Creatine for Golf Performance

TLDR

Creatine is one of the most extensively studied supplements in performance nutrition. For golfers, it may offer benefits such as enhanced strength, power, and recovery with a 2015 study showing a 5% increase in distance off the tee. It’s low-cost, safe, and effective for most people. A daily dose of 5 g, typically taken with water or in a shake, is ideal, while emerging neuroscience research has identified possible cognitive and mental health benefits at doses up to 20 g/day.  

Introduction

Welcome back, and I hope you enjoy this second evidence-based blog from me, Chris Goswami (MSc), a published golf science researcher [1], for SMART Golf and Fitness, Lincoln Park, Chicago. As an evidence-based practitioner, I aim to scrutinize and apply the latest scientific research to optimize golf performance. If you haven’t already, check out my previous blog on hydration for golf performance.

Golf is a sport that challenges both the body and the mind. While technique and strategy remain central to success, nutrition plays a vital role in maintaining peak performance throughout the round. Recent publications, including reviews by Berlin et al. and O’Donnell et al. underscore the importance of tailored nutrition strategies in golf ^{[2, 3]}.

This article is the first in a short series on golf-focused nutrition and supplements, covering creatine, protein, carbohydrates, caffeine, and omega-3s etc. Today’s spotlight: creatine, a hot topic in both sports science and mainstream media, with recent features in Men’s Health and on science-focused podcasts hosted by Dr. Rhonda Patrick  and Dr. Mike Israetel.

What is Creatine?

Creatine monohydrate is one of the most researched and validated ergogenic aids in sports science ^{[2, 3, 4]}. It’s a naturally occurring compound, synthesized in the liver and brain, and obtained through foods like red meat or supplementation of creatine monohydrate. About half of your body’s creatine is produced internally, with the rest coming from your diet ^[4].

Now I don’t want to get too sciencey with you but inside the muscle, creatine binds with phosphate to form phosphocreatine, which rapidly regenerates ATP (adenosine triphosphate), the primary energy currency for explosive movements ^[4]. In simple terms: creatine helps you produce more short-term, high-intensity energy, ideal for a golf swing.

Creatine and Golf Performance

Although golf-specific research is still limited, creatine’s mechanism of action aligns well with both the physical and cognitive demands of the sport ^{[2, 3]}.

A notable study by Ziegenfuss et al. (2015) involved 27 male recreational golfers (handicaps 5–15) who supplemented daily with 5 g of creatine (plus 50 mg caffeine) over 30 days. The result? A 5% increase in peak driving distance, from 269.9 to 283.5 yards (p < 0.05), with a large effect size (d = 0.75) ^[5]. This means we can potentially add some serious distance off the tee! Further to this, a recent 2024 scoping review of nutrition in golf concluded that although many golf studies use multi-ingredient supplements, creatine is likely the primary performance-enhancing component, and isolated trials are needed ^[3].

Creatine and Brain Health

Emerging evidence suggests that creatine is not just for muscle, it may also support cognitive function and mental health, especially under stress, fatigue or aging.

A 2025 meta-analysis of 16 randomized trials by Xu et al. found small-to-moderate improvements in memory, attention, and processing speed, with larger effects in older adults ^[6]. A separate meta-analysis by Prokopidis et al. also noted significant memory benefits in healthy individuals especially in older populations ^[7]. I do note that these papers had corrections after publication, so we need to see higher quality data in this area. 

In mental health, an exploratory 8-week RCT by Sherpa et al. showed that creatine (5 g/day), when combined with cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), reduced depressive symptoms by 5 points on the PHQ-9 scale compared to CBT and placebo ^[8]. While still in an early-stage, these findings point to an exciting future for creatine in brain health.

Creatine: Risk vs Reward

Despite persistent myths, creatine is among the safest supplements available. Concerns around water retention ^[9], hair loss ^[10], or kidney damage ^[11] are largely unfounded in healthy individuals. Antonio et al. ^[9] published a detailed Q&A in the JISSN in 2021 that helps debunk these misconceptions. For most people, particularly golfers seeking performance gains with minimal risk, the cost–benefit ratio strongly favors supplementation. I would note that as with most supplements, there is a small percentage of people that are non-responders ^[12] and those with pre-existing kidney conditions or on certain medications should consult a healthcare provider before starting supplementation.

What’s Missing in the Research?

Despite promising trends, we need more golf-specific research. Areas worth exploring are:

• Creatine-only trials (not mixed with caffeine or other active ingredients)
• Female golfer inclusion (current trials are male-dominant)
• Cognition and fatigue effects over 18 holes, such as attention span, mood, and focus under pressure etc. 
• There appears to be numerous corrections to the statistical analysis in some of the review papers on this topic, which is interesting, and we need higher quality data to make more informed conclusions.  

Summary

Creatine is low-risk, cost-effective, and scientifically validated across a range of performance and health outcomes. While golf-specific data is still emerging, the underlying mechanisms strongly support its use for power output, recovery, and intriguingly, mental performance on the course. For most competitive amateurs and professionals alike, 5g a day of creatine is a worthy consideration.

References

1. Goswami, C., Shepherd, A., Langdown, B., Knight, J., & Maguire, A. (2025). Acute effects of different warm-up protocols on junior golfers’ drive performance. International Journal of Strength and Conditioning, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.47206/ijsc.v5i1.343 

2. Berlin, N., Cooke, M. B., & Belski, R. (2023). Nutritional Considerations for Elite Golf: A Narrative Review. Nutrients, 15(19), 4116. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15194116    
   
3. O’Donnell, A., Murray, A., Nguyen, A., Salmon, T., Taylor, S., Morton, J. P., & Close, G. L. (2024). Nutrition and golf performance: A systematic scoping review. Sports Medicine, 54(12), 3081–3095. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-024-02095-0

4. Kreider, R. B., Jäger, R., & Purpura, M. (2022). Bioavailability, efficacy, safety, and regulatory status of creatine and related compounds: A critical review. Nutrients, 14(5), 1035. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14051035 

5. Ziegenfuss, T. N., Habowski, S. M., Lemieux, R., Sandrock, J. E., Kedia, A. W., Kerksick, C. M., & Lopez, H. L. (2015). Effects of a dietary supplement on golf drive distance and functional indices of golf performance. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-014-0065-4
   
6. Xu, C., Bi, S., Zhang, W., & Luo, L. (2024). The effects of creatine supplementation on cognitive function in adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Frontiers in Nutrition, 11, 1424972. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2024.1424972
   
7. Prokopidis, K., Giannos, P., Triantafyllidis, K. K., Kechagias, K. S., Forbes, S. C., & Candow, D. G. (2023). Effects of creatine supplementation on memory in healthy individuals: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Nutrition Reviews, 81(4), 416–427. https://doi.org/10.1093/nutrit/nuac064
   
8. Sherpa, N. N., De Giorgi, R., Ostinelli, E. G., et al. (2025). Efficacy and safety profile of oral creatine monohydrate in add-on to cognitive-behavioural therapy in depression: An 8-week pilot RCT. European Neuropsychopharmacology, 90, 28–35. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euroneuro.2024.10.004

9. Antonio, J., Candow, D. G., Forbes, S. C., & Kreider, R. B. (2021). Common questions and misconceptions about creatine supplementation: What does the scientific evidence really show? Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 18(1), 13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-021-00412-w
   
10. Lak, M., Forbes, S. C., Ashtary-Larky, D., et al. (2025). Does creatine cause hair loss? A 12-week randomized controlled trial. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 22(sup1), 2495229. https://doi.org/10.1080/15502783.2025.2495229
    
11. de Souza E Silva, A., Pertille, A., et al. (2019). Effects of creatine supplementation on renal function: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Renal Nutrition, 29(6), 480–489. https://doi.org/10.1053/j.jrn.2019.05.004 

12. Syrotuik, D. G., & Bell, G. J. (2004). Acute creatine monohydrate supplementation: a descriptive physiological profile of responders vs. nonresponders. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 18(3), 610–617. https://doi.org/10.1519/12392.1