Hank Haney-Junior Golf Academy held June 2010

Written by Laura Arellano

    In the beginning of this summer I had the great opportunity to attend the First Tee Training at Hank Haney IJGA. During my five days there I learned a ton and as a result my golf game has improved a great deal.   On the first day of going out to the golf course, Hank Haney helped everyone with their swings. He told me to swing “more up and down, not around.” He and his coaches also helped us with our grips. Later we moved onto putting and they showed us some tricks to help us stay focused, or just in “the present” moment during a putt. Also they taught us about ways to get a better feel for how hard we should putt the ball as well as distance control.

 On the next day we met the mental coach Matt. He told us that “thoughts lead to feelings which leads to your actions.” If you let your thoughts, or feelings get out of control, then you are more likely to have some bad actions. On the third day out on the course, coach Matt also taught us how to belly breath, and showed us  how belly breathing helps keep you relaxed.

 On Friday, a girl named Katy Heher came to the golf course and gave us a presentation. She told us tips and techniques to help in the college application process and for applying  for golf-related college scholarships .

 Later that same day, another coach gave us tons of tournament tips for our future golf tournaments. On Saturday we had our  9 hole shot-gun start tournament. Then I was able to use many of the tips and suggestions that we received while playing my game.  I shot a 40, for first place out of all the girls. I really did learn a lot during my time there, and truly appreciate this unique and valuable learning experience made possible through The First Tee.