What do golfers really feel/want from lessons???

The reason I ask the above is because I was chatting to someone the other day whom was interested in having lessons after a long lay off from playing.

When I told him my price (which is cheap, bearing in mind it's more like 1 1/2 hours not just 1 hour) ) he said blimey I thought you'd charge about £8 or £10 an hour and suddenly wasn't interested anymore and I sat there for a while questioning what had I done wrong.

So tell me guy's what do you want????

Totally honest answers please.

Unlike most trades you get what you pay for. You either pay for a licensed taxi or get a mini cab. You pay for a carpenter or get a chippie. When I first had lessons, on each lesson you learned maybe two or three drills, took only one and practised that on the range. One thing from one lesson. You cannot expect to have one lesson and be an expert golfer, its like an apprenticeship you HAVE to learn and practice things. Having said all this, when I first had lessons 12 years ago never having picked up a golf club before, the price then was £30, so with inflation, maybe the price is not so bad. Either way, enjoy your golf whatever level.

Wayne,

when I go for a lesson I want to hit balls, I don't want to chat for 30mins otherwise I lose interest & get bored. I think a maximum of 10mins should be enough.

I also want to feel comfortable & build up a rapour. I don't expect to see drastic improvements right away but I do want to feel that when I go away I'm armed with the information / techniques etc to work with on the range / course

I currently pay £18 for 30mins but as I have been seeing the same pro for over 7yrs it's more like 60mins after the banter & "let's just hit a few more balls". 

Don't under value yourself Wayne as you are a good teacher / coach from whom anyone would benefit.

John. 

Key for me is to ask the pupil EXACTLY that question at the beginning.  Then watch them hit a few balls and tell them what you would do to help them get what they want out of it and how long it would take.  You could even offer an "assessment lesson" where you could do this and agree a plan to go forward. 

Don't try a rebuild of someone's swing if they want tweaks.  I had a pro try to do this with me, trying to get me to a textbook swing.  He wasn't teaching me for long.  Everybody has a personal swing and it's up to the player whether they want you to break this down and rebuild it 'properly' or just help them to make it work for them

It is a lot easier to take something in if you can see it. By using Video that can be done. Too many people charge or expect up to £20 p.h. for their job but begrudge paying a Professional Sportsman for his time and expertese.

£20 for half an hour with a Coach is nothing compared to 10min with David Leadbetter or Butch Harmen. Add a zero.

Thelyth

Potential flaw in golf coaching with it not being seen as a service/product but just someone's time.

Paying for someone's time of £25 for an hour could be seen as expensive when the minimum wage is £6-£8 per hour in the UK

People need to appreciate is part of an overall service with behind the scene costs like any business; background training, on going training/experience, equipment, traveling etc etc

I'll stop before I start ...................  

Out of interest Wayne had the person interested in lessons looked around elsewhere, or had lessons before?

maybe he was just misinformed about pricing

The problem with Golf is that anyone can visit a shop and buy Books, Video/CD's & Magazines claiming to contain an answer to all Golf Swing problems. "Learn how to hit it further, straighter and less often".

I believe that a serious Golfer should treat his Game in the same way as their Health. You feel unwell and you visit your Doctor. They give you the once over and if any serious problems your sent to see a Specialist. To link this Thread to another about Club Membership, I also think that the Club Pro should also think like a Doctor and be happy to give 'tips' to Members and then book them in for lessons if the problem doesn't have a simple solution.

TheLyth 

Since my first set of six lessons which were an 18th birthday present from my mum and dad well over thirty years ago I have had lots of lessons with lots of different pros (probably a mistake, I should have stuck with one). Thinking back it seems that 100% of instruction relates to the swing and none to scoring - nobody would teach a young player to swing like Arnold Palmer, Eamon Darcy, Jim Furyk or even Bubba Watson but we all wish we could score like them.

I understand that while these players may have unconventional swings their clubface is square, on plane and accelerating through impact; my point is that perhaps more instruction should be focussed on scoring rather than purely on trying to give every golfer a "textbook" swing.