Will Golf Lessons
Really Help?
This is a tough topic to write about because there are so many things to take into consideration. So if I overlook a point or two please feel free to add them via the comments section at the bottom of this article.
The benefits of taking lessons to learn and improve your golf game are many. Regardless of where you are in your golf life, how long you’ve played or how good you THINK you are, there is ALWAYS room for improvement. Why do you think the pros on both the men’s and women’s tours have coaches??
Where to start?
For beginners to the game of golf, there is nothing better than to enlist the help of a qualified golf instructor. I highly recommend looking for Certified PGA and LPGA Teaching Pros. Well-meaning spouses and significant others should be AVOIDED at all costs for the sake of preserving your personal relationship. Don’t be afraid to ask friends, family or co-workers for input as to which golf pro to seek out but remember the ultimate goal is to find someone that YOU can relate to and that can relate to YOU and YOUR needs. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and go with your ‘gut’ as to how you feel about their approach to helping you get comfortable. Feel free to ‘shop around’ until you find the pro for you.
Almost every club and practice facility offers group and individual lessons. Pricing is determined by the facility and/or the golf professional. If your budget is tight (and whose isn’t in today’s world) group lessons are not only more affordable but they also allow you to learn with a friend or develop new friends and practice partners. Group lessons/golf clinics can be fun and keep you interested at a very comfortable pace and price.
Whether you go it alone or with a group or a combination of both getting t
he basics down is critical to getting off on the right foot, so to speak. Establishing practice times outside of the lessons are needed as well. This is better done at a practice range rather than a golf course, at least until you start to feel some level of confidence. Otherwise you might feel pressure from golfers playing behind you and that can lead to a miserable experience. Take your time and work at your pace. This game can be enjoyed for a lifetime – no need to rush!!
After you’ve played for a while
Don’t think just because you have graduated to playing ‘real’ golf
on the various types of courses that your learning is over. If you are satisfied with where you are that is fine. Not everyone strives for the same level of performance or improvement.
For me, I needed to try to get some consistency in my swing (outside of my consistent ability to mishit my shots). I swear my clubs are defective. There are no sweet spots in my golf clubs! That has to be it. Certainly it can’t be MY fault 
.
I took my own advice and went ‘shopping’ for a Golf Pro. Joel Suggs, Master PGA Teaching Professional, was my choice. Not only does Joel have the demeanor that works well with my personality but he also has the latest in teaching equipment and works at a first-class teaching facility, Meadow Links & Golf Academy in Cincinnati, OH. It also didn’t hurt to learn that Joel’s golf bloodlines are strong. His aunt, Louise Suggs, is one of the founding members of the LPGA. Talk about a pedigree…it doesn’t get much better than that (at least, from my perspective).
Joel uses videotape, the latest equipment and tools along with personal observation to see what is currently going on in my swing and addresses points of change in small doses. He uses analogies quite cleverly to enhance my visualization of what I am trying to do to make the change we are working on at the moment. I feel have a slight advantage due to my career as a tennis pro in that I can ‘feel’ a lot of what I am doing when I swing but that isn’t enough to affect a change. Seeing my swing as it is broken down via the videotaping serves to reinforce what I am feeling and to also point out what is working well. Focusing on only the negative is not conducive to feeling good and improving. Joel does a great job infusing the positives all the while pinpointing the ‘little’ things that need to be tweaked.
JoelSuggs.com, Top 50 in America
Joel and I have much work to do yet but the improvements are already starting to translate to the course. He has helped me identify an ‘over the top’ shortened swing and has given me the tools to start swinging more ‘inside out’ and with more extension on the follow through. The real question is can this ‘old’ aching body handle all that extension? For that issue I have turned to a couple of golf fitness instructors. I’ll write more about that experience in an upcoming article.
For now, please look seriously at the value that golf lessons can provide. If you are lucky enough to live in the Greater Cincinnati area, please consider chatting with Joel Suggs to see if he might be right for you.
Thanks for visiting Ladies on the Tee Golf Blog at www.sherrytabb.com. If you have other golf pros or facilities that you would recommend please add them via the comments area below.
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Tags: Certified Golf Professional, game of golf, golf, golf lessons, Joel Suggs, Louise Suggs, LPGA, PGA
I agree totally, take lessons from a teaching pro or qualified instructor. I hit my first little white ball many, many years ago, and someone told me then. Hit the heck out of it, which I did for about six months. I found I could hit a long ball, but it was never straight. It was off to the right, and off to the left, so I decided to take lessons from a professional. She taught me to bring the ball in, from my slices, and hooks. She taught me to draw the ball, and fade the ball. I would have never learned this on my own. So yes, I do believe everyone should take a few lessons.
A thought came to me while I was reading your article. Is Joel Suggs, related to Louise Suggs the professional golfer from years ago?
Thank you for an informative web site.
Rose
Thanks, Rose. Yes, Louise Suggs is Joel’s aunt.
If a person is planning to take up golf, lessons I feel are mandatory! Golf is a very complex “simple” game. Just go to the driving ranges and look at the different swings people have. I feel 90% of the average golfers are still clueless about the golf swing. If an individual can at least drive the ball 220 yards, that person should be regularly scoring in the 80′s at their local muni. Anything over 100, lessons are needed. How often have you been paired up with a beginner golfer who never took up lessons, hits the ball everywhere and you help look for their ball? This round would have taken longer and wouldn’t have been as fun.
Finding a golf professional is very important. You need to find the “right” golf pro. Unfortunately, this is one of the hardest thing to do. I feel a lot of “places” (I won’t mention specific places) gives lessons strictly for revenue not so much as to improving that individuals golf swing.
Golf is a very fun game: you are outdoors, socializing, hanging out with your buddies.
It shouldn’t be a frustrating game. Take a lesson if you need it, it’ll be worth every penny on the golf course!
Pete, great info and food for thought. Welcome to Ladies on the Tee. I hope we hear more from you.
One last thought, Any sport..Basketball, Tennis, Baseball,
you name it…all require instruction. I find it hard to believe that
anyone would attempt the game of golf without it.
Reggie, You are so RIGHT!! Lessons can alleviate a lot of frustration and misery. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.