Opinion & Analysis
Why golf coaching works
When I started in the golf business, I knew that I wanted to teach the game. In order to do it at a high level, I shadowed some of the best instructors in golf. This was tremendously beneficial, as I learned that I needed to develop a philosophy that fit me and that I believed in. What made each instructor great was their ability to communicate with the student, and they did so in a clear and concise manner. Each also communicated a clear philosophy in which they deeply believed in.
However, what was always a bit troubling to me was the fact each and every lesson I witnessed took place on the driving range and not on the golf course where the game is played. Every lesson took place on the range, and most were based on what the student thought they needed to work on to get better. While this produced a lot of great looking golf swings, it did not always translate to lower scores, and we ALL ultimately want to shoot lower scores.
With the understanding that our ultimate goal is to shoot lower scores and enjoy the game more, I knew that I needed to teach on the golf course. This was paramount in order to learn exactly how my students played the game of golf. Getting on the golf course allowed me to take a true assessment of their game and learn their strengths and weaknesses. It allowed me to give the student what they actually need to succeed, instead of simply giving them what they thought they needed.
In 2017, I heard a podcast featuring Will Robins who was talking about the same concept and making the distinction between coaching and instruction. I believed in what he was talking about, and what separated a coach from a traditional instructor. It is exactly what I thought all along. I joined Will’s consulting group in 2017, and started to better implement what it meant to be a coach. With Will’s guidance the results I was able to achieve by fully committing to the Coaching Model speak for themselves. Coaching clearly works at all levels, let me tell you why.
It gives the student what they need, not what they want
Traditional golf instruction became so heavily focused on “customer service” and giving the student what they wanted, that it lost sight of the overall result. In order to achieve those great results, I believe in giving my students what they need. A perfect example of this is a personal trainer. Let’s say you have a wedding to go to in 2 months and you need to lose 10 lbs. That trainer is going to get you up early, make you stick to eating healthy, and make you sore after every workout to achieve the desired result. Then at the wedding, you love your personal trainer because you look and feel great. However, if that same trainer lets you dictate what you will eat, what you’ll work on during workouts, and when you’ll come back next, the trainer will fail miserably. In other words he is paid to give you what you NEED, to get you the result you want.
Assess your game on course in a team environment
In order to give my students what they need I must learn about how they play the game. Are they anxious on the first tee? Do they get mad at things they can’t control? Do they think their driver is awful, but had 44 putts? Instead of relying on guessing, I can create a game plan through the on course assessment. I like to do this in a team environment for a few reasons. It helps me simulate pressure and many times students will learn as much from each other as they do from me. It is a win-win for everyone.
Create an improvement plan and define your goals
Based on the game assessment I set up an improvement plan for each student. This allows us to set measurable goals. An example that Will Robins uses is 10 shots in 10 weeks. The goal could be anything really, most importantly it is specific to that student. I always like to set a goal based on score because that is ultimately what we want. Lower scores to make the game more enjoyable. The improvement plan gives us a common goal, it allows me to hold my players accountable, and also allows me to do whatever it takes to get them there. It also allows my players to hold me accountable to achieving their goal, creating a true partnership
Develop your mindset
As an instructor it is easy to stand on a range and tell someone what they are doing wrong. It is easy to say I know it all, because I’m the Pro. However, it is vital I get on the course and play golf with my students. I want them to see me be vulnerable, because I want them to understand like Bob Rotella said, “Golf Is Not a Game of Perfect.” We need to stop searching for the perfect golf swing. News Flash: Nobody Has It!! In other words we need to re-train our mindset, and learn that it is often what we do after a poor shot to recover that really helps us score better.
Map your plan, apply to your game and track performance
So often I see golfers trying to be perfect but they don’t know the REAL stats. All of my students know that PGA Tour players make 99 percent of putts from 3 feet, but they fail to understand that those same PGA Tour players only make 55 percent from 6 feet. Go back to 10 feet and it drops to 35 percent. Yet time and again I see my students extremely upset after missing a 20 foot putt. The reality is most golfers are more likely to three putt from 20 feet than to make the putt. So I teach my students to simplify the game. I show them how to never make double bogey again by keeping the ball in play, and developing a great short game. When my students start to realize that the real game of golf means getting the ball holed in less shots, it changes their mindset. We use a specific scorecard to track stats that REALLY matter on the golf course and to track performance over time.
Tailor your plan through purposeful practice
When is the last time your instructor showed you exactly how to practice? Coaching is a mix of on course playing sessions and off course purposeful practice sessions. This allows me as coach the time to work on exactly what is wrong my students game. It could be anything, but most importantly it will be exactly what they need based on the playing session. Even more importantly we do both drills and tests to track progress on our practice scorecard. This allows the student to become less dependent on the instructor, and more independent, because they know what they need to do to improve each week.
Golf coaching works because it is focused on all aspects of the game, not simply technique. It teaches the golfer how to score, and how to do so under pressure in a team environment. It is results based rather than creating a “perfect golf swing.” The concept is simple in nature, but is harder to execute and stay accountable to. For these reasons, I’d challenge you to seek out a golf coach rather than a traditional instructor for your next series of lessons.
As the editor-in-chief of this website and an observer of the GolfWRX forums and other online golf equipment discourse for over a decade, I’m pretty well attuned to the grunts and grumbles of a significant portion of the golf equipment purchasing spectrum. And before you accuse me of lording above all in some digital ivory tower, I’d like to offer that I worked at golf courses (public and private) for years prior to picking up my pen, so I’m well-versed in the non-degenerate golf equipment consumers out there. I touched (green)grass (retail)!
Complaints about the ills of and related to the OEMs usually follow some version of: Product cycles are too short for real innovation, tour equipment isn’t the same as retail (which is largely not true, by the way), too much is invested in marketing and not enough in R&D, top staffer X hasn’t even put the new driver in play, so it’s obviously not superior to the previous generation, prices are too high, and on and on.
Without digging into the merits of any of these claims, which I believe are mostly red herrings, I’d like to bring into view of our rangefinder what I believe to be the two primary difficulties golf equipment companies face.
One: As Terry Koehler, back when he was the CEO of Ben Hogan, told me at the time of the Ft Worth irons launch, if you can’t regularly hit the golf ball in a coin-sized area in the middle of the face, there’s not a ton that iron technology can do for you. Now, this is less true now with respect to irons than when he said it, and is less and less true by degrees as the clubs get larger (utilities, fairways, hybrids, drivers), but there remains a great deal of golf equipment truth in that statement. Think about it — which is to say, in TL;DR fashion, get lessons from a qualified instructor who will teach you about the fundamentals of repeatable impact and how the golf swing works, not just offer band-aid fixes. If you can’t repeatably deliver the golf club to the golf ball in something resembling the manner it was designed for, how can you expect to be getting the most out of the club — put another way, the maximum value from your investment?
Similarly, game improvement equipment can only improve your game if you game it. In other words, get fit for the clubs you ought to be playing rather than filling the bag with the ones you wish you could hit or used to be able to hit. Of course, don’t do this if you don’t care about performance and just want to hit a forged blade while playing off an 18 handicap. That’s absolutely fine. There were plenty of members in clubs back in the day playing Hogan Apex or Mizuno MP-32 irons who had no business doing so from a ballstriking standpoint, but they enjoyed their look, feel, and complementary qualities to their Gatsby hats and cashmere sweaters. Do what brings you a measure of joy in this maddening game.
Now, the second issue. This is not a plea for non-conforming equipment; rather, it is a statement of fact. USGA/R&A limits on every facet of golf equipment are detrimental to golf equipment manufacturers. Sure, you know this, but do you think about it as it applies to almost every element of equipment? A 500cc driver would be inherently more forgiving than a 460cc, as one with a COR measurement in excess of 0.83. 50-inch shafts. Box grooves. And on and on.
Would fewer regulations be objectively bad for the game? Would this erode its soul? Fortunately, that’s beside the point of this exercise, which is merely to point out the facts. The fact, in this case, is that equipment restrictions and regulations are the slaughterbench of an abundance of innovation in the golf equipment space. Is this for the best? Well, now I’ve asked the question twice and might as well give a partial response, I guess my answer to that would be, “It depends on what type of golf you’re playing and who you’re playing it with.”
For my part, I don’t mind embarrassing myself with vintage blades and persimmons chasing after the quasi-spiritual elevation of a well-struck shot, but that’s just me. Plenty of folks don’t give a damn if their grooves are conforming. Plenty of folks think the folks in Liberty Corner ought to add a prison to the museum for such offences. And those are just a few of the considerations for the amateur game — which doesn’t get inside the gallery ropes of the pro game…
Different strokes in the game of golf, in my humble opinion.
Anyway, I believe equipment company engineers are genuinely trying to build better equipment year over year. The marketing departments are trying to find ways to make this equipment appeal to the broadest segment of the golf market possible. All of this against (1) the backdrop of — at least for now — firm product cycles. And golfers who, with their ~15 average handicap (men), for the most part, are not striping the golf ball like Tiger in his prime and seem to have less and less time year over year to practice and improve. (2) Regulations that massively restrict what they’re able to do…
That’s the landscape as I see it and the real headwinds for golf equipment companies. No doubt, there’s more I haven’t considered, but I think the previous is a better — and better faith — point of departure when formulating any serious commentary on the golf equipment world than some of the more cynical and conspiratorial takes I hear.
Agree? Disagree? Think I’m worthy of an Adam Hadwin-esque security guard tackle? Let me know in the comments.
@golfoncbs The infamous Adam Hadwin tackle ? #golf #fyp #canada #pgatour #adamhadwin ? Ghibli-style nostalgic waltz – MaSssuguMusic
Episode #16 brings us Cliff McKinney. Cliff is the founder of Old Charlie Golf Club, a new club, and concept, to be built in the Florida panhandle. The model is quite interesting and aims to make great, private golf more affordable. We hope you enjoy the show!
Last week, I came across a reel from BBC Sport on Instagram featuring Scottie Scheffler speaking to the media ahead of The Open at Royal Portrush. In it, he shared that he often wonders what the point is of wanting to win tournaments so badly — especially when he knows, deep down, that it doesn’t lead to a truly fulfilling life.
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“Is it great to be able to win tournaments and to accomplish the things I have in the game of golf? Yeah, it brings tears to my eyes just to think about it because I’ve literally worked my entire life to be good at this sport,” Scheffler said. “To have that kind of sense of accomplishment, I think, is a pretty cool feeling. To get to live out your dreams is very special, but at the end of the day, I’m not out here to inspire the next generation of golfers. I’m not out here to inspire someone to be the best player in the world, because what’s the point?”
Ironically — or perhaps perfectly — he went on to win the claret jug.
That question — what’s the point of winning? — cuts straight to the heart of the human journey.
As someone who’s spent over two decades in the trenches of professional golf, and in deep study of the mental, emotional, and spiritual dimensions of the game, I see Scottie’s inner conflict as a sign of soul evolution in motion.
I came to golf late. I wasn’t a junior standout or college All-American. At 27, I left a steady corporate job to see if I could be on the PGA Tour starting as a 14-handicap, average-length hitter. Over the years, my journey has been defined less by trophies and more by the relentless effort to navigate the deeply inequitable and gated system of professional golf — an effort that ultimately turned inward and helped me evolve as both a golfer and a person.
One perspective that helped me make sense of this inner dissonance around competition and our culture’s tendency to overvalue winning is the idea of soul evolution.
The University of Virginia’s Division of Perceptual Studies has done extensive research on reincarnation, and Netflix’s Surviving Death (Episode 6) explores the topic, too. Whether you take it literally or metaphorically, the idea that we’re on a long arc of growth — from beginner to sage elder — offers a profound perspective.
If you accept the premise literally, then terms like “young soul” and “old soul” start to hold meaning. However, even if we set the word “soul” aside, it’s easy to see that different levels of life experience produce different worldviews.
Newer souls — or people in earlier stages of their development — may be curious and kind but still lack discernment or depth. There is a naivety, and they don’t yet question as deeply, tending to see things in black and white, partly because certainty feels safer than confronting the unknown.
As we gain more experience, we begin to experiment. We test limits. We chase extreme external goals — sometimes at the expense of health, relationships, or inner peace — still operating from hunger, ambition, and the fragility of the ego.
It’s a necessary stage, but often a turbulent and unfulfilling one.
David Duval fell off the map after reaching World No. 1. Bubba Watson had his own “Is this it?” moment with his caddie, Ted Scott, after winning the Masters.
In Aaron Rodgers: Enigma, reflecting on his 2011 Super Bowl win, Rodgers said:
“Now I’ve accomplished the only thing that I really, really wanted to do in my life. Now what? I was like, ‘Did I aim at the wrong thing? Did I spend too much time thinking about stuff that ultimately doesn’t give you true happiness?’”
Jim Carrey once said, “I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.”
Eventually, though, something shifts.
We begin to see in shades of gray. Winning, dominating, accumulating—these pursuits lose their shine. The rewards feel more fleeting. Living in a constant state of fight-or-flight makes us feel alive, yes, but not happy and joyful.
Compassion begins to replace ambition. Love, presence, and gratitude become more fulfilling than status, profits, or trophies. We crave balance over burnout. Collaboration over competition. Meaning over metrics.
Interestingly, if we zoom out, we can apply this same model to nations and cultures. Countries, like people, have a collective “soul stage” made up of the individuals within them.
Take the United States, for example. I’d place it as a mid-level soul: highly competitive and deeply driven, but still learning emotional maturity. Still uncomfortable with nuance. Still believing that more is always better. Despite its global wins, the U.S. currently ranks just 23rd in happiness (as of 2025). You might liken it to a gifted teenager—bold, eager, and ambitious, but angsty and still figuring out how to live well and in balance. As much as a parent wants to protect their child, sometimes the child has to make their own mistakes to truly grow.
So when Scottie Scheffler wonders what the point of winning is, I don’t see someone losing strength.
I see someone evolving.
He’s beginning to look beyond the leaderboard. Beyond metrics of success that carry a lower vibration. And yet, in a poetic twist, Scheffler did go on to win The Open. But that only reinforces the point: even at the pinnacle, the question remains. And if more of us in the golf and sports world — and in U.S. culture at large — started asking similar questions, we might discover that the more meaningful trophy isn’t about accumulating or beating others at all costs.
It’s about awakening and evolving to something more than winning could ever promise.
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John
Jan 3, 2019 at 2:02 pm
Matt is a young professional who loves to teach and his method is not only very effective but very reasonably priced. Although even excellent golfers could
benefit, he helped me shed beau-coup strokes, and I’m old enough to collect my pension. Yes, I had to put work in, but it was a blast and Matt was a riot to work with.
Patricknorm
Jan 1, 2019 at 8:20 am
My coach starts each session for a few minutes on the range watching me go through my bag. We then hit the course to play usually 3 or 4 holes , with the emphasis on strategy and then refining certain aspects. I cannot stress the importance of coaching. You can be foolish and spend wasteful dollars on the shiniest new toy, or you can spend time perfecting your swing flaws. You should be properly fit for the correct equipment, but if you’re a serious golfer, coaching is the best bang for your buck.
stan
Dec 31, 2018 at 3:19 pm
Very few golfers will benefit from this kind of teaching because very few are willing to make a commitment to training and practice. Most ‘golfers’ are immature non-athletic c r u d ….. and too stupid to learn and play well. I think this truth is obvious on this gearhead geek forum where ‘love’ is the equipment buzzword.
Bill Simpson
Dec 31, 2018 at 4:18 pm
So true and the proof is annual equipment model changes to exploit the desperation of incompetent golfers and childish golf club Lovers.
Ed LeBeau
Dec 31, 2018 at 2:07 pm
This article is titled, “Why golf coaching works”. It implies that golf coaching is something better than golf instruction. If we define golf instruction as limited to swing technique then I agree. However, there are two factors underlying this matter. First, the player may want and in fact only need to improve their technique and second few instructors are presented with players who demonstrate their technique is adequate but their scoring is deficient.
Paul Mattie
Jan 3, 2019 at 12:18 pm
Bill sucks headcovers
Paul Mattie
Dec 31, 2018 at 12:02 pm
This is the way my coach operates. Unless you do the home work you didn’t progress to the next step. He also had me on course not only where he taught but he also came to my place and spent 3 hours going over my troubles spots . This led to specific changes in club selection and course management.
Bill Simpson
Dec 31, 2018 at 4:23 pm
And how long did this teaching take, 6 months and several thousand $$$$$ ?
You could have bought a new set of golf clubs annually and feel good.
Paul Mattie
Jan 3, 2019 at 12:17 pm
Bill Simpson Go eff youself
Scott Saunders
Dec 31, 2018 at 11:51 am
Big takeaway is cost effectiveness. Most golfers considering lessons will balk at on-course fees and opt for range lessons. You’re correct that course controls are the key to lowering scoring. The answer to this would be figuring out how to evaluate each student for their on-course weaknesses so that you can coach these issues on-range or indoors.
Bill Simpson
Dec 31, 2018 at 4:20 pm
Tangible new golf clubs versus intangible golf lessons…. and the winner is…. 😛
Clark Williams
Jan 2, 2019 at 5:26 pm
One reason why Matt’s “team approach” works is that he walks with 4 players for 3-9 holes, not every week but every second or third week in a 10 week program. This reduces the individuals cost yet allows Matt to provide individual attention and learn about each player and how they actually play the game. I found it stimulating, educational, cost effective and fun. Especially good for new comers and intermediate players who want to improve and are willing to put in some time.
DS
Dec 31, 2018 at 11:40 am
My first ‘Shank’ rating. Not that what you wrote isn’t logical and the way much improvement should happen, but it’s totally unrealistic for the average golfer to afford. When instructors are charging $275+ for a 4 – 9 hole playing lesson, PLUS greens fees, your article is nothing more than a pipe dream.
Since I called out your pipe dream, here’s mine:
1) For these lesson factories (I’m looking at you, GolfTec), have a ‘pay for improvement’ arrangement. I’d pay $1k to lower my handicap by 5 strokes. And with GolfTec, they can actually monitor my effort so it’s not like I’m asking to spend 90 minutes in a bay and magically improve by 5 strokes. I’ll put in the work, they put in the expertise, and the results should happen. If they don’t, then they don’t get paid or at least they take a material cut from their fees. I got an email from GolfTec and responded with this idea. I’m sure there’s no surprise that pay for results isn’t anything they’re interested in.
2) Same hourly rates on the course as at the range. Why is Joe Pro charging $65/hr at the range but essentially $125/hr on the course? Did he suddenly get much smarter when real balls are used? I don’t think so, and this ridiculous price gouging needs to stop. Do you care about growing the game and having students get better, or is this just a way to make a fast couple of hundred bucks on your sucker student’s back?
3) Stop being so contradictory with each other. Had a great experience in NC for a 3-day school, but they started with ‘so tired of people telling me they need to keep their head down, or they want to stop swinging over the top’. I called them out on it because so many amateurs struggle with both, including me. Their response was to bring up Annika and Stenson and say with a wry smile ‘I think we’d all agree their pretty good’. To which I said – name me another one who swings like that? Crickets. Then I said Furyk is pretty good, as was (is?) Jim Thorpe – are they going to teach those swings? It’s this kind of contradictory BS that leaves amateurs confused.
No skin in the game, cost, and inconsistent approaches are big issues with how the game is taught today. If you pros don’t change your ways, don’t complain as we watch the game get less and less popular.
Matt
Jan 2, 2019 at 2:32 pm
DS,
I would love to learn more about your thoughts on how to improve golfers, adding a ‘skin in the game’ component. Hit me up with a DM in the forums. Strolf or email me matt@truemotionsports.com
Clark Williams
Jan 2, 2019 at 5:18 pm
Not true, I personally worked with Matt last summer, ten weeks (actually more due to rain outs) significantly less than $500(the cost of a driver). I had a severe back issue that flared up so was unable to practice effectively yet learned a lot about my game. Many at our course who worked with Matt saw significant improvement and more importantly had a better understanding of the game and therefore enjoyed their experience more.
A. Commoner
Jan 3, 2019 at 12:27 pm
absolutely love your post
Moxley
Dec 31, 2018 at 4:19 am
Interesting article.
I’ve no doubt that there is a place for your style of coaching, but I think it is better suited towards younger, elite golfers. I’m not so sure this is suited to the regular mid/high capper at the golf club who just wants to fix his slice or hit it a few yards further.
Your assertions about what golfers need starts with the assumption that success is defined as scoring better, but I think for more recreational golfers, success is simply having fun when playing with their mates. What they want is a few quick wins, something that is going to make them a little bit better without taking the fun away (i.e. clubbing down), and something to have fun working on – all of this needs to come at an affordable price, because for most, golf is just a hobby.
Serious golfers will always need serious golfers, but the objectives won’t always be the same with the average golfer.
wilbur
Dec 31, 2018 at 12:48 am
Great article but does the instructor/teacher/mentor help you pick out the best golf clubs for your game. Unless you have the best driver to best putter it’s all futile because the equipment is what counts in the final analysis.
Bill Simpson
Dec 31, 2018 at 4:24 pm
Bingo!!! The ‘best’ golf clubs will transform your swing and game overnight.
Ryan
Dec 30, 2018 at 9:34 pm
Great idea and approach, but I’m sure this type of service is not cheap.
Bill Simpson
Dec 31, 2018 at 4:26 pm
Yes, not cheap….. and neither are the ‘best’ golf clubs.
Obee
Dec 30, 2018 at 8:56 pm
Love this approach.
Tom L
Dec 30, 2018 at 6:31 pm
Sounds great but potentially pricey
Michael Deiters
Dec 30, 2018 at 2:29 pm
Good stuff. All “instruction” should look like this.
2putttom
Dec 30, 2018 at 1:32 pm
instructors I use teach on the course (when applicable) it has been beneficial and rewarding.
dj
Dec 30, 2018 at 12:26 pm
I like your idea of a metric that is measurable.