Fitness
Fitness has become a very important part of golf and instruction. I believe the body should be balanced to allow someone to perform athletically in any sport. Flexibility is a function of both range of motion and strength. Both areas need to be addressed in an efficient golf swing, as well as core stability and speed.
There are many important muscle groups in the body. The glutes, core and shoulders are areas that tend to give individuals problems. There are many simple exercises and activities for students to get their body in shape to swing a club more efficiently. it is my job to understand any imbalance or deficiency in the students body that may inhibit them from swinging efficiently.
I have gone through the TPI certification process to better understand how to asses individuals and the relationships between their fitness and golf swing movements.
Junior Golf
The two most important things for a successful junior program are for the juniors to have fun and to be safe.
The younger the kids the more activities should be geared towards motor skill learning and having fun. Running, jumping, skipping, throwing, and laughing are all important. I like kids to have races that are fun, create a sense of competition and help them develop athletically. Coordination and body awareness can be enhanced by introducing many different activities and even other sports. The more kids have fun the more they will want to come to the course and will become better golfers.
As juniors grow they should have a better understanding of rules and etiquette and begin to focus more on swing mechanics. Many life lessons are learned in sports while kids are having fun.
