Preservation of golf skills in a case of severe left lobar frontotemporal degeneration

The authors report the longitudinal study of a 53-year-old man with severe lobar atrophy confined to the left frontal and temporal lobes, including th e left hippocampus, but sparing other cortical regions. He experienced prof ound cognitive deterioration, sparing only visuospatial memory. Despite the se deficits, he could play golf at a high level of competence, following ru les and etiquette as well as monitoring the ongoing game. The patient's gol f performance may have been supported by residual visuospatial declarative memory and complex flexible implicit memory programs.