On Par
Talent vs
Hard Work
By Bernie Tan, Certified Instructor, Mizuno Golf School
A good
swing
is key for
getting goo
d
shot
The writer during one
s
of her coaching session
D
oes a golfer need heaps of talent, or is hard
work enough even if one has zero talent?
That is a very challenging question. As a
coach, I used to think that I have talent hence
it was easier for me. However I have learnt that
without hard work, I would not have been able to
get to where I am today.
In this article, I will share my real-life encounter
with a student whom I have taught over the past
three years. When she started golf at 6 years old,
I was not her coach. I only started coaching her
over a year later. During our first coaching session,
I was surprised that although she had been golfing
for a while, she was still struggling to swing the
club. Her shots were very low and could not fly.
I felt very sorry for her because I could see that
she was trying her best but her shots were still not
good enough. It came to a point when her parents
had doubts on whether golf was the sport for her.
But I believed in her, so she worked even harder.
Now, she is 9 years old and loves golf. When she
swings her club, the balls fly to a good distance.
She has attained her handicap and participated
in several tournaments. Her parents are extremely
proud of her achievements. Other coaches who
see her golfing tell me that she has great talent,
but they do not know how she was at the start.
I am not saying that this girl had zero talent.
But I dare say that the excellent swings she has
accomplished today are the result of time put in,
trust, discipline and practice. It was sheer hard
work. To get to where she is today, we trained
from the basics all over again. I coached her on
understanding her body movements, and how to
use her body to build the swing. It really helped that
she adopted and maintained a great attitude from
then till now. She has proven that when you put
your heart to learning and following instructions,
your hard work beats your talent.
Training
their
balance
RESORT VIEW 15