Finding an instructor can be tough, I agree with you there. I was lucky enough to find a good one and I've been going to him the last few years.. Our introduction was brief, told him how i played and what I was looking for; to be as consistent as possible with my swing.. Before I met him, I was all over place meaning I had good days and bad days with my swings.. I wanted to get to a point where if I was having a bad day, I knew what to look for and how to correct it... I cared more about having a good solid swing than lowering my score. Get the swing going right, the low scores will come...

That being said, the last few years I've been enjoying the game a lot more than i ever have... I've been heading in the right direction with my instructor and that's why i keep signing up for more lessons with him.. it's not cheap but it's definitely paying off.... I'll always be a work in progress... I don't think this game will ever be perfected..

I will say this. I went to golf school for a few days.. It was fun BUT what i didn't like was the ratio was 4:1. I love the 1:1 ratio, much more attention... And another thing find an instructor that lives and dies by the Trackman, numbers.. My instructor is all over that and it's amazing how much those devices can improve ya game...

Good luck and hope you can find someone that's good for you and your game.

While she wasn't my first instructor, I was lucky in that I was able to see how she was with my kids in golf camp prior to me working with her. While we have very different personalities, it worked because she didn't take a "one swing fits all" approach.

She recently retired and moved to Florida so I need to find another for myself and my son, so I'm in the same boat as you. I'll be asking around quite a bit and maybe a trial lesson or two with some different instructors to see what works and doesn't.

Personally I've had success in finding a coach at my local Golftec. It's a little bit on the expensive side, but the opportunity to have a personalized lesson plan and the practice with video is well worth it in my opinion. May be something to look into if you're still looking for a coach.

Simply ask them their Philosophy on swings, cookie cutter or different swings for different people my instructor believes that one swing does not fit all. So he works on making your swing be the best it can be for you. My friend & I both use same guy and we are completely different but yet we both are improving well in our own way

Trial and error

use your ears and brain and let them do the talking.

You will know when you found the right coach - the methodology used will just click...that is the only way I can describe it.

Darryl,

I found this interesting article at the PGA website which I think will address many important topics you should consider in your search. I think one important crtieria is that the teacher be a PGA certified instructor that has some expereince teaching students. There are too many charlatans out there who have little or no education or expereince teaching. Another recommendation is do not get to caught up in technology. Pressure mats, K vest, 3D, Trackman, Flightscope, etc. are devices that just produce numbers which represent a result. If you have a swing flaw these tech devices do not tell you what is the cause of your swing flaw. This is why you need a certified golf instructor. I would also suggest having an instructor look over your entire game. You should go out on the course for 9 holes for a course lesson and they will be able to pinpoint areas of your game that you can focus your efforts on in improving these areas. At your handicap there is quite a few areas that you can improve and I am sure many of these will focus on your short game and course management skills. High tech devices do not address these skill sets. Check out this PGA web page. I'm sure this will give you some good insight to start you in the right direction.

www.pga.com/.../how-choose-golf-instructor

Best Wishes,

DV

Thanks for the advice EVERYONE, I'll definitely look into that link DV. My previous instructor has a new business adventure so the last 2 years his time has become limited & my swing has fallen back which is why I'm looking for another one. I've already deleted 3 because of cookie cutter ideas. I know that's not what I need.....

Thanks again TT
Everyone have a safe & wonderful holiday.

Darryl

When I go for a lesson or a tweak I go to our head pro, who is a Master Instructor. He works with you, not a particular style (or cookie cutter pattern for everyone that comes to him) and I like that. He treats you like an individual and addresses my problems and helps me correct them. There are a lot of teaching pros, but the Master Instructors have gone the extra step for their certifications. We have three teaching pros at our course and only one is a Master Instructor and he is the one I choose to go to. Like Titleist I prefer the best.

I spoke with my Pro's today, asked who is the better instructor and received a great response. While both are well qualified, one is very technical and the other reinforces the basics but focuses on the mental aspect of the game. So I think you have to determine your goals, evaluate your game, and decide which direction you are going to go in to achieve your goals/dreams.

Good luck

Greg

I have had the fortune of having several different instructors through the years and unfortunately the good ones have left my area for better jobs. That being said the best instructors for me were the one that would watch my swing and then make suttle corrections that would usually give instant better ball flights. Some corrections such as a grip change can be much tougher than say correcting a backswing issue. I have found that the instructors that show me what I am doing wrong and then show me what they want me to do to correct a swing flaw is better that an instructor who just shows me what they would like to see. You cannot see your golf swing unless you are filmed, so an instructor who shows you what your swing fault is and then shows the fix is the best IMHO.