The golf lesson

My game has been exponentially deteriorating since the first day. I still remember, with fond memories, my first shot off the tee in front of my new friends, when I hit the ball straight down the middle, put the second one on the green and two putted from there. Now this is nothing but a hazy recollection. I literally can't even hit the ball off the ground and my friends, who I used to raz, are now razzing me. For example, I wore a golfing tie yesterday as I was doing a workshop for the staff and one of my "buddies" put up his hand and asked where the water was on the tie!



Luckily, one of the woman on staff has a son who is a pro golfer and she arranged for me to have a lesson from him. It turns out he is a terrific fellow and a great teacher. He told me the obvious, that I was not turning my shoulders and gave me some tips on how to do this and left me on my own.



As it happened, there was a guy beside me in the next stall who I happened to make eye contact with him and I gave him the thumbs up after a particular hit. ( He was not very good). Somehow, non-verbally, he asked me to help him. He was swinging way too hard and too fast and throwing his balance off and not doing allowing his body to do what it would do naturally. I told him to "cha" "cha" which I think means slow, slow and it seemed to work for two reasons. He slowed down his swing, on the one hand, and got in to a cha cha rhythm on the other hand which was great. He balls started to work.



However, he kept looking at me in a kind of pleading way asking me to give him more help. I literally went over and demonstrated raising his back heel to encourage the twist. He did this and kept looking so I continued with body "swing". Without belabouring the point, paradoxically I spent a hour with him teaching him teaching him how to golf and we met with a lot of success. I say we because his balls went further and straighter and I received the "nachos" of watching my student succeed. There is no greater feeling in the world.



It was a hoot using non-verbal and 'taxi 'Thai communicating with him . I know I am a good teacher and I think understand the basics of golf. The point of the story is that I got way more enjoyment teaching this guy than I did playing or receiving the lesson myself.



I remember the same thing happened to me on the range in Canada with a little old Chinese man ( who was probably younger than me). He had a towel under his back arm to remind him to keep his arm in. The first thing I did, when he asked for my help, was pull the towel away, throw it on the ground and talked my own smack. I loved that also and still remember it.



As I walk around the campus, I realize I would rather be in one of those classes teaching the kids rather than sitting in my office creating some meaningless paper work. Teaching is such a wonderful thing to do and a gift to be able to transmit information in a meaningful way. As I ask excellent athletes for help they can't do it. Teaching is something that one is probably born with.



We finally have a week off of school and I am headed to the Philipines with no plans in mind other than to sleep in and play golf. Don't even know where I am going after I hit Manilla but I do have some contact names from teacher friends who I presume will show me around. I only bought the air ticket last week, but after my experience two days ago I think I would just rather go the range and find someone who wanted my help.