A new study has suggested that golfers who reflect on their strokes are likely to play badly – the performance of even the most skilled amateur can be undermined by talking about or mulling over their last putting stroke.

Professionals, however, are less likely to be affected as they are so skilled though some careers have been ruined by the putting yips – the inability to execute a smooth stroke, according to researchers.

In fact, they believe that the loss of performance is due to an effect called verbal overshadowing, which makes the brain focus more on language centres than on brain systems supporting the skills, 'The Daily Telegraph' reported.

"Our study suggests, in a nutshell, whatever you do don't think too hard about your technique. We have found that simply talking about one's recent motor action may sow the seeds of poor execution.

"This observation may have repercussions for athletes who depend on effective mental techniques to prepare for events. Moreover, those who teach golf or any motor skill might be undoing their own talent in the process," said lead researcher Prof Michael Anderson of St Andrews University.

In their study, the researchers asked 80 skilled and novice golfers to practice a putting stroke until they got it right three times in a row, and then spend around five minutes describing what they did.

When they tried the shot again, their ability was impaired and they took twice as many attempts to sink a putt. The golfers who spent five minutes doing something unrelated to golf did much better.

Prof Anderson said: "This effect was especially dramatic in skilled golfers who were reduced to the level of performance of novices after just five minutes of describing what they did.

"Novices, by contrast, were largely unaffected, and perhaps even helped a little, by verbally describing their movements. It's a fairly common wisdom in sport that 'thinking too much' hurts performance.