To help PGA Magazine readers learn more about the ways they can bring golf together with health and wellness, this department includes best practices information from the Golf Fitness Association of America (GFAA). The GFAA was started by the publishers of PGA Magazine in 2020 and is led by an advisory board of PGA of America Golf Coaches and highly regarded golf fitness experts, including GFAA President Dr. Steven Lorick. We hope you find this department beneficial and encourage you to learn more about the GFAA at golf.fitness.com.
Coach From the Inside Out by Understanding the Athlete
Dr. Alison Curdt, PGAMaster Professional,Director of Instruction,Wood Ranch Golf Club,Simi Valley, California
As PGA of America Golf Professionals, we are trained to analyze mechanics. When a golfer struggles, our instinct is to look for a technical cause – but not all performance breakdowns are rooted in mechanics.
If we want to help our students perform at their highest level, we must learn to understand them from the inside out. As golf professionals, it’s out of our scope to act as therapists. However, we are often the first to observe patterns that lack mechanical explanation.
We may notice a sudden performance shift without a corresponding swing change, or chronic anxiety that seems disproportionate to skill level. Curiosity can open a door that technical instruction alone cannot. While only licensed clinicians can provide treatment, coaches and teaching professionals can refer athletes who appear stuck in trauma-linked patterns, thereby broadening their professional toolbox.
Understanding the golfer from the inside out does not replace technical expertise; it enhances it. The modern PGA of America Golf Professional must appreciate that performance is not purely biomechanical. It is emotional, cognitive and physiological. Golf is a meaning-making sport. Every round carries narrative.
If we want to elevate our profession, we must move beyond the assumption that every performance failure is a swing flaw. Many are mechanical, and our technical expertise remands essential. Yet, some struggles are rooted in fear responses, shame responses or unprocessed disappointment. Recognizing that distinction allows us to coach the entire athlete.
When we commit to understanding our students from the inside out, we create the possibility for not only better performance but deeper growth.
Introduce Health and Wellness in Player Development Programming
Rob Krajewski, PGA
Director of Player Development,
Glen Oak Golf Club,East Amherst, New York
I have a diverse student base of beginners, juniors, seasoned golfers and elite players and professionals. With a large PGA Jr. League program with upward of 100 young golfers, I strive to extend the coaching and instruction provided beyond the technical aspects of the golf swing into a more performance-based holistic player development model.
Once the golf season concludes here, we install our golf simulators for the winter and plan a series of two-hour classes that cover everything from short game to the power of the drive. I collaborate with a local fitness professional, Chris Kendall, who will join our groups to better educate golfers on the finer points of golf performance and health and wellness.
From my experience on the lesson tee, golfers differ in what they want to cover in our player development coaching – some want all golf swing, others more fitness. I always emphasize the importance of health and wellness in one’s golf game, and strive to find a balance between the finer points of the golf swing and the intricacies of the body’s impact on that swing. Through initial TPI screens and follow-up evaluations through our weekly engagement and lessons, we are able to determine a performance plan for a golfer based on his or her body type, any injuries they’ve suffered or any deficiencies that may be hindering their process.
Ultimately, the decision is that of the paying customer, but being educated in golf performance helps me better coach my students holistically for maximum results. The body-swing relationship is vital to game improvement, as most of us know as golf professionals, and we must be able to articulate that importance to our students.