Good Team Practice Isn’t An Accident
26 Sep 2014

Good Team Practice Isn’t An Accident

By: Ben Bryant, WGCA contributing writer “Hey Coach, what are we doing today?” That’s a question that should never have to be asked at a high school golf practice.  By the second or third practice of your season, your players should know what to expect out of a typical golf team practice.  How you organize and run your golf team practices says a lot about you as a coach, and will have a great effect on the ability of your players.  Putting out a couple of buckets for your players to hit while you sit in the pro shop, or peruse the Internet on your phone is fine, but it won’t do much to help your players compete, and it certainly won’t do much to help earn you their respect. Creating a successful golf team program requires careful planning and consideration of your players’ abilities, your own ability to teach the competitive game, and how successful you want your program to be. The Warmup (5-10 minutes) The first part of any successful practice begins with the warmup.  Before any balls are hit, you may find it useful to perform some team stretching exercises.  Have your players stand in a circle and run through a set of stretches.  Choose one of your team captains to lead the stretching.  You can use the time to talk to each player one by one, but it should last no longer than 5-10 minutes.  You can choose to participate yourself or not.  This ritual is useful not only to avoid injury for those players who want to rip some drives first thing in the afternoon, but it also serves as a signal that practice has started.  It’s important to flip that mental switch to let your players know that it’s time to work.  Additionally, it will help build a team atmosphere as all players – both team veterans and new players – go through the same routine every day.  The Range (15-20 minutes) Time on the range can be structured or unstructured, based on your team needs and your ability as a golf instructor.  In a structured range session, you may have all of your players hitting balls with certain restrictions in place, such as all players using the same club, hitting for the same flag, etc.  This might be useful in some circumstances, but most players will lose interest very quickly.  It could be useful for a team full of brand new players and therefore you need to keep their attention on you.  More commonly, time on the range is unstructured, meaning they are free to warm up as they see fit.  As the coach, your job is to move from player to player as needed and offer assistance if asked, or if a player is particularly struggling.  Lastly, it is important to emphasize range safety at all time. Drill Baby, Drill (10 minutes) Drills aren’t fun.  So despite being a necessary evil, they should be kept short.  Drills might be something you organize for the whole team or for an individual player if you notice a glaring need. For example, if during a golf match, you notice several players struggling to hit good bunker shots.  During the next practice, make that an area of need for the team and conduct a brief 10-minute bunker drill after range time. Get On The Course (As Long As You’ve Got!) Ultimately, there is little practice better than actually playing the game on a golf course.  Hopefully, you will have access to one for your practices.  The majority of practice time should be spent on the golf course.  Players should be divided up into groups based on ability.  However, there’s nothing to stop you from creating heterogeneous groups if you have a compelling reason, such as giving a player an opportunity to learn from his more talented and experienced teammates.  As the coach, your job will be to move between groups, giving assistance where needed and requested. If you are a coach who is not well-versed in the golf swing or adept at giving teaching advice, there is still the opportunity to remind players of things like etiquette, speed of play, etc. The vast majority of your daily practice time should be spent on the golf course. Putt It Out (5-10 minutes) All practices should end on the putting green. You can choose one on the course, or make it the practice green near the pro shop to ensure that all players have returned from the course.  It’s a good idea at the end to have some reflection time about what your players should be focusing on that day or week or month.  A fun way to end practices is with a friendly putting competition between your players. Not only is it good practice, but it once again serves to build the bonds of your team. Conclusion A well-run practice does not happen by accident.  It is going to require a great deal of planning and preparation, especially early in the season.  You’ll find, though, that by sticking to a well-regulated schedule such as the one above, your practices will begin to run themselves. Ideally, you want to be able to focus on the more important things like ensuring your players are learning and enjoying themselves on the golf course.
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JUMPING THE GUN ON THE DEATH OF GOLF
15 Sep 2014

JUMPING THE GUN ON THE DEATH OF GOLF

Headlines about golf have made CNN’s, CNBC’s, Fox News’, and many other TV news’ broadcasts lately. Normally, that would be great. A new Tiger Woods that the public, golfers and non-golfers, are excited about wasn’t the news headline. The reports were all about how the game of golf was in trouble and the game was in jeopardy of going the way of the dinosaurs. Let’s put some perspective on the situation. These uninformed opinions are based on three things. Let’s examine those things that have brought about such a panic. First, golf OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) sales have been dragging for well over a year now. Second, Dick’s Sporting Goods dismissed 468 golf professionals in one day. Third, golf courses are closing at a rate of 160 per year. For the OEMs, the problem is serious. The flood of merchandise on the market is overwhelming the equipment business. Consumers have greater outlets to get rid of equipment they don’t want by using the Internet or the PGA trade-in program. The great news about this for the OEMs were the sales numbers from 2006 through 2012. The bad news derived from this is that it created a false market ceiling. The OEMs hired more employees and expanded their product lines. They also increased distribution significantly, all based on a retail market that was somewhat of a fantasy, much the same way as the false housing market for which our economy paid the painful price the last six years. Now the sales have plummeted for some companies and their retail accounts. This has led to bad publicity when earnings reports are announced every quarter. Of course, this has also unfortunately led to layoffs. To make matters worse, sales increases in 2012 were based on one product, the original Taylor Made Rocket Ballz line of clubs. It was easily one of the most successful product launches in golf equipment history. The problem with a successful product line such as this is the near impossible task of increasing or even matching the sales the following year. Short product cycles are another sin of the OEMs. This practice really turns off consumers. In my opinion, the companies are getting exactly what they deserve right now. For Dick’s. the situation is complicated and many-faceted. The easy answer is what we covered about OEMs: a successful product launch, a false growth of sales. With the combination of poor management, poor hiring and poor training, the professionals employed by Dick’s were doomed. Only unrealistic sales could have saved them. I worked for Dick’s for two years, so I have very intimate knowledge of their issues. Regardless, this obviously makes the golf business health look worse than it is. Finally, all the courses closing. Very simply and honestly, we built too many golf courses in the early 2000s, and too many difficult courses. With the advent of online discount sites like GolfNow, greens fees plummeted. The laws of supply and demand were bound to catch up with the golf courses eventually. So, here we are. Is it as bad as the news would lead you to believe? No, not even close. Golf will never die, and the gloom and doom is offset by many positive signs. Junior participation is better than ever. Some regions of the country are showing increased rounds played. Executive courses and shorter courses are getting more popular. Country club memberships are on the rebound. Will the big international equipment companies continue to downsize? Yes. They need to. Will more courses close? Yes. They need to in order to balance the supply and demand system and increase green fees. Don’t believe all the negativity. The indicators the media focuses on are not indicative of reality. Just because a huge corporation is having issues does not mean golf is doomed. The game of golf will be fine, and its strengths are the all the things we love about it: fresh air, exercise, beautiful courses, the enjoyment of watching the ball fly, and the challenge of the game. Our obligation as teachers and golf professionals is to be positive and be great ambassadors of the game.
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DOES THE TEACHER GET TOO MUCH CREDIT?
12 Sep 2014

DOES THE TEACHER GET TOO MUCH CREDIT?

Sean Foley and Tiger Woods have gone separate ways. Tour pros hire instructors. Tour pros change instructors. Instructors sometimes coerce pros to hire them with some formula they claim is the secret to better golf. Does the instructor really make the pro? I believe more often it is the other way around. Most of the players are special talents to begin with, and messing with their natural abilities might not be the smartest course of action. The best advice I ever got was from Hall of Fame instructor Bob Toski, who said to me, “Teaching great players is easy, just don’t screw them up.” Certainly, the golf swing has benefited from technology, but at what point does it become too much? Does it really matter if a player knows what synapses are firing or what muscles are connecting or how gravity plays a role during that one-second motion? It’s not complicated. Get the club squarely on the ball. How it is done can be very individual and unique. I wouldn’t begin to tell Jim Furyk or Lee Trevino or Miller Barber that they would become better players if they worked on stacking their weight more and improving their shaft lean. The golf swing is about execution under pressure. The method is not crucial; it is executing the method that is essential. That requires repetition, which tour players have been doing from a very early age. But even then, the best players screw up. They are not robots. There is a lot that goes into a shot – lie, wind conditions, ground condition, pin placement, and nerves. I don’t believe you can rely strictly on a single method for each shot. The other thing method instructors tend to say is that their method will produce solid shots all the time. I remember the headline on a Golf Digest cover with a tag line – “Hit every shot solid.” That is unrealistic unless Iron Byron is doing the swinging. Hogan said the secret is in the dirt, and although he claimed to have a specific move, he spent hours every day working on it, and still said he only hit about four perfect shots a round. Golf instructors will come and go as will players. Theories and terms will pop up and disappear. However, it always come down to the player’s talent and his work on the dirt.
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HELPFUL TIPS FOR STUDENTS
11 Sep 2014

HELPFUL TIPS FOR STUDENTS

In the continuation of the series “Helpful Tips for Students,” we move on to preparing for the tee shot. The Tee Box Choose the Correct side of the Tee Box: Don’t just plop the tee and ball anywhere between the markers. Remember that you have the right to tee the ball up anywhere between the markers and up to two club-lengths behind the markers. The smart player uses this to his advantage. If a right-hander tends to fade the ball, he hits from the right side of the tee box; if he tends to hook the ball, he hits from the left side of the tee box. This can also help if there is trouble on one side of the fairway. Always tee the ball on the side of the tee box that has the trouble and shoot away from the danger. Tee the Ball High for a Hook and Low for a Fade: A ball teed high will tend to promote a sweeping swing, making it easier to draw the ball. Teeing the ball low will promote a steeper swing, promoting a fade. Use a Tee on Par-3s: When playing a par-3, too often I see players simply drop the ball between the markers. Use a tee to your advantage by creating a perfect lie. A ball teed low just slightly above the ground level will mimic a perfect lie in the fairway. This will increase the chances of a solid strike. For Your Target, Have Tunnel Vision: As you prepare to hit a shot, choose a target and try to hit the ball only at that target. Many players immediately look for all the danger and spend more thought on what can go wrong, rather than positive images. A good player has “tunnel vision” and simply aims at a single small target. The subconscious mind does not understand negative words. Therefore, when you tell yourself “don’t go O.B.,” you are just telling your subconscious mind to “go O.B.,” therefore reinforcing negative images! Plan Your Strategy for Each Hole: Use the correct club to tee off. It is not necessary to hit driver on every hole. If you watch the pros, they hit driver as little as 3-4 times a round. A good strategy is to figure out what distance off the tee will give you a comfortable approach shot to the green. For example, a 325-yard par-4 may require as little as only 200 yards off the tee to leave a “comfortable” wedge shot. Often, this strategy applies to par-5s, as well.
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Teaching the Blind
11 Sep 2014

Teaching the Blind

By James W. “Jay” Wood USGTF Level III Member, Newark, Ohio The game we call golf is, as we know, challenging and very humbling.  But, what does it become if we take away the ability to see the course layout, the greens, and even the golf ball?  This is blind golf. What is blind golf like?  This is not a lesson on how to teach the visually-impaired, but this article contains some insights and experiences which have helped a blind golfer become competitive on the USBGA (United States Blind Golfers Association) tour. In 2004 I was offered the challenge of coaching a blind golfer.  The gentleman is totally blind with no light perception.  The time spent with him has been the most worthwhile and best experiences to date in my golfing and teaching career. The most difficult part of blind golf is, absolutely and unequivocally, balance.  The sighted golfer balances himself based upon the horizon surrounding him.  The blind golfer with no light perception places his balancing hopes on the feeling in his feet and the sensation of vertically of the body. Any type of jerky motion during the golf swing drastically minimizes the probability of maintaining balance throughout the duration of the swing. Comments and references to swinging smooth have worked tremendously with my golfer’s balance.  Of course, the thinking process varies from person to person.  In addition, the blind golfer has a tendency to attempt to keep balance by not moving their feet.  Weight transfer and finish are still of importance.  One suggestion we have used is to imagine shaking hands with a person directly on his left as he finishes the swing.   This has improved his body rotation throughout the swing, with a better balanced finish with weight transfer to the left foot. Of course, balance is easier on level ground.  We have a very good par-3 hole at our home course that has mounds surrounding the green.  Here, we are able to practice every conceivable lie with various wedge shots to the green.  The practice sessions combine maintaining balance and ball position with different lies, slopes and short game mechanics. Good scoring is dependent on a solid short game, and we work towards this goal based on the use of the sand wedge.  Lob wedge or gap wedge shot lengths are based on adjusted sand wedge distances.  We also us a five-yard spread as distance references, 5 to 10, 10 to 15, etc. The blind golfer usually feels apprehension as he swings, hoping upon hope that he will make contact with the ball.  Consequently, there is a tendency to rush the swing.  We have made progress in this area by shortening his backswing, which helps eliminate any change in his spine angle.  Use of the well-known “weighted club” has been an asset towards smoothness and rhythm.  As with sighted golfers, we need to let the swing happen, and not make it happen. Since we are the eyes of the blind golfer, we must be aware of his alignment and clubface position.  My golfer lays his club across his thighs on setup, which gives me a good perception of initial alignment.  We then fine tune the stance, based on foot position.  If too much time is spent on aligning, it will become a negative and we will back off and start anew.  The process must be simple and concise. For the visually-impaired golfer, putting is all feel.  The one advantage the blind golfer has is that, to him, all putts are straight putts.   Any breaks and alignment are the responsibility of the coach or guide.  We must insure that the golfer’s putting stroke is straight back and straight through.  Various exercises are used to hone mechanics.  On most putts, my golfer likes to step off the distance from the hole to the ball.   He is able to feel contour changes in the green through his feet.  This is a confidence builder and helps him to visualize the putt. Using the push drill and right-hand-only putting practice, my golfer has become a very good putter.  After I select the line for his putt, I set his clubface where I want it and he then steps to the club while I hold it to keep it from moving.   We have found that this works best in our situation. Almost any drill used in teaching a sighted golfer can be used with the visually impaired.    However, manual positioning of club or body must be incorporated by the teacher.  Verbal descriptions must be easily understood by the golfer in hopes that they can feel the process or point we are addressing.  There are two very informative articles on the blind golf website, www.blindgolf.com, “Swing Without Seeing” and “Basic Blind Golf Techniques.”  Both articles were written by Bob Andrews, himself a blind golfer. Think of your sensations as you are playing golf, and then try to imagine what it would be like without your sight.  To a blind golfer, the input and feedback from the coach to the golfer and the golfer to the coach is most important. You are a team.  If you are ever offered the opportunity to coach the handicapped or know someone who is, get involved.  The rewards are more than one could ask for.
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11 Sep 2014

Teaching Amputee Golfers

BY: John Savage, Langhorne, PA Level IV Master Teaching Professional & Course Examiner One of the most important things to an amputee is to find some sort of physical activity. It lifts their spirits and gives them the feeling that they can accomplish more than just being able to walk. They must find a place where they can have fun. Some have found golf. There are many associations they can join, should they seek a competitive outlet. There are numerous clinics conducted across the United States that are sponsored by the Amputee Associations. These clinics are geared towards the hospital and rehab organizations. The clinic basically introduces and demonstrates the devices that have been invented to accommodate the various amputee situations; such as arms, hands, and legs. Golf pros are invited to donate their time for one morning and give brief lessons to the handicapped attendees. When it’s over, the pros go home, and rarely (if ever), get in touch with the rehab people again. Because of the present war, the amputee population is unfortunately growing. When working with a handicapped person, there are a lot more considerations involved when making swing corrections than with a non-handicapped golfer. After a swing correction is offered and tried by the player, you must ask how the movement affects balance. When you get that answer, you have two options; 1) continue along the lines of the correction, or 2) take another approach because of the affects on balance.

Luo-Namm

You can see this man has golf shoes on, but they do not contain his feet. That little square box where the red lines are pointing to on each leg, acts as his foot in the prosthetic device. It’s like trying to play golf on stilts. Wearing prosthetics is similar to walking across a very slippery surface. When you walk on a surface like that you use your muscles in a different way in order to keep from falling. Some muscles are tightened up, some are relaxed, and you walk with great caution. Eventually, the body adapts to the movement and muscles get realigned to work with the prosthetic. Your visional perception also changes. Try turning your head while you are walking on that slippery surface: it gets scary. So when a double amputee moves, his head goes with him. When I first started working with this individual, his left leg was air actuated. When he swung you could actually see and hear it pull up into the body when he shifted his weight on to the leg. His right leg is computer actuated and does a thousand commands a second. The only drawback is that the computer doesn’t know when he has stopped climbing a hill or riding a bike. So he has to stop and let the computer re-boot or the leg will react as if it is still on the bike or climbing. His left leg has since been changed to be vacuum actuated. The vacuum actuated leg makes it easier for him to get his weight onto his left leg during the downswing. Without rotors on his legs, an amputee is very limited in making any type of golf swing with a rotary motion. Usually they compensate with lateral movement and an overuse of their arms, which is where we began our lessons. After two lessons, I asked him to see if he could get rotors. In his circumstance, the VA pays for the legs, so money was not a problem. A rotor is a device that allows some pivot motion in one direction or another. The limited movement of the rotor is for balance. Rotors are about the size of a silver dollar, and about ½ inch thick. They are set equally at 15 degrees to the left and right on his left leg. The prosthetics can adjust them for more or less rotation. They are activated by twisting or turning the body. For golf, he pushes his upper body down and activates his hips to turn the rotors. When a rotor is added, the height of the foot on the prosthetic device must be narrowed. The left leg rotates in two directions. The right leg rotates 5 degrees for the backswing, allowing him to open his right hip slightly on the backswing. There is no rotor for the forward swing. A double amputee must keep his prosthetic feet flat during the entire swing. Those little square boxes around ankle height can not tilt, because if they do, he will fall. There is no such thing as coming up on the rear toe to complete the forward swing. As we progress with downswing movement and better hip rotation, we might be able to add a rotor on the right leg for forward movement in the swing. If that rotor is added we will again address the balance issues that the rotor creates. This gets us back to: the more questions you ask a physically handicapped golfer, the better the golf lesson will be.  
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Teaching Special Olympics Golf
11 Sep 2014

Teaching Special Olympics Golf

Written By: Lee Koukes USGTF Member, Chatsworth, CA About two years ago, I became acquainted with a little girl and her grandfather. They had been on the driving range many times and I was aware that the little girl had a handicap. The grandfather was so dedicated and the little girl so determined, that I stopped to see if I could be of any help. Amber had no use of her right hand and arm, and even though she was swinging with her left hand and arm, she was still using a right-handed person’s stance. We tried a few things, and it soon became apparent that she had pretty good control using her left hand and arm, but using the left-handed person’s stance. Right then, I decided that I wanted to work with this little girl even more. After a couple of weeks, I got her a new set of golf clubs that I had specially made and tailored for her capabilities. I gave her lessons every Monday afternoon for several months and the results and progress were amazing. Her grandfather and I took her out on the course one day to play a few holes and we couldn’t believe what we were witnessing. While she could only hit the ball 15 to 20 yards or so, she was right in the fairway every time. She was sinking putts that even I had trouble with. What a transformation! I learned that Amber was involved in Special Olympics Gymnastics. Being a curious person by nature, I decided to inquire around and see if there were any Special Olympics for golf. After several phone calls to various areas, I finally was put in touch with a local chapter in Ventura County, California and called to see how I might get Amber qualified to play in some tournaments in the area or if they even had anything organized. I was told that there were a number of people with various handicaps who would like to learn to play golf but there just wasn’t anyone who could teach them. I told them what I had been doing with Amber and let them know that I would certainly be interested in working with them to start a golf program locally. Since they did not have a formal program organized, I spoke with my General Manager, who was very supportive of the idea and offered to give us the use of the driving range, golf carts when we went out to play a few holes, free golf balls, etc. We have a group of 12 athletes who range in age from 11 to 28. We have a tremendous amount of fun and all of this has been observed by others who have generously come forward and volunteered to assist with these fine young athletes. The volunteers are not only former and present students of mine, but golfers who have observed and heard of what we have been doing and wanted to get involved. I am especially proud of the teenagers who have been my students and are on the high school golf team – they have volunteered to give something back to the community and really look forward to coming out on Thursday evenings to help with our Special Olympics Team. My ultimate goal is to have my Special Olympic Golfers practice at UCLA one day, where a big Special Olympics Event takes place every June. I cannot begin to tell you what a rewarding experience this has been for me, when I look at the progress that each of the athletes has been able to achieve and I see that look of accomplishment and satisfaction on their faces, along with the joy their parents have voiced. It really makes me feel very fortunate to be a part of this. Maybe in a very small way, I really am making a difference. Many thanks to the USGTF. Without the excellent training I received, I would not have had the confidence to undertake this task. If you have any questions and would like to start a program like this in your area, please send me an email or fax so I can get in touch with you. It can be frustrating at times, but the rewards far outweigh the challenges. My fax number is 818-885-6044, or you can e-mail me at CandLinLA@aol.com.
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Teaching the Mentally Challenged
11 Sep 2014

Teaching the Mentally Challenged

By: Pat Church, USGTF Level IV Member Eugene, Oregon During my experiences with the Special Olympics golf team the biggest lesson learned has been PATIENCE!!! Many of the golfers have mental, as well as physical disabilities, so constant repetition is a key to their success and sometimes testing our patience. The practice sessions I use for Special Olympics’ golfers, closely mimic what they will face in their regional & state competitions, thus providing a level of comfort and confidence to them. In the case of many of the Special Olympic golfers I have trained, the golf swing has been secondary to the fact that I am giving them a chance to have a new experience. I would assume that if a once physically abled golfer becomes disabled, we would be providing the chance to enjoy their “freedom” again. Perhaps the greatest experience in working with mentally challenged golfers can be the simple joy to their reactions……..sinking a 5 foot putt, hitting a straight shot or just hitting the ball can be the cause for great jubilation! I strongly recommend to all my fellow teachers – Volunteer some time to the Special Olympics’ program in your area. The things learned with this group will make you a better teacher and your reward will be long lasting!
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