PGA Best Practices: Blog

Use Clubfitting Equipment as Teaching Aids

Today’s PGAmagazine.com Blog moderator is PGA Professional Adam C. Smith.  Adam, the 2008 Middle Atlantic PGA Section Teacher of the Year, is the PGA director of instruction at Salisbury Country Club in Midlothian, Va.

How many times have you stopped a fitting and started a lesson? Did you know that your clubfitting systems are packed full of teaching instruments? Impact tape, lie boards, magnetic alignment indicators and swing speed analyzers are all vital teaching tools.

Just think about it. The tools that you use to gather information about a player’s equipment specifications not only give you vital feedback for an order, but also can provide feedback to your student about their swing.
 
Take impact tape, for example. Showing “off-center impact” with face tape is a great way to explain the  importance of fitting the proper shaft length to your student. But have you ever thought to take impact tape out with you for a lesson? It really comes in handy when a student is hitting thin shots, for example. Put some face tape on their club as you give them your prescribed tip to prevent thin shots. The tape will provide visible evidence of a more solid shot. The tape may become the remedy for thin shots as the student gets motivated to make a mark higher up on the tape. After the lesson, give your student several pieces of impact tape to practice with on their own. They will appreciate the gesture and will become motivated to improve.

How often do you have a student who is afraid to hit down on a wedge shot? Try taking a lie board and some lie angle tape into the short game area as you teach chipping and pitching. If they are reluctant to hit down on it because they fear a fat shot, then slip the lie board under their ball and place some lie angle tape on the sole of their club.  Teach them about the importance of a descending blow with the leading edge of their wedge. If they hit it fat, they won’t hear “splat.” They’ll feel a “bonk!” Students are more inclined to confidently try it again after a “drop-kick” off the board, versus a chunk shot onto the turf. The lie tape can be used as a motivator to get the student to see how the leading edge of the club is supposed to attack the turf. Explaining a forward hand position at address and through impact is one thing. Having the student feel and hear a descending attack is another. Lie boards and lie angle tape are great tools for this lesson.
 
Swing-speed analyzers have come a long way since fitting carts first came out. But some of the oldest such devices are still the most useful. Next time you have that student who wants to hit it farther, pull out your swing speed radar and capture a little before-and-after data. Does your student cast the club from the top, causing early extension and a loss of power at impact? Get their swing speed as they swing this way and write it down. Then, explain the problem. Demonstrate the right way. Change the swing in your custom way and re-record their swing speed after the change. Did more lag and a delaying of impact create more speed and power? Sure it did! And thanks to your swing-speed analyzer, you could record and explain the efficient swing changes to your student.

It is a very good idea to have your clubfitting systems displayed on your teaching tee at all times. They not only advertise clubfitting for you, but also serve as a resource for helpful golf instruction tools. Take advantage of your resources and try a few of these teaching techniques next time you are on the lesson tee.

In the Bunker with Obama

Today’s PGAmagazine.com Blog moderator is PGA Professional Gene Mulak. Gene is the PGA head professional at Vineyard Golf Club in Edgartown, Mass., on Martha's Vineyard.

There are very few people in life who can truly say they get to do what they love for a living.  You know what? I’ve yet to meet a PGA Professional who doesn’t have an affinity for the game of golf or their job.  The golf industry grants us many opportunities: the opportunity to be close to a sport we love, to be a teacher and share our knowledge with others, to influence our community, and to encounter many interesting people from all walks of life.

Earlier this summer I encountered a person who, were it not for my position as a golf professional, I probably would have never met.  When on vacation at Martha’s Vineyard, President Barack Obama opted for a couple rounds of golf at Vineyard Golf Club, where I serve as PGA head professional.  While he was using our short game practice area, I noticed he was having some difficulties getting out of the bunker consistently, so I said something from afar.  He motioned me over where, after working my way through an entourage of Secret Service Agents, I proceeded to offer him a little advice on bunker play.

As I assessed the President’s bunker strategy, I focused on three areas: ball position, address position and extending his arms through impact.  The President had a tendency to dig the club into the sand due to a closed club face, incorrect ball position and bent arms at impact. To help correct these flaws we moved the ball forward in his stance, opened the club face and worked on keeping his arms straight with the club positioned several inches behind the desired impact zone.  The result: On one of our most difficult par 3s the President found himself in the greenside bunker, but with his newly gained knowledge he was able to knock it out to about two feet and save par.

My home is located off of the 14th tee at our 18-hole private facility, and during his round the President was nice enough to stop and chat with my wife and son, and even pose for a picture.  I’m sure that many PGA Professionals have a story like this one to share; one where your position as a golf professional led to an unforgettable episode in your life.  Whether it’s working with a celebrity, a well-known tour professional, a talented junior or even the President of the United States, our expertise in the game of golf allows us to influence the lives of already influential people.  All in all, my experience with the President is one I’ll never forget. I hope he continues to be an advocate of our great sport and, furthermore, that he keeps practicing!

PGA Magazine encourages our PGA Professional readers to share unforgettable encounters or lessons you’ve had with high-profile persons.

The Importance of Fitness

Today’s PGAmagazine.com Blog moderator is PGA Professional Steve Brady. Steve is the PGA director of instruction at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Township, Mich. As a competitor, Steve has won two Michigan PGA Championships and three Michigan Opens, and has competed in three PGA Championships and two U.S. Opens.

If you look at the PGA and LPGA Tours as a starting point, you can see there is an obvious emphasis on strength and conditioning over the past decade or so – you can call it the “Tiger Effect.” Moreover, in many Division I golf programs around the country, players are required to meet certain conditioning requirements to even be considered. Specialized golf training academies are becoming more popular for players who have a strong desire to play on the collegiate level and beyond. Access to proper swing fundamentals, physical conditioning programs and nutritional information, led by the Titleist Performance Institute, is now necessary for any serious golfer, young or old.

Tournament players have long known the importance of staying in good physical condition in order to play well. With the advent of the Internet, there is more and more information readily available for many more players, hence the increasing numbers of quality young players. The “experienced” player also has more access to resources like injury prevention programs, warm-up routines and nutrition guidelines for golf and overall wellness.

From what I see, many of the current “programs” today tend to focus on “Big Muscles” of the hips and shoulders. Quality tournament players, however, know that the hands, wrists and forearms are actually the most important part of any golf swing. Sure, the faster the muscles can swing the club, the farther the ball may go. However, when the ball is in the rough, or in a tight lie, or when curve on the ball is required, strength and flexibility in the hands is a necessity. Thus, conditioning of the hands, wrists and forearms is fundamental to becoming a good player at any level.

Another major benefit is that back injuries would be reduced with proper hand, wrist and forearm motion. Players that can’t or won’t swing the golf club properly have to make up for the lack of clubhead speed and control by twisting and turning their bodies in inefficient ways. Hence the bad backs, torn rotator cuffs and so on. I see it all the time! Trying to keep your head down, with a very wide stance and no wrist hinge, then trying to turn your hips thru the ball like Tiger is a recipe for an MRI. No matter how much the equipment has helped, proper fitness-oriented instruction combined with a passion for the game, along with quality practice and repetition, are still the only ways to become a good player and enjoy the game for many years to come.