Golf participation has seen a seismic boom throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, with millions of new and returning golfers lining the fairway throughout 2020 and 2021.
Although this is obviously a huge benefit to our great game, our thoughts should now turn to how we keep these high numbers involved within the sport when the Covid bubble does eventually burst. This is something that PGA Master Coach, Hugh Marr, is extremely passionate about, believing that the PGA Professional should be instrumental in ensuring golf’s growth and retention of players.
When golfers are introduced to the sport, their first port of call is often a Professional. His/her role is to oversee the golfing experience and make it as pleasurable as possible so the individual will want to return.
To become a PGA Professional, individuals are required to undertake a unique qualification which covers many different aspects, from teaching and coaching, to the principles of business, applied sports science and business finance. However, in order to become a great coach and enhance your abilities, Marr feels that additional training is necessary.
“Ultimately, I don’t think we are doing enough to become great coaches. We are gathering information from all of these sources, but we haven’t got a clue how to use it. As an industry, we are becoming jack of all trades, masters of none. In golf, we need expert coaches in juniors, expert coaches in women’s golf. Across every facet of the game, we need expert coaches.”
Having coached the likes of Thomas Bjorn and two-time Major Champion, Martin Kaymer, the accomplished Professional has used all his past experiences and passion to create the ‘Coach Mastery Programme’, a programme designed to ‘better golf worldwide through the development of expert coaches.’
“The only community and stakeholders in golf that are equipped to fundamentally grow and better the game, are the people who coach the sport for a living,” says Marr.
“I think it’s crucial that the world understands how important golf coaches are, but the people who really need to know how important golf coaches are, are golf coaches! I think many don’t know just how important their role is to the game.
“We want to educate and develop coaches in an appropriate manner. It is about genuinely targeting the skills you need to become a great coach. If I need to have a putting lesson, then I want to get it from a real expert, someone who has the depth of knowledge and experience in that area.”
Marr’s passion for retaining players and keeping them engaged in the game, is one of the key reasons for establishing the programme. The chosen Professionals will be given the opportunity to work with Industry Experts, as well as Tour Players, with the key values and philosophy revolving around participation and becoming an expert in this specialised field.
For further details about the Coach Mastery Programme, contact [email protected].
