Years Settings (2024)
Musgrave, Jackie; Dorrian, Jane; Josephidou, Jo; Langdown, Ben and Rodriguez Leon, Lucy eds.
Little Minds Matter
ISBN : 978-1-032-47954-5 | Publisher : Routledge | Published : Abingdon, Oxon

Practice And Tournament Volumes Of Young Golfers In Regional And National Squads (2018-09)
Langdown, Ben; Burnett, Stephen; Jones, Nicholas and Coughlan, Daniel
In : World Scientific Congress of Golf (11-13 Jul 2018, Abbottsford, BC, Canada)

Warm-Up Habits of Highly-Skilled Golfers Prior to Practice and Tournament Conditions (2018-09)
Wells, Jack and Langdown, Ben
In : World Scientific Congress of Golf 2018 (11-13 Jul 2018, Abbottsford, BC, Canada)

Injuries patterns among professional golfers: an international survey (2011-02-01)
Barclay, Caroline; West, Sophie; Shoaib, Qasim; Morrissey, Dylan and Langdown, Ben
In : 2nd Congress of European College of Sport and Exercise Physicians (ECOSEP) 12th Scientific Conference (9-11 Sep 2010, London)

The effect of percussive therapy on musculoskeletal performance and perceptions of pain: A systematic narrative literature review. (2021-10-26)
Mackay, Lorna; Langdown, Ben; Simons, Joan and Vseteckova, Jitka
NIHR