It’s surprising to most people that, according to the National Golf Foundation, only 17% of golfers take lessons.
This may be because most golfers wonder… Are golf lessons worth it??
Most players don’t know what to ask their instructor before, during and after golf lessons to get the best results.
To get the most out of your lessons, you should ask your instructor about common goals for both of you, what type of lesson is best for you, if you have any physical limitations, and what style of communication they will use with you.
It is extremely important that you have the time and willingness to practice between lessons.
Before leaving a session, make sure you understand the concepts and feel you have an easy-to-implement plan with feedback on your training sessions.
1. What are your goals for golf lessons
Most people take golf lessons with the hope of lowering their scores. While this is a common goal, it is not the only one.
Maybe you want increase the distance from the teehit specific issues or just make a solid connection with the irons.
Your instructor can help you achieve any of these goals, but you must be clear about what you hope to achieve.
Golf lessons to lower your score
Whether you’re trying to win your flight in the Club Championship or finish professionally when you’re looking for a golf coach, you want to shoot lower scores.
One way to do this is to find a good golf coach who uses technology like Trackman.
Trackman will help your instructor better understand what you are currently doing in your swing and how it can help you make improvements.
In addition, it is important to spend time on the golf course with a trainer. This allows them to improve decision making and course management.
Increase the distance with the driver off the tee
Most golfers want to hit the ball farther, and this is especially important for the driver.
Using Trackman, you’ll be able to see information about your lowest point, angle of attack, club head speed, contact centering, and spin speeds.
Once all the data is collected, your trainer will be able to help you understand what these terms mean and which variables need to be changed to keep hitting the driver longer.
Hit specific problems
There are several different strokes that can cause problems for golfers.
Here are just a few of them:
Shots from the bunker on the green side
This is when you hit the sand bunkers on the green.
Many amateurs don’t understand why the pros on TV often prefer to be in the sand bunker on the green side rather than the raw side because they think it’s a tough shot.
The truth is, understanding the concept or getting the right bunker shot is a lot easier than hitting the ball out of a thick rough.
That’s why you can often see them deliberately hitting a sand bunker with an iron after getting into trouble with a driver.
Hitting the intended slice
What is an intended patch?
A targeted slash is a shot that starts to the left of the target and then spins a lot to the right in the air back towards the target.
You may need this shot if the driver has unplugged you and you are behind a tree.
Hitting the intended hook
What is the intended catch?
The intended hook is just the opposite. A hook shot is a shot that starts to the right of the target and then turns much to the left in the air back towards the target.
You may need this shot if the driver has unplugged you and you are behind a tree.
Making constant contact with irons
Good contact with the irons is the key to a good game.
When you hit the ball hard, you can better predict how far it will go and also hit a more predictable curve.
If you’re hitting behind the ball or hitting the top of the ball, I don’t need to tell you that golf can be difficult.
Constant contact with the irons is important if you want to have a good round and… it’s a really good feeling!
2. Whether you want to take private lessons, group classes or clinics
There are a few things to consider when choosing private lessons, group classes, or clinics.
Let’s take a look at some of the pros and cons of each option:
Private lessons:
Individual instructions can help you focus on your own game and allow the coach to focus on helping you achieve your goals. In addition, it can be a great way for beginners to learn how to play correctly from the first step.
Begin by assessing the new student to work with the trainer to create an improvement plan.
Group classes or clinics:
These lessons are a great option when you need a bit of individual attention and plenty of guidance from a coach at the same time
These sessions can be more expensive than group or clinic lessons.
Group classes and clinics can be more social and fun than private lessons.
Due to the number of students per session, you won’t get as much personal attention as you would in private lessons.
3. Do you have any physical challenges?
One of the questions you need to ask yourself and be honest with your golf coach is whether you have any physical problems. Not only do they need to know what they’re working with, they also need to not cause you further harm.
If you have any physical limitations, it’s important to find an instructor who understands how to work with these challenges and can help you overcome them.
With Titleist Performance Institute (TPI) golf instructor.you gain not only a well-trained golf instructor, but also access to a network of sports medicine specialists and fitness trainers.
This is extremely important as they will be able to see your injuries and learn how to treat them.
4. Does your coach communicate in a way you understand?
One of the most important questions you can ask yourself is how well your trainer communicates with you.
If you don’t understand something, you need to tell them and not be ashamed of it. That’s why you’re there.
They must be able to explain it in a way that you can understand. Otherwise, you’ll struggle to make the changes necessary to improve the game.
Your trainer should also have a timetable for each lesson and be able to review what has been covered at the end of each lesson.
This will help ensure that you are making progress between each lesson. In addition, the numbers on a Trackman should improve from the baseline.
5. Do you understand the concepts your golf coach explains?
Coaches are there to help you improve your game, but you need to make sure you get the most out of your lessons by asking the right questions.
Once your coach knows what you can and can’t do physically, you need to be able to understand the concepts he’s trying to convey.
If you keep making the same mistakes, your trainer probably wasn’t communicating with you in a way you understand. Including me.
When you come out of class, do you feel that you have a good plan to make the changes you need?
If the answer is yes…then you can start practicing and organizing information and concepts yourself.
If your answer is no…then you should ask more questions until you feel confident that you understand.
6. Are you going to practice between golf lessons?
One of the most important things you can do to improve your golf game is to practice between lessons.
Your coach may give you a plan to follow, but you must be willing to put in the time and effort to see results.
Make sure you have a practice area set up at home or when you return to the training ground so you can work on the same movements and concepts you learned in class.
Many players believe that as long as they show up for class, their golf swing will automatically improve. If only it were that simple… we’d all be better players.
The swing in golf is a fine motor skill, just like playing a musical instrument. If I sit you at the piano, how long will it take you to “recover”? One might even argue what that means.
Learning is not linear. No matter how slow you feel you’re progressing, as long as it keeps getting better… you win.
It’s like buying stocks. It will go up and down but as long as it is in an uptrend…you win.
What other golfers say…
7. Do you want to take it on course when you make changes
You took a golf lesson and had some good practice sessions. It’s time to take him to the golf course.
Before you hit the road, it will be important to define your expectations. Not every round should be all about scoring.
Many times I suggest that you track how well or poorly you’ve done what you’re working on using a scale of 1 to 10. This will help you get more references.
If you’re learning to make changes in class, it may take some time before you see results on the golf course.
summary
It’s easy to get caught up in the “next best thing” when it comes to making changes to your golf swing.
Make sure you get the most out of your lessons by asking the right questions.
Once your trainer knows what you can and cannot do physically, he will explain the concepts and it is up to you to ask questions until there is no confusion about the concept.
Remember, learning is not linear. You will have ups and downs. the important part is that it improves over time.
When it comes to golf, it’s easy to improve your performance, but actually learning fine motor skills is quite different.
It may take some time for the changes that are made during the lessons to be seen on the golf course. But if you see improvements over your baseline measurements, you’ve made progress and lower scores are just around the corner!
Want to improve your golf game?
Take a golf lesson with Brad in Sarasota, Florida
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