President’s Message
In contemplating the USGTF’s 25th anniversary, the one great thing I have come to appreciate over the years about teaching golf is the human element to the profession. Even with the advent of the information age, online learning and high-tech video analysis, nothing can truly replace the unique human engagement between student and teacher. In fact, golf teaching professionals have the opportunity to enhance a family vacation, mend a broken ego, and generally improve upon humanity. And because people will always crave human contact, our profession has provided employment for personable, qualified professionals for several hundred years.
And of course, we all know that we are in the people/personality business. That’s why being able to attend some of our regional, national, and world events are beneficial to all of us as ambassadors to the game. Golf has entered the global marketplace, and these events help to broaden our perspectives and offer opportunities for friendships with other teaching professionals that can last a lifetime. As an example, at the recent US Golf Teachers Cup in Boulder City, Nevada, last month, USGTF member Sachin Prasad flew all the way from Nepal to attend the event. Sachin is the head teaching professional at the Kathmandu Golf Club, and all participants who met Sachin were enlightened with his knowledge and passion for teaching the game. There was also a large contingent of Canadians, teachers from Trinidad and Tobago, Europeans and others who traveled far and wide to round out the field. The atmosphere and camaraderie at these events are just tremendous. Next year, the USGTF will be hosting the biennial World Golf Teachers Cup, which will see golf teaching professionals from nearly every golfing nation in attendance.
Dave Belling, originally from Ontario, Canada, was the overall winner of the event with two-day scores of 69 and 67 totaling 136. Dave currently resides in Mesa, Arizona, and is the teaching professional and general manager of Fountain of the Sun Country Club. Because Canadians have always fared so well at these events, Mark Harman, longtime tournament director, jokingly stated at the banquet dinner that all future US Golf Teachers Cup participants would have to show proof of U.S. citizenship!
There were two inductees into the USGTF Hall of Fame this year at the closing banquet, Pat Church and Ray Savoy. Pat was named as a USA golf coach for the 2011 Special Olympics in Athens, Greece, and in 2015 she will once again be coaching the Special Olympics team at the Los Angeles Games. Ray has been a USGTF member since 1995 and a Master Teaching Professional since 2002. He is the founder and director of the Langston Junior Boys and Girls Golf Club in Washington, D.C., which annually teaches over 200 kids the game of golf, as well as life lessons and the encouragement to strive for excellence in academia. Both individuals gave passionate accounts of their love for helping others through teaching and appreciation of the awards.
This annual event featured two well-received guest speakers as well, Dr. Michelle Cleere and Wayne Player. Michelle has a Ph.D. in sports psychology and is a frequent writer for Golf Teaching Pro magazine. She spoke of the benefits of a pre-performance routine, a pre-shot routine, and the best way to refocus between shots. Wayne, a USGTF member and son of legendary golfer Gary Player, gave a glowing account of his life and experiences in the world of golf. Having played in several majors himself, Wayne travels the world as a motivational speaker and golf coach.
So, what will the next 25 years bring to the specific field of golf instruction? I think that we can all be assured that despite whatever beneficial technological innovations may appear, the same basic core concepts of personal interactions will never be displaced. Teaching golf will always be a viable career for that very reason.
