Whether already mad about golf or simply curious to give it a go, the school’s new golf simulator is offering all boys the opportunity to get into their swing with professional coaching from our golf pros Holly and Sam.
For our younger boys, the sessions are light-hearted and fun. When we joined keen Y3 golfer Kuba (who has played since he was two) and golf pro, Sam, they were enjoying an early morning round on a course in Stockholm, Sweden!
During their game, through subtle coaching, conversation, watching and playing, Kuba not only worked on honing his swing but also, almost without noticing, took time to think about which shot was needed, which club to use, the strength of his swing and reading the course. Kuba also learned as much from the shots that did not go quite to plan as the ones that did.
Routine was another key focus of the session, with Kuba encouraged to take his time to think through his shots, always making a plan, lining up the shot and, importantly, not rushing. Why is routine so important? “So it always goes the right way”, Kuba told us.
Kuba is just one of many boys from across the Prep School taking the opportunity to make the most of the simulator, which offers them some real advantages. Sam explained, “Golf is a sport that you can’t just pick up; it takes a great accumulation of hours to develop the skills and techniques to get really good, so the earlier the boys start, quite simply the easier that is. Learning the correct fundamentals early helps the boys to avoid struggling with swing mechanics as time goes on.”
“We focus on keeping the game fun and don’t get overly concerned about the results at this stage”, explained Sam. “We simply want the boys to enjoy the sessions and start to accumulate experience, which they can then take through to the next stages of their game as they move through the school.” The boys certainly have great role models to aspire to and a clear pathway to follow, with the Upper School’s golf scholars playing strongly in the HMC Foursomes and yet another Bedford golf scholar, Finlay Cummings, set to take his game to the next level after receiving an unconditional offer, with a conditional scholarship, to a US university. You can read more about our golf scholars’ recent successes here.
