I have just returned from my first coaching break situated in the beautiful and peaceful village of Kirtlington, Oxford.
The trip was a great success and although the weather was very windy, we managed to avoid the really heavy downpours that the weather reports had promised.
the two and a half day coaching break started on thursday night when Andy Taylor ( my co-tutor) and I met our keen pupils in the Kings head hotel ,Woodstock. This would be their home for the following days, and is found a stones throw from the gates of the incredible Blenhim palace. The hotel is a four star hotel boasting a rural feel and a menu filled with fine ala carte dining,and a bustling trade filling the bar at night, providing a perfect place for our pupils to discuss their performance and progression each night before dinner.
Friday morning started with a classroom discussion and introduction to statistic collection and analysis,using a system that is accessed online and available for both coach and pupil to see exactly what areas need to be developed and what weaknesses their games may have.the system is very easy to understand and gives a percentile average to sections of the pupils game according to their target handicap. The coaching started with a short introduction into aiming technique on the putting green and a pre-shot routine encompassing this was taught with time to perfect afterwards.
Then we hit the shortgame area where a skills test was set up to determine the state of each players pitching abilities, once recorded and explained Andy and I set about a short game masterclass in pitching technique and the players practised until they felt ready to attempt the test again...... all results were a great improvement,and the team returned to the clubhouse for lunch.
Once fed and watered its was time to go out on to the undulating and beautiful course at Kirtlington to record their first set of data to get the ball rolling with stat collection.
All players enjoyed the course , even though it blew a gale! and stats were entered into the online stat facility once they returned to the clubhouse.
The next morning pupils were sent back out onto the course and did battle once again with high winds and some rain,some pupils chose to play the smaller golf course which has middle length par 3's and some short yet tricky par 4's.
The last coaching session was held after lunch, and comprised of one-one video analysis and some tuition and goal setting for the future.
All in all it was a thoroughbly enjoyable experience for both coaches and pupils alike!! , and there will be another trip shortly.....watch this space or contact me by email : jamie@cgcc.co.uk
