Tadd Golf Experience

Some messages cannot be hidden, because they answer our questions, enlighten our lives and reinforce our choices. When they fall upon us, these messages leave a lasting mark and the density of their substance calls for sharing.
At times, learning from books, as valuable as that may be, reaches its limits and the only alternative left is to meet exceptional people. Then knowledge draws us aside, with humility, to give way to the unbelievable fortune of human encounters. It is a quest, sometimes far away, like the one Patrick and I made in Houston in the fall of 2009.
As for meeting exceptional people, we were not going to be disappointed.

Peaks and Valleys.[i]

We should have found our beds after a sixteen-hour flight- it took twenty-four. They promised us the sun at wake-up time - we found rain instead, just to remind us of where we had come from (rainy Belgium).
So it was under grey sky that I went along with my 11-year old son, Giovanni, to his afternoon golf lesson with Jim Hardy, asking myself “What next?”.

Jim was waiting for us at the Teaching Centre which is 350 meters away on the other side of the Black Horse Golf Club practice and extends over more than 100 meters. It is surrounded by approaches and putting greens. The scenery was set and Planet Golf was taking a whole different look.

Every aspect of my son's game was analysed by Jim. In fine, his close examination came down to three pieces of advice: the first was that he should not to change his "strong" grip before he turns 16; the second was to help him move his hands and arms properly around the impact zone and the last was to hook his putt.

The tone was given, carrying promises for the rest of our discoveries and learning experience.
Plane Truth is a Golf University. Jim Hardy introduced it a few years ago to share his knowledge and teach his theory. As journalist John Davies put it: “Golfers usually turn to club pros when they need help with their swing, but where do the pros go when they need help in teaching? In growing numbers, they are sitting at the feet of Jim Hardy, a former PGA Tour pro whose "plane and simple" theory might provide the answer to why most golfers struggle to improve.”

For a week, Patrick and I ended up on that school bench, a memory still fresh to him, a little bit less so for me… Fully aware of our true place, it is with great humility that we spent our time with the elite of golf: former US Tour players, tournament winners (some of Majors), and some from the Golf Digest Magazine’s Top 100 Instructors list, all listening to the “Master’s” concepts and watching him perform at all levels.

Golf is not an exact science - at least as far as man’s body motion is concerned. One just needs to compare the efficiency of swings as different as Tiger Woods’ and Jim Furyk’s, to understand why golf counts as many messiahs and beliefs as there are golf teachers.
Which path is, therefore, the one to be followed?

Which path is, therefore, the one to be followed?
“The sole purpose of the golf swing is to produce a correct impact – the method employed is of no significance as long as it is repetitive.”
The only way to reach this goal is being more in position in the golf swing; in golf, to be in position means being on plane.

Every day and in many different ways, Jim repeated John Jacobs’ words, whom he regards as the father of modern golf instruction. Duncan Woolger, a student from the United Kingdom, had the words printed on a t-shirt, fearing to forget it.

Jim Hardy’s rhetoric is simple, logical and articulate. When he talks, his charisma and outstanding skills captivate the audience. Using visual support, he analyses the images methodically and rigorously, and lays down his theory: there is no one set of universal principles applicable to all golf swings, there are two distinctly different sets of fundamentals that govern the two different types of swings.

To convince us further, Jim does not hesitate to call on four miraculously cured swings of the Tour to answer our questions and testify about their experiences.
Scott McCarron, winner of three PGA Tour Championships says:
“I was a top thirty PGA Tour player and like all golfers I wanted to get better. That effort turned into a nightmare. Within two years, I had practically fallen off the Tour. At my lowest point, I was recommended to Jim Hardy. He convinced me that the instruction I had been pursuing did not match my swing type. I abandoned the harmful instruction, and learned what worked for me. Thanks to Jim, since that turn around, I have become a multiple tournament winner.”

The “Plane Truth” Certification Program leaves no stone unturned. “Matrix 2.0” is not the title of science-fiction film but the most extensive and sophisticated analysis protocol of golf instruction. The program, which lists all possible golf swing flaws and cures perfected with drills, is the most complete support system ever conceived. Trough the “Plane Truth” internet platform, licensed coaches communicate without borders and share their concerns and teaching experiences.

At the same time the Certification Program aims at making Instructors “better coaches”.
Jim did not hesitate to invite life coach Jim Fannin, one of the best in the field, to share with us his “S.C.O.R.E. Performance System” and explain the heavy role our past plays in our performance, whether in life or in sports. “Champions think differently”, he says, “they stay in the present and move into the future”. Jim Fannin’s “The past is the past, burn the boats” became our mental motto, equivalent to the sole purpose of a swing in golf which is “to produce a correct impact” in golf technique. History is filled with men using the “burn the boats” technique. From Phoenicians to Ancient Greeks to the small French Sergeant who became “Emperor”, not forgetting the reckless Fernando Cortez. Many have tested that strategy to succeed. They forgot however to tell us how to connect with our past.

I took more than 60 hours of mental coaching instruction, read hundreds of articles and books on the “Zone”. I even took hypnosis classes to get into it, but without ever getting a full grasp of how we enter this state of mind that makes everything disappear but our target. I was not the only one there to have tried. Next to me, some Tour Players Champions were taking notes. Twenty minutes and a cheetah story later, Jim Fannin had perfectly imprinted on our minds what the “mysterious Zone” was and how to enter it.

As a young boy, I remember being marked by the story of Cornelia, mother of the Gracques brothers. An exemplary mother deeply involved in her children’s education, Cornelia did not interrupt her visitor (also a mother) proudly displaying her jewels but declared, upon her sons’ returns: « haec ornementa mia » (These are my jewels). Today, with a smile, I have to admit that throughout my childhood I dreamt many times coming home from school and having my mother introducing me to her friends in this way… At the time, I was far from imagining that later on, I would live this experience as a parent.

By bringing two of my children to Jim Hardy, I was implicitly asking him to assess my professional skills. Jim totally got that. Both in his book dedication to me and later on in an email, he managed to comfort me in what is important in my principles and teaching choices.
I went to Houston looking for the answer to many technical questions. What I found was an open book, written by a true master who spelled it out for me. I can only hope to become a loyal follower of the amazing teacher Jim Hardy.

Once again, I was not the only one. Carol Mann is an extraordinary lady. She has won everything in golf and, at age 71, this young lady is a long time resident of the Hall of Fame. Still, she was there with us, sitting beside me, listening to Jim and looking out for what she can still learn and share. Her testimony is a treasure of wisdom and unique experiences. She had the honour of the final word. Her words touched our hearts and caused a moment of emotion.

She highlighted Jim’s generosity and capacity to share without restraint his infinite knowledge. I have to earnestly mention that Jim did not ask one cent for all the work and time he devoted to my son, Giovanni.
On the way back to Brussels, by chance, I spotted in an airport library a book by one of my favourite authors. The title “Peaks and Valleys” sounded promising. I started reading it on the plane and stopped at the two quotes in the foreword:
“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new landscapes, but in having new eyes” (Proust).
“The essence of knowledge is, having it, to use it” (Confucius).

Inside the book I found a special message for me; landing in Brussels, I realised that coming from the Summit of Houston, we were not returning to our valley unscathed, but armed with new knowledge, a vault of new promises and concrete projects. New knowledge to share with those wishing to take some of its precious content.
What we will make of it will show the path to our next Peak.

Giulio

[i] From the book « Peaks and Valley », Spencer Johnson, M.D.