It was roughly three months ago that I purchased, and blogged about, my first golf gimmick – an EFX Performance hologram wristband.

At the time, I referred to it as a golf gimmick, but after purchasing mine, I began noticing athletes from many different sports wearing similar, if not the exact same, products. So noticing professional athletes such as NBA star Deron Williams and NY Met Carlos Beltran sporting the same product, I thought maybe I was onto something.

However, in the golf blogosphere, I noticed many mixed reviews – some people swore by them, while others were adamant about their “placebo effect.” Well, I’ve been wearing the bracelet on a regular basis since purchase and in three months since, I think I’m able to draw some of my own conclusions. And I would like to report, while not life changing, I have seen a positive effect.

In my everyday life, I’ll be honest…I just don’t see a difference in anything. I can’t say that I feel or see a difference in my body and I’m not quite sure that I feel a difference in my energy level either. However, one thing I have noticed is that I feel I need less sleep. I don’t know if the bracelet has something to do with this or not, but it is a difference either way. There was a time when I felt that if I didn’t get at least X hours of sleep each night that I would not be able to function at a high level the next day. That feeling has been greatly diminished.

But what about the actual reason I bought the bracelet? What has it done for my golf game? Has it made me a scratch golfer? Has it dramatically lowered my handicap? Has it made me better at all? Quite simply, the answer is no. But, that doesn’t mean it has done nothing.

When I had purchased the bracelet to begin with, I was not purchasing it for any mystical healing powers. I didn’t purchase it to give me Tony Little-like energy levels. No, what got me excited was the supposed benefits to my balance. After all, balance is key for a golfer. So for only $20 I thought, why not give it a shot? So how has it worked out so far? Well, after a small sampling (36 holes), I admit, I am pleasantly surprised.

While my scores so far this year do not reflect it, I feel there is definitely some improvement in my balance. Through two 9-hole rounds and one 18, I have noticed that I have yet to take one off-balance swing this year. Is that a coincidence? I’m sorry, but I don’t think so. I didn’t practice any more than usual during the off-season. As a matter of fact, I practiced less. So why the sudden better balance on my swing? I have no other explanation.

So with the balance improvement being noticable, I am hoping that it will possibly lead to improvements in other areas of my game. But all of that remains to be seen.

Now, to speak to the nay-sayers who are quick to write this off as the “placebo effect,” I ask how many of you have actually given it a chance? I would venture to say that, despite what you would lead us to believe, most of you have either never tried one or had written it off before you ever did. Is it a placebo effect, or is there actually a benefit? Well, in response to the people who swear by the placebo theory (which, I admit, may be the case), I ask, whether it’s a placebo effect or reality, doesn’t that mean the product is working anyway?

Swing ’til you’re happy!