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Last week saw another momentous week in the continued growth in the status of Stewart Craig with Ladies European Tour stars Trish Johnson and Becky Brewerton visiting Falkirk Golf Club for a coaching session with him.
Both players were undergoing final preparations for the LET flagship event, the Dubai Ladies Masters. It shows what can be achieved if you have the drive and desire and willingness to learn from people who know more than you. Both Trish and Becky were hugely impressed with the quality of the teaching and practice facilities we have at Falkirk and are looking forward to next season, to come and use them in all their glory. Trish also said "I look forward to playing the course, it looks absolutely fantastic, especially considering how bad the weather has been".
Stewart said "Last week was a fantastic week for me. I am still fortunate to be working with Corinne Dibnah on a regular basis, but Corinne is just not getting the opportunity to play as much as she would like. Trish and Becky on the other hand are playing almost every week, so it is a real challenge to sit down with them and plot a development plan for next season. The session finished on Friday with Becky hitting 7 irons around 172 yards through the air into the wind at 3 degrees air temperature. That's after her hitting the same 7 iron 145 yards at the start of the session, so to say she was happy is a slight understatement".
There are a number of things however, for all of you guys out there teaching, that you can take from my experience.
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS OF TEACHING
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Decide what level you want to teach at, beginners, club players, low handicappers, tour pro's or any combination of the above.
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Concentrate on improving your knowledge and skills around the level of pupil you are going to work with.
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Don't try and fast track your way to becoming a tour coach. There is no short cut to being an experienced coach. Many coaches that I've come across around the world want to be tour coaches as soon as they have qualified. It's not possible. I started coaching tour players 10 years after I qualified and I would regard that as fast track.
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Surround yourself with people who know more than you and believe me there are lots of them out there. If you disagree with this point you are in the wrong job and you are already destined to fail.
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Be a sponge, soak up all available information and theories, test them for yourself and sift out what works and what doesn't.
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Get yourself a video analysis program (preferably Quintic) and a library of golf swings, then video as many of your pupils as possible, even if they are not having a video lesson. This allows you to analyse your pupils at your leisure and compare them against model swings.
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Expand your knowledge of all things golf, not just swing technique, club fitting, club making, strength and conditioning, physiotherapy and nutrition and hydration. You don't need to be an expert, just understand how they affect your pupils.
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Give your pupils the opportunity to improve in every lesson you give. Give them three small progressions per lesson, not one big one.
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Develop your own teaching philosophy and system but allow a degree of flexibility within your system because everything progresses.
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Finally I count myself extremely fortunate to class two of the most knowledgeable men in the golf coaching world as very good friends. The next time you see a CPD course which is being delivered by either Dr Paul Hurrion or Frank Scott, GET ON THAT COURSE!!! If you are not on those days to listen to these guys, you are not serious about teaching. I've heard all of the excuses as to why people are not there, but to be honest with you, these guys can elevate you as a coach to a level that you could never imagine. I can tell you that without the time both of these guys have spent with me over the years, I would not have reached the heights that I have now reached.
So follow the 10 commandments and you will succeed as a teaching professional, and most importantly be honest with yourself.
Trish and Becky go through their paces in Falkirk's performance golf studio with Club Professional, Stewart Craig.
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