Like most golf pro’s of a young age, the glitz and glamor of tour golf is where we all wanted to be, and to get there we needed a coach that could make my swing flawless in all conditions, how wrong I was. What I will say without naming any names that the coaches I have had I have been very lucky with and all had their own style but I felt did a great job with my game.

 

So here’s what I would look for in a golf coach moving into the 2014 season to help your golf game:

 

Find the “coach” not the “instructor”. For me coaches are there to look at you as an individual, they understand your needs, your ways, your goals, in essence they connect with YOU. In my mind there are alot of instructors out there who great guys, knowledgeable people but they never connect with their pupil, they look for the technical flaw constantly with little changes and only see their player for 30minutes on the range every 2 weeks.  Ask your self is this helping my “golf GAME” or helping me swing it better on the range. The famous Harvey Penick once said “I learn teaching from teachers. I learn golf from golfers. I learn winning from coaches” 

 

My next point is to find the coach who wants to see you play on the course. By finding that coach that will walk 9-18 holes with you talking through your game, watching how and why your execute shots, make decisions and act and react it will give him a better understanding on which part of your game  will have the most impact to improve your scores .

 

Does he check up? I find the best coaches are the ones that are as passionate about your improvement and golf as you are. If you’re seeing your coach once every few weeks and he has no connection or comment in between lessons about how your golf is going or what you can do, or checking that you’re doing your drills correctly, then it must be difficult for you as a player to change something in your game. The top coaches keep in contact, email, phone, text see how you’re doing if you need and reminders before the next session, so that when the next session comes along they are ready armed for the next drill, the process the next piece of your improvement jigsaw. One of my favourite adages was from Zig Ziglar who said “they don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care”. When selecting your coach find the one that will care as much as you.

 

Saying your wrong is tough, but as a coach I feel it is an important part of helping a student to admit when you are. By admitting you didn’t quite get that right, or “let’s try something different” shows that you really want this pupil. The best coaches continue to gain knowledge, question what they have done previous and that’s what keeps them at the top. Finding the Coach/Instructor/Pro/Teacher that knows it all, is the “expert” and “will sort you out in 10minutes”, is a dangerous way to go. You may reduce your slice on the range in 10minutes but will that help your golf game overall and help you long term, I would question it!

 

So as you can see there should be more to selecting your coach than just wandering into your local range or course.  My summary would be as follows..

 

1. Email, call or pop in to your local facility first talk to the pro about booking a lesson, get a vibe for him and his style, do you connect with him.

 

2. Ask what his after lesson service is, what do YOU get in between sessions. Feedback, Ebooks, videos, text messages. All those little extras can help you get better.

 

3. Check his reputation as around to see who else has coaching from him, get their feedback.

 

4. Set goals and a timeline to work within with a coach to improve your golf game.

 

5.  Question! If you don’t feel comfortable with a swing change or a theory then asks why? The best coaches will explain differently, sense this isn’t for you and change direction or help you to further understand. Remember if they care as much as you they want you to feel comfortable.

 

6. Book that on course session! Did you you book your driving lessons and the driving instructor never saw you drive on the road, only on an airstrip? Does Jose Mourinho only watch Chelsea take penalties in training? The answer is no he coaches them to see where the mistakes or errors are to continually improve.

 

7. Technology is good but it is not everything. Good coaches use technology, videos analysis etc, but they know when to use it. Use it every week with no result change get out. Knowing when to use training aids and equipment is a must make sure your coach doesn’t just watch your from behind a desk. 

 

8. Measure! Measure your progress, keep stats, set targets and guidelines with your coach so you both know what you’re working towards and when for. 

 

I hope some of these ideas have been useful for you and that maybe you will look into and spend more time researching your next coach, or even start to question your current coach. As a coach he will enjoy it!

 

Photo Credit: TourProGolfClubs.com