PGA Features

You've seen Tiger and co plotting their way around beautiful courses on television and you've listened to friends and colleagues dissecting their games at work and in the pub. Suitably inspired you've now decided you want to give golf a go . . . but where do you start? Throughout March, PGA.info brings a comprehensive guide on how you start playing the great game easily, effectively and without breaking the bank.

In the second instalment we speak to Dubai-based Fellow PGA professional Jason Froggat and Tandridge PGA professional Michael Vandenberg about the importance of getting a sound footing in the sport by taking lessons.

Pros are used to teaching people of all ages and abilities, so there is no need for anyone to feel intimidated

The old saying practice makes perfect is very true, but if you are not practicing the right things then it can often lead to disaster. If you've never played the game before it's quite easy to get your hands on some clubs and head to the driving range, collect a bucket of balls and attempt to whack it like Woods. But the reality is that if you are not au fait with how to grip a club, address the ball and swing it then you're in trouble.

You could spend days on end swinging away, but if you don't know the fundamentals of the game then it won't matter how much you practice you'll more than likely just end up very frustrated. Not many people enjoy the prospect of instruction once they have left school. But when it comes to golf a lesson from a PGA professional is the best way to get the ball rolling (or flying) and you'll soon be treading the fairways.

You don't have to be a member at a club to take advantage of the PGA professional's knowledge, pros are always willing to pass on their expertise to all comers members or not. Whether you're young or old, male or female, a beginner or a tour professional the PGA pro will be able to help.

Jason Froggat, Fellow of the PGA and head professional at Dubai's Four Seasons Golf Club is coach to elite golfers, but he says coaching beginners is just as fulfilling. "I get just as much enjoyment from seeing someone I've coached from the beginning crack one high and straight than I do seeing a tour pro win an event," he said.

Golf is one of the biggest participant sports in the world and Froggat reckons there are plenty more budding players who are apprehensive to take up the game. "I believe most people would really like to give golf a go but are too shy to try it or give up too easily," he said.

"Golf is a very public game and the only way to learn is by going down the range and I think that scares a lot of people off. There is also a general fear among people who feel embarrassed by showing an expert their swing, but an experienced coach will have seen all sorts and is well versed in the art of putting people at ease.

"Pros are used to teaching people of all ages and abilities, so there is no need for anyone to feel intimidated," said Tandridge professional Michael Vandenberg. "I've recently started teaching a 60-year-old beginner so it's never too late to pick up the clubs and give it a go.

"Through our training with the PGA the professional has the correct knowledge to give the beginner the best possible start in golf. We also have access to all the latest training aids and the expertise to show people how to use them."

It is this expertise people looking to start the game should be tapping into and taking advantage of. But plenty seem happy to listen to their mid-handicap mate give them tips at the driving range.

We've all been there and perhaps even given the tips ourselves, but do we really know what we're talking about? "Some people who want to start playing golf will head to the range with their friend who might be able to tell them the basics like keep your head over the ball etc," added Froggat. "But once they've scuffed a few along the ground and sliced some others they just give up.

"The only way to really learn is to get a proper lesson. Even if it's just one lesson with a PGA professional it is enough to give you the fundamentals of the game. Once you have those they never change, they'll be the same throughout your whole golfing life.

"I compare golf to skiing, if you go skiing for the first time you wouldn't go straight onto the black runs would you? You'd end up injuring yourself or causing major problems. You'd have a skiing lesson first to get the hang of it, and then you'd go out on the slopes. I think it's the same with golf - you should have lessons first before going onto the course."

Fellow PGA professional Jason Froggat is based at the Four Seasons Golf Resort in Dubai and available on +971 4601 0115 and Tandridge PGA professional Michael Vandenberg can be contacted at the club on 01883 713 701. To find your local PGA pro, click here.