How would you describe your style of
coaching? Has it changed much?
I’ve been teaching for more than 40
years. I wanted to be a player, so I
learned a lot about the swing and what
made it work and tick. I’ve done a lot of
studies on biomechanics and how the
body works and how the mind receives
information. I am a very intuitive teacher
and I’ve always relied a lot on instinct.Was it a case of trial and error when
you were first started coaching?
People like Mark McNulty and Nick
Price were guinea pigs back in the day
and a lot of my learning was done on
the job. I was a book worm and studied
a lot and researched a lot on Ben
Hogan and Jack Nicklaus. One of my
hobbies is collecting instruction books
dating back to the 19th century. It’s
always been an interest and a passion
of mine. It’s been a constant case of
searching and discovery through trial
and error and feedback from different
players and talking to teachers. And
coming up with a philosophy, rather
than a method. A philosophy is more
open ended and you can apply it to
different people; whereas a method is
very strict and everybody has to do it
that way.What is your teaching philosophy?
A lot of my philosophy is based
around science. People have wrongly
described me as a very
mechanical teacher. A lot of that
was probably because of the
work I did with Nick Faldo, but he
was far from being a mechanical
robot. He was very much a feel
player. I understand mechanics
and how the swing works, but I
try to teach through feel and use
a lot of technology to help – like
Trackman, Foresight and 3D
analysis. They are great tools and
videos have changed teaching
a lot. I was one of the first to
embrace it actually. It’s nice to
know what the numbers are torefer back to it, but you’ve got to be
able to interpret the data correctly.Do you think golfers are guilty of
making the golf swing too technical?
I think most teachers are probably guilty
of making the swing too complicated
for the average golfer. Most of the
instruction videos you see on YouTube
are mostly geared towards the really
good player or athlete. But how many
golfers swing like Dustin Johnson? I
would imagine not many. The resources
available are helping to produce more
technical golfers, but the game still boils
down to the feelings you have to hit the
shots when you are under-pressure or
need to get creative. Most pros actually
keep things very simple.What do you think constitutes the
best form of practice?
I’ve always believed a lot of good work
can be done indoors. For instance,
if you are trying to train your body
to move in a certain way, there are
dozens of exercises you can do to
foster the desired movement at home
or at work. The key, however, is to
make sure you are doing the right
things. Don’t just rely on information
from friends or YouTube. The chances
are you are probably misinterpreting
things anyway, and it’s unlikely it willVoice of
experience
Leadbetter has
40 years
of coaching
behind him.
‘At least 50 per
cent of your
practice should
be spent from
100 yards
and in’
around science. People have wrongly‘At least 50 per
cent of your
practice should
be spent from
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