Eva Rogers is a Jim McLean Certified Instructor and PGA Level III Apprentice with the Jim McLean Golf School, located at Trump National Doral, in Miami, Florida.

Eva Rogers on the importance of implementing a youth golf program that encourages daily practice, improving aspects of your game that need it most, teamwork, and physical fitness:
At the Jim McLean Golf School, I work with students of all ages. We strive to implement the philosophies Jim has used for years and are fortunate to have him as our teaching mentor. Youth player development has always been my passion, as I am not only helping kids achieve their goals, but I am growing the game of golf, the ultimate goal of every PGA professional. “Team McLean” is a monthly membership youth program that takes students through multiple phases of the mental and physical game. Sessions are Monday through Friday from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Parents drop off and pick up the kids, who range from 6-18 years of age. We use the Trackman Combine as the first step to assess each child’s current skills, and continue to document their progress, which allows us to show the students and parents their improvement. Subsequent sessions involve students hitting unlimited range balls, utilizing our state-of-the-art technology, and working on various parts of their games. Whether it be woods, irons, bunker play, or short game, our students focus on their skills in a supervised practice environment. In addition to the traditional instruction, we incorporate physical fitness into our sessions. We end each session with 15 minutes of activities like relay races using ladders, ropes, and cones to add variety to the daily sessions. These activities encourage speed, improve balance and reaction time, and create endurance. Wednesday is fitness focus day when we work with kids on their game and then put them through a functional training workout using Procedos Golf Platforms. On Fridays, the golfers put their skills to the test as they play nine holes on the course.

Eva Rogers on the business impact of implementing a youth golf program that encourages daily practice, improving aspects of your game that need it most, teamwork, and physical fitness:
The “Team McLean” program started late in 2016 and to date we average 20-24 youth golfers per month. The student to instructor ratio is generally 5 to 1, allowing for much personal attention over two hours per day. At $500 per month, our youth golfers get the most for their money. Forty hours per month of instruction, supervised practice, and on-course play makes the cost of the program well worth it. In addition to golf skills, they are taught fitness and life lessons that will carry on beyond the golf course. One additional trend we’ve noticed is for the older kids in the program to take the younger ones under their wing. They have a real desire to coach others as we coach them and our program allows them that opportunity.

If you would like to email the author of this Best Practice directly, please email eva@jimmclean.com