Coached

Coached

(The following article first appeared in the Spring 2013 online edition of PRO:Formance)

By: Chris Fry/PGA of Canada

Even the best golfers in the world need a helping hand and an extra pair of watchful eyes. Just check out the driving range at any professional golf event and pay close attention to the interaction between players and coaches.

Many of these coaches are instantly recognizable – with names like Hank Haney, Dave Peltz and David Leadbetter known to most golfers. Canada has its own group of emerging coaches working with top players. PRO:Formance spoke with four prominent Canadian coaches about their philosophies and teaching methods.

Dave Smallwood
Where: The Golf Performance Centre at Whistle Bear
Who he works with: Garrett Rank, Victor Ciesilski, Alex Carrigan and Ben Moser
Backgrounder: PGA of Canada member since 1985; 2012 PGA of Ontario Teacher of the Year; nearly 50 junior golfers on his Performance Teams at Whistle Bear
Choice Quote: “Kids need to understand that they can’t play university golf without good grades. The days of talented athletes with no books smarts getting into golf programs are long gone. Schools demand you have good grades; so get a degree to fall back on because you’ll have another lifeline if golf doesn’t work out.”
For more info: golfperformancecenter.typepad.com

Kendal Yonomoto

Where: The Richmond Olympic Oval
Who he works with: Ryan Moore, David Duval and Trevor Yu
Backgrounder: PGA of Canada member since 1995; former PGA Tour Canada player; trained and ran track with Olympic sprinters; author of “The Athletic Fundamentals of Golf.”
Choice quote: “My programs focus on the use of a Med Ball and I get my students to throw it around for 15-20 hours before touching a golf club. This way is much more foundational and the exercises address body and space. Guys get shocked and dumbfounded but because it’s so logical.”
For more info: www.coachkendal.com

Rob Houlding
Where: Rob Houlding Golf Academy
Who he works with: Nick Taylor, Jisoo Keel and Adam Svensson
Backgrounder: PGA of Canada member since 2003; 2012 PGA of BC Coach of the Year; former Champions Tour player.
Choice quote: “I’m not into group lessons and everything I do is one-on-one. Everyone is so unique and it takes time for me to get to know them, process info; so there’s no such thing as a cookie cutter approach when it comes to working with elite players.”
For more info: robhouldinggolf.com

Ralph Bauer
Turkey Point Provincial Park Golf Course
Who he works with:
David Hearn, Matt Hill and Stephanie Sherlock
Backgrounder: PGA of Canada member since 1996; former Team Canada men’s assistant coach; 2007 PGA of Ontario Teacher of the Year.
Choice quote: “I’ve always have had the goal of working with PGA of Tour players, but they don’t exactly don’t call you up one day and ask for your help. So, what I like to do is and turn great players into PGA Tour players.”
For more info: usgolfscholarships.com