I have been teaching skiing for 50-some years. I have been playing the bagpipes for 10 years and have just started teaching beginners. I take golf lessons. I speak English, of the Canadian variety, but have to admit that I become stumped and agitated with the language of teaching.
It was traditional to teach bagpipes through canntaireachd (pronounced can-ter-act). This is a Gallic word meaning “chanting.” Before music was written as it is today on paper, with lines and notes, the instructor would sing the notes using distinct sounds for the different notes, grace notes and embellishments. Master and pupils would spend hours sitting together singing tunes to each other. Nowadays, people learn with sheet music, and canntaireachd is still used by some gifted and experienced instructors to support the acquisition of lyrical flow.
When I started teaching skiing, the manual was6” by 8” by ¼” thick, and half was in French and half in English (Canada’s two official languages). The manuals of a few years ago were three-ring binders two inches thick and needed a set of wheels to haul them around. Happily, today you can log on to the instructor website and find the latest digital copy. The old thick manuals were updated every two or three years due to the simple fact of the time lag brought about by writing, editing, picture editing and then printing. Today, the digital copy can be changed very quickly, but this brings on the language of teaching, as the amount of material is never-ending and quite often the “subject-matter expert” (SME) is a Ph.D. who can’t use 10 words where he/she thinks 100will fit better. Skiing is simple: stance and balance, left turns and right turns!
Where we live, golf ends in October and doesn’t start again until the end of April. We have a lot of time to watch the Golf Channel, professional tournaments, and the constant barrage of free lessons that pop up on our computers. With the tournaments and lessons come the “subject-matter experts” and their confusing language! Why is it that the broadcasters from the European Tour, and there are usually two, speak quietly and from time to time, while the PGA broadcasts seem to have 20 people online and some-one is talking all the time?
Don’t they realize they are on television and we can see what is going on and not radio, where constant chatter is needed to fill the void? Constant analysis and over-analysis. “His stance was closed and he was 50 percent on his back foot, therefore changing the swing plane from single plane to double plane; he came over the top, the swing was outside-to-in, his grip was strong but swing was weak, his hip wasn’t cleared in time for his head to stay steady and all was caught on the Konica Minolta Biz Hub Swing Analyzer at 38,000 frames per second!”
I am trying to learn this language of “Golfinese.”Perhaps I will just start the day by putting a few balls into the hole on the practice green, then a few chips, a few pitches, then back up a bit and hit a few longer shots.
Stance and balance swing easy, put the ball in the hole. Who really needs an SME or a Konica Minolta Biz Hub Swing Analyzer anyway!
The question posed is a valid one, because it brings to light the subject of ambition in the golf teaching profession. It’s a subject that is often overlooked, but one that is important to those of us in the teaching and coaching profession.
Motivational speakers and sports psychologists often refer to goal-setting as a critical tool to accomplishment. An article in Success magazine in 2015 stated, “The most important benefit of setting goals isn’t achieving your goal; it’s what you do and the person you become in order to achieve your goal that’s the real benefit.” Setting a goal and striving towards it gives us an action plan to follow, and also a way to plot a path to get us there. Industry professionals –regardless of which industry – who do not set goals are willing to let the whims of outside influences take them in all sorts of random directions.
Some of those random directions may lead to success, but for those who find success in this manner it is, by definition, nothing but a fluke. In other words, the person succeeded in spite of himself or herself. So setting realistic but ambitious goals, along with executing a well-thought-out plan, is a much more sure way of finding success. Even then, nothing is guaranteed. The history of business is filled with stories of failures that, on paper, should have been successes. There are some things that are just out of our control, and they may have been unforeseeable by even the most learned and experienced of experts.
But as the statement from Success magazine says, goal setting is one part of the equation; ambition is the other, and perhaps a more important part. A goal is a tangible destination while ambition is the desire to reach that destination. Merriam-Webster defines ambition as “an ardent desire for rank, fame, or power; desire to achieve a particular end.”
What are your teaching ambitions?
It may be to become a famous guru, although certainly most who are did not start out with that desire. Virtually anyone who is successful will tell you that they got into the profession due to their love of the game and of helping others with their games.
Butch Harmon is one such teacher. Although he is widely recognized for his acumen in helping major championship winners, that’s not what drives him. “I get as much satisfaction or more from someone who’s never broken 90 who shoots 87 for the first time, “he has been quoted as saying. Harmon finds that his passion results from wanting to help all players, regardless of level.
Some teachers find their true enjoyment in helping beginners learn the game. The late Julius Richard-son, the USGTF’s Teacher of the 20th Century, played golf at an extremely high level, winning multiple military and other championships. He also taught touring professionals, most notably Eric Booker, who compared him to Ken Venturi and David Leadbetter. Yet, Richardson’s true teaching ambitions revolved around beginners, introducing them to the game and helping them get enjoyment out of learning and improving. His book, Better Golf – A Skill Building Approach, was based upon the learning principles he was exposed to while a member of the U.S. Army. The book outlines how beginners, and those who need a refresher in the fundamentals, can build sol-id golf skills that will last for a lifetime. Richardson could have chosen to write a book geared towards advanced golfers, but he didn’t. His passion and ambition in helping beginning golfers were the reason she wrote the book he did.
All teaching ambitions are worthy, from wanting to teach touring professionals to helping beginners, as long as they benefit the game in general and reflect the teacher’s true desires and goals. To paraphrase John F. Kennedy’s inauguration speech from 1961,“Ask not what the golf teaching profession can do for you; ask what you can do for the golf teaching profession.”
Ambition: “An ardent desire for rank, fame, or power; desire to achieve a particular end.” as defined by…Merriam-Webster
WOW. Double wow. In a move that can literally be described as a game-changer, the USGA and R&A decided this past March 1 that many of the rules by which we play are to be jettisoned, sent to the scrapbook of history. The proposed new rules are to take effect January 1, 2019. Knowledgeable observers say this is the most drastic rules development since the original 13 rules were drawn up in 1744 by the Gentlemen Golfers of Leith, now the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, at Muirfield in Scotland.
To be sure, the gist of the game will be the same: to play the course as you find it and play the ball as it lies, and if you can’t do either, do what’s fair. But what constitutes “fair” is the reason we currently have 34 rules and a Decisions book that is several hundred pages long (to be replaced by 24 rules and a “Handbook,” respectively). Too many golfers today simply don’t understand the intricacies of the rules necessary to compete in formal competition, and that includes professional golfers. Even some rules officials don’t get it right at times, and they’re paid to not make these types of mistakes.
The proposed changes the USGA and R&A are considering are just that, proposed. They have not been formally adopted, and there is a good chance that not all of them will be implemented. Both organizations are seeking feedback from the golfing public during a six-month comment period, and they have said this feedback will have some influence in deter-mining what gets changed and what stays the same.
To list all of the proposed changes would take literally several pages of the magazine, so this article will not do that. However, some will directly affect everyday play more so than others, so here they are, along with commentary:
NO PENALTY FOR MOVING THE BALLDURING A SEARCH.
Previously, only fellow competitors and opponents were exempt from penalty for moving a player’s ball while searching. Now the player himself is exempt if he or his caddie moves it. This is only fair, as by definition the player has no idea exactly where the ball is.
LOST BALL SEARCH REDUCED FROM FIVEMINUTES TO THREE.
For tournaments that have no spectators, this will have a totally different effect than for one which has thousands. Instead, a local rule option allowing searches to be limited to three minutes might be a better course of action and can be implemented by the major tours.
NO PENALTY FOR ACCIDENTALLY MOVINGBALL ON PUTTING GREEN.
Everyone remembers the rules fiasco during the2016 U.S. Open when it was determined that Dustin Johnson caused his ball to move on the putting green, despite the fact he never touched the ball. This new standard goes even further. The problem with this proposed rule is it violates the longstanding principle that the player is not allowed to move the ball except only in accordance with the rules. The USGA and R&A might want to re-think this one, because…
NEW STANDARD FOR DECIDING WHENA PLAYER MOVED HIS BALL.
After the Johnson situation, the USGTF took a position that the rule for what constituted a player moving his ball should be changed from a preponderance of the evidence to it has to be known or virtually certain the player caused the ball to move. The USGA and R&A must have been listening, be-cause that’s the proposed new standard. So instead of imposing no penalty for accidentally causing a ball to move on the putting green, this new standard of what constitutes a player moving his ball is more than sufficient to take care of the problem, and would have applied to Johnson.
NO PENALTY FOR BALL HITTING PLAYER, CADDIE, OR EQUIPMENT AFTER MAKINGA STROKE.
The old rule only added injury to insult.
A BALL TO BE DROPPED MAY BE DROPPEDFROM AS LITTLE AS 1” (2.5 CM) ABOVETHE GROUND.
Those of us who are older remember when a player had to face the hole and drop the ball behind us over our shoulder. This was changed several decades ago to dropping from shoulder height and arm’s length. Now, all of this has been changed so a player can drop from at least one inch above the vegetation. This change is proposed to lessen the chance a ball bounces and rolls too far, necessitating a re-drop. This is fine, but why one inch? It makes more sense to use the diameter of the ball, 1.68inches (4 ¼ cm), since that can easily be measured more accurately.
DROPS ARE TO BE WITHIN A SPECIFIEDDISTANCE, EITHER 20” OR 80” INSTEADOF CLUBLENGTHS.
According to the USGA website, “Using a fixed measure would be a simple process, with 20 inch and40 inch markings on the shaft of clubs likely to be the primary tool used by players for measuring.” If officials at the USGA really believe players are going to put 20-inch and 40-inch markings on their clubs, they need a serious reality check. One club length and two club length drops have worked fine for years. There’s no reason to change this.
BALLS DROPPED IN ACCORDANCE WITHTHE RULES MUST REMAIN WITHIN THEDROPPING AREA.
Instead of the old standard of the ball rolling more than two club lengths away, necessitating a re-drop, the ball must now remain within the 20-inchor 80-inch zone. And there is no longer a two-drop maximum; the player can drop as many times as needed unless it becomes obvious the ball will not remain in the zone.
REPAIRING ALMOST ANY DAMAGE ONPUTTING GREEN.
Presently, the player is allowed to only repair ball marks and old hole plugs. Now the player can repair spike marks, etc. This is a good change and long overdue.
BALL HITTING FLAGSTICK AFTER STROKEFROM PUTTING GREEN.
This may be the most drastic visible example of the proposed rules changes. A ball hitting the flagstick while putting will no longer be a penalty, meaning players can putt with the flagstick in the hole from any distance. It will be interesting to see how this one plays out. Dave Pelz’s research from years ago suggested the flagstick almost always helps the ball go into the hole. With today’s analytics, it may become commonplace for tour players to no longer remove the flagstick while putting.
ELIMINATING WATER HAZARDS; TO BEKNOWN AS “PENALTY AREAS.”
Under the current rules, technically only areas that contain water can be marked as water hazards. Now, any area of the course may be marked as such. Although it has always been commonplace for wooded and brush areas to be marked as water hazards, such marking of the course is actually prohibited by the current rules.
TOUCHING AND REMOVAL OF LOOSEIMPEDIMENTS IN PENALTY AREAS ANDBUNKERS NOW ALLOWED.
This is another drastic change from what golfers for centuries have known. In a penalty area, players can now ground their clubs and take practice swings while hitting the ground, although this is still prohibited in bunkers. This is another good rules change and one that will lessen controversy and make things more fair.
For a complete look at all of the proposed rules changes, go to www.USGA.org orwww.RandA.org and click on the rules links. You can also have your say on the proposed changes until the comment period ends August 31, 2017.
I recently had a student who was going to play in one of the largest amateur golf tournaments in the state. He had been working on his game and playing really well. He was excited and ready to show off his golf game. This was the biggest tournament and best field he had ever played against.
The evening after the first round, I received a phone call from him. He told me how nervous he was and he could barely breathe prior to teeing off. His hands were shaking and sweaty. He had a hard time thinking positive thoughts versus thinking only the worst. His first tee ball? You can guess it: he came over it so bad he barely hit the ball 100 yards to the left.
There were people watching; he felt like withdrawing right there. It was the worst drive he had hit in years. He was embarrassed, plain and simple. But heck, we’ve all been there. He finally got his nerves in check and finished with a respectable 75.
During our phone conversation, I explained that everyone experiences the same frustrations and challenges. No matter if you are trying to break 100 for the first time, break par the first time, win your first tournament or, for the pros, win your first major. Pressure is part of the game. You must embrace it and prepare to the best of your ability.
A lot of great athletes have said they want to feel pressure or nerves; it means they are in the hunt or in a situation they want to be in. The more and more you put yourself in pressure situations, the better your body will know how to act upon it or recover.
You can help your students with pressure by putting them in situations where they feel uncomfortable. That could be playing with a group of better players, playing for money, or making up practice games that apply pressure. The more your students feel the heat, the better they will handle stressful situations.
