Post by liman on Apr 24, 2012 2:09:06 GMT -5
Just curious to see what others think.
In my area, we have mostly teachers that have spent their whole life here, so it's easy to know how good of players they are. Many shoot in the mid to high 70's on their best days, and can't do things like work the ball or hit different shots. Many are also in their early to mid 20's.
I finally broke down and bought a series of lessons with a local pro last year (he was running a special 3 for $100, so I took a chance) and it went pretty bad. He was telling me things to correct, but when I asked him to show me so I understood better, he couldn't do it either. He said he was rusty after not getting to play much. After the first lesson I never went back for the other two. Super nice guy, but I didn't really understand what he wanted me to do, and when he tried it he hit a couple of weak slices. I just had no confidence in him. Others have said he really helped them.
So my question (or questions, I guess) is, does this matter to people? Would you take lessons from a 25 year old that barely breaks 80 on a good day? Or take age out of it. Would it make a difference if the instructor was 45, but still was throwing up a 77 on his best day?
How good at actual playing do you want your instructor to be? Would you trust that even if they can't play the shots, they can still teach them?
Personally, it makes me nervous to plunk down $50-$75 to even give a guy a shot when I know he can't at least shoot par on a regular basis. I know many don't have much time to practice and play themselves, and I don't expect them to shoot a 65 every time, but shouldn't they be able to keep it in the low 70's most of the time, and at least hit the ball pretty solid?
Maybe I expect too much. For what it is worth, I have been as low as a 4, but hover now around a 10 Hcp. The reason I ask is that I would like to get back down to the 4 but I think I really need a coach to help me. I just can't seem to make progress by myself, but don't want to hook up with someone that will mess me up and it will take me 6 months and several hundred dollars to find out.
John
In my area, we have mostly teachers that have spent their whole life here, so it's easy to know how good of players they are. Many shoot in the mid to high 70's on their best days, and can't do things like work the ball or hit different shots. Many are also in their early to mid 20's.
I finally broke down and bought a series of lessons with a local pro last year (he was running a special 3 for $100, so I took a chance) and it went pretty bad. He was telling me things to correct, but when I asked him to show me so I understood better, he couldn't do it either. He said he was rusty after not getting to play much. After the first lesson I never went back for the other two. Super nice guy, but I didn't really understand what he wanted me to do, and when he tried it he hit a couple of weak slices. I just had no confidence in him. Others have said he really helped them.
So my question (or questions, I guess) is, does this matter to people? Would you take lessons from a 25 year old that barely breaks 80 on a good day? Or take age out of it. Would it make a difference if the instructor was 45, but still was throwing up a 77 on his best day?
How good at actual playing do you want your instructor to be? Would you trust that even if they can't play the shots, they can still teach them?
Personally, it makes me nervous to plunk down $50-$75 to even give a guy a shot when I know he can't at least shoot par on a regular basis. I know many don't have much time to practice and play themselves, and I don't expect them to shoot a 65 every time, but shouldn't they be able to keep it in the low 70's most of the time, and at least hit the ball pretty solid?
Maybe I expect too much. For what it is worth, I have been as low as a 4, but hover now around a 10 Hcp. The reason I ask is that I would like to get back down to the 4 but I think I really need a coach to help me. I just can't seem to make progress by myself, but don't want to hook up with someone that will mess me up and it will take me 6 months and several hundred dollars to find out.
John
