Meet Reece. He's 30 and owns his own landscaping business. Reece has more than halved his handicap over the last 12 months, and this is how he did it...
Reece came to G60 in July 2023, with a big slice and a handicap of 24. During his initial game assessment, I could quickly tell he'd be capable of much better.
That first free private session I do with a potential new member, which lasts 45 minutes, allows me to gauge the players' golfing standard but also gives me a clear indication of their character and how easy/difficult they might find the G60 process.
During our chat, Reece explained to me that he played a lot of team sports in his earlier days, and nowadays loves the challenge of keeping fit, whether it be running, weight training, triathlons etc. He explained that he loves golf, so I could tell there was a real passion for it and a desire to keep improving. He particularly enjoys a challenge...
"It's such a hard game to master and there are always things to work on, I think I just need the right guidance and support to keep me accountable."
When I heard all of this, my eyes lit up. Before I'd even seen him hit the ball, I knew he already possessed the necessary mindset to be a successful G60 student. I can tell when someone is going to be a good fit. It's not just an ability to hit a ball, in fact, sometimes that doesn't even matter as much. It's more about the person's attitude, mindset and ability to stick to a process over a sustained period.
I could tell Reece was physically fit, which is definitely not a necessity to play good golf. But this was more about the mind than the body. I knew to be physically fit, you have to dedicate yourself to training. You have to go through a bit of pain, physically and mentally to get the reward at the end. The suffering and consequential perseverance are what I knew Reece would be familiar with. So when you combine this with a bit of hand-eye coordination and a process-driven mindset, you end up getting results.
Reece was hitting big slices to begin with. He was cutting across the ball with an open club face. It's what probably 90% of golfers do, so I knew exactly how to fix it. I explained to Reece that I was putting him in a "Building Phase" where he would have to do the following:
Focus purely on technique/skill development
Put zero pressure on his golf course performance
Take time to build/ingrain the new movement
Do lots of Block Practice - lots of reps
Get Regular Coach Guidance
He did exactly that. Took his time to ingrain the new movement. The goal was to strengthen his grip, get used to closing the club face to the path and start seeing the ball curve right to left. The second goal was to get the club hitting the ball from an inside path. This is what you need to create a draw shape. He managed to do it immediately, but sometimes this is dangerous...it still needs to be ingrained.
Of course, little regressions happened along the way, they still do! But as long as I help prevent big regressions and keep players focusing on their small tasks each week, with the right mindset, the long-term trend is in the right direction.
So here's the real secret to success in the G60 program, and it's exactly what Reece has done...
Plan
The message has always been a really consistent one for Reece. Get away from slicing the ball, improve ball striking and get sharp around the greens. Each session he came to, we drip-fed information. If it was a range session, it would be technique/skill focused on the golf swing initially. If he was swinging it well and hitting it great, we would focus more on performance-based drills, varying targets and working on routine etc. If it was a short game or putting session, we would work to improve his weaknesses and put him under pressure during practice.
Practice
This one sounds really obvious but Reece simply showed up! He made the effort to book in and turn up to our group supervised practice sessions, whether it was on the driving range, short game area or putting green, and whether it was hot, sunny, cold, raining or windy, Reece would show up. At G60 we try to take away barriers to practice. We make it easier for you to practice by scheduling the sessions for you, all you have to do is book in and show up. The frequency and regularity of the sessions means we can keep a constant connection between player and coach.
Perseverance
With anything challenging in life, there will be peaks and troughs. The real test is how we deal with the troughs. There will always be bad rounds of golf, bad practice sessions and days you just "don't feel right". But Reece has a knack of looking at the long term goal (process driven) rather than short term ups and downs. I knew perseverance wouldn't be an issue with Reece, considering his sporting background and good attitude.
This is one of the most important attributes to possess or develop to get real success out of the program.
So well done to Reece, there's more improvements to be made but halving your handicap is a great achievement.
If you've just started your journey with G60, or you've been going for a while and experiencing a dip in form, take inspiration from Reece today. Stick to the 3 P's and understand the mindset it takes to get really good at something. The reality is, if you do this, and take some ownership of your game at the same time, the results will take care of themselves.
If you're not a member already and would like to follow in Reece's footsteps, click the button below to apply for membership today.
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