What makes a good pro?

[Alex1975]

Hi all,

Inspired by another post I got to thinking what makes a good pro. The closest I have come was my first pro, he was teaching me the basics, I got on with him and I trusted him, sadly he moved on.

My ideal pro would be somone who makes me understand what I am doing wrong and what the repercutions of that are. I find I learn best when I have all the facts so that I can soak them and process them in my own way and time. I want the best way of doing things not just the latest, no matter what the time frame and workload. He would have slow mo cameras for technical work and in an ideal world a radar of some sort.

I would like him to have a well stocked shop and know his stuff and maybe most of all he should still play and enjoy golf.

Is your pro any good or what would make a good pro to you?


Al

 

[G_Mulligan]

I am going to get into coaching after I graduate Uni so speaking from what I think I will need would be good communication would be right up there. Patience persistence and passion as well. The ability not only to teach but to learn as well and constantly improve their methods. I am not too bothered with the fancy gadgets personally although I am sure they can help in some cases.

 

[Alex1975]

A slow motion camera is a must in my opinion, the student can not see his/her self and in order to understand something it's a huge bonus to be able to see it. Seeing is believing.

 

[Imurg]

Honestly don't know.
Only ever had a 20 minute free lesson when I first joined the club in '93.
Only real experience of a teaching Pro. Actually spent more time in the company of a Touring Pro than a Club Pro.

 

[G_Mulligan]

I agree the odd clip to check things are on the right track is useful but I think super slow motion is a bit of over kill. The downswing takes less than a second to complete what can you really have in your head at that point? You don't have time to think elbow position, knee position, hands, arms, hips, feet, etc so slow mo video could just lead to overcomplicating something that should be kept as simple as possible.

It is only my opinion but I think old fashioned training aids like impact bags give the brain the information of where it is supposed to end up and with the proper instruction the body will follow.

 

[timgolfy]

Good teachers help students learn. It's a specialist skill.

 

[Matty]

Communication.

It's doesn't matter how much they know if they can't convey it to their pupil.

But since communication is a 2 way thing it depends a lot on rapport too. Teacher and pupil must develop an effective level of trust - the pupil must define what they want from the lessons and the pro must define what they can deliver and how right from the outset.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Communication, flexibility, business acumen, an ability to develop players of all standards, patience, a photographic memory to recall evey members's name, last conversation or round (you know they'll ask you something about either), an affinity with Mars bars, some degree of technical adeptness (club repairs etc) and a lot of perseverance

 

[coolhand]

I think that there are 2 types of Pro - Club and Teaching - requiring different types of talent.

Club pro's need to socialable, like banter, have a good memory for faces and be commercial minded.

Teaching pro's need to be good communicators, empathetic, detailed and technically minded.

The best pros combine both but being good at one or the other is great provided they realise where their strengths lie and pitch themselves accordingly.

 

[ScienceBoy]

For a teaching pro I would look for ones:

with echnical knowledge
with lots of experience
willing to use video
able to read the needs of the student
able to take feedback and use it to benefit the student

My current pro is all of the above, I was very lucky to find him and he is the first pro I have ever had a series of 1 on 1 lessons with.

 

[Toby_LeRhone]

The 'x' factor; i dont really know what it is, but i knew it when i found it.

 

[crux]

They have to be able to teach and that takes communication and passion for what they are doing. Even when they are teaching a hacker not just a good player. In short they have to connect with you and in a very short time, inspire you to give your full trust into what they are preaching.

Then, I think the ability to see what you do well, and enhance the swing around your natural motion is the key for me.

Butch Harmon is always lauded because no two of his players look like they have the same swing, he does not teach a method or positions he improves what the player already does.

I don't think everyone needs to swing on the same plane and hit the same positions during a swing. You just have to hit it solid at impact in the same way every time. That's what thousands of good players up and down the land do almost every time they play, and a lot have never had a lesson, they just repeat the swing they have really well.

 

[Oddsocks]

Although the results are coming slowly, I'm really chuffed with my current pro. Silly things like when I'm on the range pre round he'll cone over and give the odd 15 min lesson for free, on Sunday's if I have any comps I always get a text about 4 asking how I got on etc

Just wish this in to out swing fault would go quicker but I know it's not he's methods as two other pro's have struggled with this fault over the last 3-4 years .

If I do change course I think I'd still keep my lessons with him although there is someone out there who has other ideas on my swing fault who I may try for a couple of sessions once this course has finished

 

[Lawrence22]

I have had 2 experiences with pros. The first was with the club pro at my dads club when I was a junior. The guy so overloaded me with information that I was completely lost. I hated going to him and at age 14 he did a lot to put me off golf.
My second experience was much better. I have now taken a couple of lessons with a teaching pro from the Darren Clarke school of golf. At first I thought I was being short changed. First lesson consisted of 2 things, grip and posture, that's it. Showed me what to do, gave me a few drills, told me to go practice and not come back for about a month untill that bedded in. About 2 weeks later I started to notice improvements in my game. After a month I go back for second lesson which involved video playback. 2 things from this lesson widen my stance and concentrate on keeping my head still during my backswing. I couldn't believe how much I was moving my head behind the ball when I saw vid. He said if I could keep my head in line with the ball it should help to stop me hitting the ground in front of the ball. Some more drills given, and last sunday I had my best round yet. Don't think I hit ground before ball once.
So far I am very pleased with this approach to teaching, I am not being overloaded with info and I am seeing results. I now need to try and sort out my short game and putting.

 

[Jabba]

I agree with so many other posters, communication is key. Knowledge is useless if you cannot convey it to the pupil. I think empathy is important too, it's no use asking a middle aged high handicapper like myself to do things that you would ask a teenage category 1 player to do. On a more general level I think a good pro has to have retained the love of the game. I know our pro still seems to genuinely love talking about golf and look at Bob on here, he dispenses advice and chats about the game despite it being his job. the pros at some clubs you visit seem to hate being at the course and are a bloody poor advert for the clubs who employ them.