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14 Jan 2014 Corina Pelloni

TRAINING AIDS

As golf teaching professionals, we constantly look for ways to help our students get better. We read books, attend continuing education classes, watch videos, and visit with other golf teaching professionals, all the while trying to learn more and become a better instructor. For anyone has been to a large golf store chain like Edwin Watts or watched Golf Channel, we have seen numerous training aids. Ironically enough, each piece of equipment or technique boasts that it can cure every fault in the golf swing. Now, while it would be nice, we all know there is no quick fix or miracle pill you can take to attain the perfect golf swing. How often do you try these training aids? Do you research the new training aids as they come into the market? Are you investing into your own teaching career? These are some questions you should ask yourself to make sure you are staying current on new training aids and teaching methods. When you are in one of the big golf store chains, head to the training aid section and try a few out. While there is no reason to buy all of the training aids in the store, it might be helpful for your business to invest in a few that you think can benefit your students. When you are trying these training aids, think about some of the common problems your current students have and imagine yourself in their shoes, asking, “Will this help me?” If you think it will, then it will help your students get better, thus helping your business grow. Don’t be afraid to invest in the future of your business.

WHAT MAKES A GOLF COURSE GREAT?

By Marc Gelbke, Contributing Writer, US Golf Managers Association As golf course managers, we have to ask ourselves, “What makes a golf course great?” You can ask around, and some will no doubt say it is the location of the course, the layout, the condition, etc. While there is no question that these are important, in my opinion, the main reason a golf facility is great and has golfers come back is YOU AND THE STAFF. Time and time again, you hear from golfers and guests that they would come back because of how the staff makes them feel. You can have the best-kept secret, most beautiful facility, but if you don’t have a staff that sincerely cares about the players, members, guests and facility, they will inevitably find fault. Service and profits will increase and decrease according to the level of service provided. As a manager, the three most important words you can hear from your customer are, ”I’ll be back!” “I’ll be back” means satisfied customers; satisfied customers mean increased profits and a successful facility with staff that cares. Remember, I always used to teach my staff one important aspect of our business, and that is that I can spend a lot of money on merchandise to stock the golf shop, uniforms for all to wear, and a ton in maintenance to make our course look great, but the one thing that is FREE and makes us the most profits is “customer service.” We can overcome many obstacles in our day-to-day duties of running a golf course when we provide excellent service to our customers and treat them with respect, courtesy, and professionalism. One way to achieve excellent customer service is to create regular scheduled supervisor and staff meetings. Short, well-orchestrated meetings allow you to visit your vision and goals as manager, and allow you to bring forth issues that need attention and corrections. These meetings are an excellent time to role-play situations that have occurred on the property, and to remind each other of the commitment to service excellence, despite challenges that we all face from time to time. You can also use this time to provide positive feedback for a job well done. So, the next time you ask yourself, “Is my golf course great?”, you may look at it from a different perspective.

Practice your strengths

By: Gregg Steinberg, WGCA contributing writer The duel at Sherwood Country Club was reminiscent of the tale of David and Goliath. Compared to the monumental Tiger Woods, the stature and resume of Zach Johnson was quite diminutive. But that had no bearing on the end result. After an amazing hole-out from the drop area to tie Tiger in regulation play, Johnson went on to win the playoff and the Northwestern Mutual World Challenge. Like David and his mighty foe, Johnson could never keep up with Tiger’s power game. In 2013, Johnson ranked 153rd on the PGA TOUR in driving distance at 278.8 yards per drive. However, Johnson ranked 19th in scoring average (70.10). The secret to Johnson’s success in golf is not the power game. Rather Johnson focuses on his strengths. His golfing power comes from his wedge game and putting prowess. Psychologists now propose that we should focus on our strengths, and decrease our motivation toward the improvement of our weaknesses. When you work on your strengths, you are energized and happy. Practicing your weakness can drain you, and in most cases, be joyless. If Johnson focused on getting longer off the tee, he may have ruined his unique swing. Instead, he focuses on what got him to the PGA TOUR and then made it sing loudly! Do you worry about your weaknesses in golf? Are you always looking for that extra 10 yards off the tee? Is the long bomb your entire focus when you practice? Instead of working on the 300-yard drive, keep on practicing your strengths. Get great at certain key elements in your golf game, like Johnson has, and you too will begin to see the long term benefits to your scores.

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