He starts by telling his pupils why they find the game so difficult: They think too much, they try too hard, they are too tense and they use too much force.
Taking the stress out of their game, making them aware of the ability they have within them, is the basic aim of the Natural Golf Academy at the St Andrews Major golf club.
He returned to Wales in 1980 and became head professional at Llantrisant Golf Club. During his three years there TaylorMade RocketBallZ Driver he won the South Wales Professional championship and became course record holder at Llantrissant with a 65 which still stands today.
But,’ he says, ‘ the approach has to be simple and I honestly believe that much of the modern way of teaching is making a simple game difficult.’ There’s strong element of Buddhism in his theme of relaxation and inner harmony but he has a thorough technical background, gained not only as a professional player in European tournaments but as a teaching pro in Germany and France.
His experience has convinced him that the answer lies in the natural approach instead of filling minds with various advice. The swing should be one easy movement and not the result of a sequence of thoughts.
Golfers spend most of their playing lives absorbing a multitude of tips, advice and information on how to play the game better.
'I am swinging more naturally and hitting the ball better but what I haven’t mastered yet is the consistency necessary to bringing in a good medal card.
In 1984 he moved to Germany to become head pro at one of the country’s leading sports hotels and then spent five years teaching at Baden- Baden, Germany’s third oldest golf club. In 1989 he moved to Titleist 712 CB Irons France to be head teaching pro at the Bernhard Langer Academy in Strasbourg, Alsace.
His natural golf philosophy has been developing for over 20 years and he has been rewarded by seeing definite improvement in both beginners and low-handicap players alike.
Hastings was born in St Athan in 1955 and was assistant pro in the mid-1970s and Bristol and Clifton golf clubs and then later at Cardiff golf club. In 1975 he won the Welsh Assistants championship and then went to America where he teamed up with US Masters champion Craig Stadler.
Of course, there are certain basics like grip and stance that have to be right and there’s technique to be learned.
Among his many pupils is Penarth journalist Peter Corrigan who, for the past 14 years, has been describing his discount golf clubs adventures as a bad player in a column called The Hacker in the Independent on Sunday. He has recently transferred this to the website www.thegolfinghacker.com ’No professional in the world would welcome the sight of me looming up for a lesson,’ says Corrigan.
'I am an out and out 28 handicapper and I have trouble even playing to that. But there is no doubt that John’s methods are having a dramatic effect on my game.
没有评论:
发表评论