Today we will be looking at coaching on the course.
Junior coaching in golf can raise many questions. What’s the most effective way to get the best out of your kids, and how can we keep them interested in the great game of golf? This is because the approach to coaching juniors is different to that of coaching adults.
Andrew Simmonds and Phillip Akers from The Belfry have it all figured out with their junior coaching programmes.
In this video, Andrew and Phil discuss on-course coaching with the Pro down at the Shack.
On the course
It’s something that a lot of children don’t get the chance to do is get out on the course, even though it’s their dynamic learning environment and where we want them.
So the game we play is Seve based and we can make it a one or two club challenge. We allow the children to choose their clubs so this encourages them to test out different types of shots on the course.
It’s a really great game because it gets the children to learn how to hit a 7 iron high and low, out of the rough or even a chip and run. It really is a very rewarding game for the children.
Andrew Simmonds is a PGA Professional with over 10 years of coaching experience. He taught at The Darren Clarke Golf School in Northern Ireland and then went on to complete the Advanced Certificate in Golf Coaching at the University of Birmingham, specialising in research of participation/drop rates in youth sport.
Andrew now consults with other PGA Professionals on how to run effective golf coaching programmes.
Phillip Akers is a Senior PGA National Academy Coach & Director of Junior Golf at The Belfry. Phillip specialises in Junior Development and coaches some of the finest junior golfers in the U.K.