Opinion & Analysis

A response to Jessica Korda’s criticism of the U.S. junior development system

Published

6 years ago

Aug 7, 2018

Last week, professional golfer Jessica Korda made headlines with her comments about a lack of developmental pathways in the U.S. and how this was leading to an LPGA Tour dominated by Asian players.

After reviewing the story, I wanted to respond to her comments based on my own background which includes coaching women’s college golf, studying long term player development, and working closely with many national teams around the world.

Development models

When speaking about this issue, it is important to remember that only one country in the world has a written policy on long term development in golf: Canada. This document titled “The Long-Term Player Development Guide” outlines the basics on players entry into golf through eight phases, ending in what is termed ‘compete to win’. While the guide is an outstanding document, little of the document is based on golf-specific research. Instead, the document synthesizes work within other sport domains, along with the expertise of Canadian golf experts like Henry Brunton.

It is also important to remember that golf-specific research on development is very limited. At this time, I am involved in a project with Dr. Joe Baker and Master’s candidate Aaron Koenigsberg which seeks to validate much of the information in the plan, as well as explore other aspects of development including a better examination of practice allocation, access and quality of facilities and environmental factors like home environment and coaching.

The Korean Way

The root of the growing talent disparity between Asian and Western countries in women’s golf may boil down to a couple of fundamental philosophical differences. Let’s take South Korea (the current undisputed golf hotbed in Asia) as a prime example. It goes without saying that family support and expectations in Korea have been noted to drastically contrast those displayed in current Western cultures (generally speaking). For example, women in Korea are expected to adopt their parent’s expectations and internalize them. As well, Korean culture seems to elicit an “all-in” mentality, where both parents and children committed to being successful in a domain of choice, dive in head first without considering other options or potential negative consequences.

It therefore comes as no surprise that among Korean LPGA professionals, overall work ethic (including but not limited to; commitment to long hours of high quality/deep practice, exercise, and proper nutrition), family support, and personal motivation/goal setting have been rated as the top factors that contribute to their professional success (regardless of the support given by Korean sporting officials. In one study investigating Korean LPGA players’ success factors, government support ranked eighth out of a possible nine factors).

Now that the broad cultural motivations for success among Koreans have been defined, where does this desire to succeed in golf stem from? Many pinpoint the start of the Korean golf craze to 1998 when Se Ri Pak became the first South Korean LPGA player to win an LPGA major championship. With the help of intense Korean media coverage, Pak became an icon, while also allowing thousands of young South Korean girls’ and their parents alike to be inspired and motivated to achieve the same success for themselves and their daughters.

Once the motivation is in place, the desire and “all-in” mentality of both the family and athlete to succeed take over. Parental support in all aspects allows the athlete to focus solely on golf from a very young age. Parents will invest all their available resources (time and monetary) into their child, often putting intense pressure on the adolescence to succeed in the short-term. As well Korean parents are more than willing to pull their child out of school with no signs of a normal childhood, to fully pursue this early specialization pathway and train as rigorously as possible, while many parents in the U.S. are not willing to take this route.

However, research has shown that early specialization can be potentially harmful to the positive long-term development of athletes. As early specialization reduces the opportunity for growth in other areas of life, this developmental pathway has been shown to lead to potential physical/mental burnout, and non-desirable social and psychological outcomes. On the other hand, participating in other sports and leisure activities (diversification) has been shown to foster more positive long-term outcomes for athletes.

Essentially there are three stages in the diversification pathway. During the sampling years (6-12) the main emphasis should be on enjoyment and developing overall motor skills throughout a variety of sport. The specializing years (13-15) mark a period where athletes gradually decrease their involvement in other sports. While the investment years (16+) are when an athlete commits fully to their main sport and starts to incrementally increase overall practice time.

However, more research does need to be carried out, as these guidelines are not sport specific. Certain sports may require different guidelines both for the ages of specialization and the type of other sports that in the future could potentially transfer best to an athlete’s main sport (for example baseball a rotational sport may transfer better to golf skills, then cross-country an endurance sport). While one can appreciate that the combination of a genuine love for golf and the Korean mentality may be a major key to success, one also must question if it is the right way to properly develop an athlete and most importantly the person who that athlete will become.

The U.S. System

Although the U.S. system does not have an official national team, I would argue that it offers better access to the components necessary for success than any other country. This includes unmatched coaching (including both technical instruction and fitness), weekly competition and feedback, merit-based entry and cheap golf memberships. There is also a lot of pretty good weather in different regions including areas like the South East, South West and West Coast. Together these components likely make up much of what is important in a person’s development and right now are being offered to anyone who wishes to pursue golf.

The system has worked perfectly for men for decades and has done well with women, what needs to change? Consider over the history of the PGA Tour, eight of every ten players who play over 200 events have been born American. Seven of the last 30 LPGA major championships have been won by U.S. players.

The U.S. system also played some part in the development of four other major participants: Pernille Lindberg and Anne Nordquist–who both played college golf in the U.S.–and Brooke Henderson and Ariya Jutanugarn–who both played at least 2 years of junior golf in the US prior to turning professional.

When examining the last nine U.S.-born major champions, it has taken them an average of 7.1 years from the time they got their tour card to the time they won. Of these, only two players: Lexi Thompson and Stacey Lewis have done it in less than five years. It took nine or more years for Michelle Wie, Mo Martin, Christie Kerr, and Brittany Lang. While this might seem slow, it seems that between four and six years is in line with other players like Annika Sorenstam and Ariya Jutanuagrn.

On a junior level, the U.S. continues to produce several players with significant promise including 75 current junior golfers which according to Junior Golf Scoreboard have scoring differentials (essentially handicaps) of -3 or better. Of these, approximately 35 have scoring differentials of -5 or better. This is extremely impressive and certainly demonstrates they have the scoring potential to make an impact in women’s professional golf, if they want to.

The Path Forward

It has been about two decades since the arrival of the first wave of Korean born players, and the steady stream has continued. Today seven of the top ten players in the world are Asian. Does this mean it is time to panic? No. It does however mean that women golfers who wish to pursue a professional career should take notice; being good enough is no longer the only prerequisite to playing women’s professional golf.

Players from outside Asia must really examine how they are going to prepare for the LPGA while remembering that there is no magic recipe for success. Instead, each player must look towards a process they can trust and continue to have the grit and determination to chase their dream of being an LPGA Tour player.

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19th Hole

Vincenzi’s LIV Golf Singapore betting preview: Course specialist ready to thrive once again

Published

1 day ago

Apr 30, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

After another strong showing in Australia, LIV Golf will head to Sentosa Golf Club in Singapore looking to build off of what was undoubtedly their best event to date.

Sentosa Golf Club sits on the southern tip of Singapore and is one of the most beautiful courses in the world. The course is more than just incredible scenically; it was also rated 55th in Golf Digest’s top-100 courses in 2022-2023 and has been consistently regarded as one of the best courses in Asia. Prior to being part of the LIV rotation, the course hosted the Singapore Open every year since 2005.

Sentosa Golf Club is a par 71 measuring 7,406 yards. The course will require precise ball striking and some length off the tee. It’s possible to go low due to the pristine conditions, but there are also plenty of hazards and difficult spots on the course that can bring double bogey into play in a hurry. The Bermudagrass greens are perfectly manicured, and the course has spent millions on the sub-air system to keep the greens rolling fast. I spoke to Asian Tour player, Travis Smyth, who described the greens as “the best [he’s] ever played.”

Davis Love III, who competed in a Singapore Open in 2019, also gushed over the condition of the golf course.

“I love the greens. They are fabulous,” the 21-time PGA Tour winner said.

Love III also spoke about other aspects of the golf course.

“The greens are great; the fairways are perfect. It is a wonderful course, and it’s tricky off the tee.”

“It’s a long golf course, and you get some long iron shots. It takes somebody hitting it great to hit every green even though they are big.”

As Love III said, the course can be difficult off the tee due to the length of the course and the trouble looming around every corner. It will take a terrific ball striking week to win at Sentosa Golf Club.

In his pre-tournament press conference last season, Phil Mickelson echoed many of the same sentiments.

“To play Sentosa effectively, you’re going to have a lot of shots from 160 to 210, a lot of full 6-, 7-, 8-iron shots, and you need to hit those really well and you need to drive the ball well.”

Golfers who excel from tee to green and can dial in their longer irons will have a massive advantage this week.

Stat Leaders at LIV Golf Adelaide:

Fairways Hit

1.) Louis Oosthuizen

2.) Anirban Lahiri

3.) Jon Rahm

4.) Brendan Steele

5.) Cameron Tringale

Greens in Regulation

1.) Brooks Koepka

2.) Brendan Steele

3.) Dean Burmester

4.) Cameron Tringale

5.) Anirban Lahiri

Birdies Made

1.) Brendan Steele

2.) Dean Burmester

3.) Thomas Pieters

4.) Patrick Reed

5.) Carlos Ortiz

LIV Golf Individual Standings:

1.) Joaquin Niemann

2.) Jon Rahm

3.) Dean Burmester

4.) Louis Oosthuizen

5.) Abraham Ancer

LIV Golf Team Standings:

1.) Crushers

2.) Legion XIII

3.) Torque

4.) Stinger GC

5.) Ripper GC

LIV Golf Singapore Picks

Sergio Garcia +3000 (DraftKings)

Sergio Garcia is no stranger to Sentosa Golf Club. The Spaniard won the Singapore Open in 2018 by five strokes and lost in a playoff at LIV Singapore last year to scorching hot Talor Gooch. Looking at the course setup, it’s no surprise that a player like Sergio has played incredible golf here. He’s long off the tee and is one of the better long iron players in the world when he’s in form. Garcia is also statistically a much better putter on Bermudagrass than he is on other putting surfaces. He’s putt extremely well on Sentosa’s incredibly pure green complexes.

This season, Garcia has two runner-up finishes, both of them being playoff losses. Both El Camaleon and Doral are courses he’s had success at in his career. The Spaniard is a player who plays well at his tracks, and Sentosa is one of them. I believe Sergio will get himself in the mix this week. Hopefully the third time is a charm in Singapore.

Paul Casey +3300 (FanDuel)

Paul Casey is in the midst of one of his best seasons in the five years or so. The results recently have been up and down, but he’s shown that when he’s on a golf course that suits his game, he’s amongst the contenders.

This season, Casey has finishes of T5 (LIV Las Vegas), T2 (LIV Hong Kong), and a 6th at the Singapore Classic on the DP World Tour. At his best, the Englishman is one of the best long iron players in the world, which makes him a strong fit for Sentosa. Despite being in poor form last season, he was able to fire a Sunday 63, which shows he can low here at the course.

It’s been three years since Casey has won a tournament (Omega Dubai Desert Classic in 2021), but he’s been one of the top players on LIV this season and I think he can get it done at some point this season.

Mito Pereira +5000 (Bet365)

Since Mito Pereira’s unfortunate demise at the 2022 PGA Championship, he’s been extremely inconsistent. However, over the past few months, the Chilean has played well on the International Series as well as his most recent LIV start. Mito finished 8th at LIV Adelaide, which was his best LIV finish this season.

Last year, Pereira finished 5th at LIV Singapore, shooting fantastic rounds of 67-66-66. It makes sense why Mito would like Sentosa, as preeminent ball strikers tend to rise to the challenge of the golf course. He’s a great long iron player who is long and straight off the tee.

Mito has some experience playing in Asia and is one of the most talented players on LIV who’s yet to get in the winner’s circle. I have questions about whether or not he can come through once in contention, but if he gets there, I’m happy to roll the dice.

Andy Ogletree +15000 (DraftKings)

Andy Ogletree is a player I expected to have a strong 2024 but struggled early in his first full season on LIV. After failing to crack the top-25 in any LIV event this year, the former U.S. Amateur champion finally figured things out, finished in a tie for 3rd at LIV Adelaide.

Ogletree should be incredible comfortable playing in Singapore. He won the International Series Qatar last year and finished T3 at the International Series Singapore. The 26-year-old was arguably the best player on the Asian Tour in 2023 and has been fantastic in the continent over the past 18 months.

If Ogletree has indeed found form, he looks to be an amazing value at triple-digit odds.

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Opinion & Analysis

Ryan: Lessons from the worst golf instructor in America

Published

1 day ago

Apr 30, 2024

Brendan Ryan

In Tampa, there is a golf course that boasts carts that do not work, a water range, and a group of players none of which have any chance to break 80. The course is overseen by a staff of crusty men who have succeeded at nothing in life but ending up at the worst-run course in America. However, this place is no failure. With several other local courses going out of business — and boasting outstanding greens — the place is booked full.

While I came for the great greens, I stayed to watch our resident instructor; a poor-tempered, method teacher who caters to the hopeless. At first, it was simply hilarious. However, after months of listening and watching, something clicked. I realized I had a front-row seat to the worst golf instructor in America.

Here are some of my key takeaways.

Method Teacher

It is widely accepted that there are three types of golf instructors: system teachers, non-system teachers, and method teachers. Method teachers prescribe the same antidote for each student based on a preamble which teachers can learn in a couple day certification.

Method teaching allows anyone to be certified. This process caters to the lowest caliber instructor, creating the illusion of competency. This empowers these underqualified instructors with the moniker of “certified” to prey on the innocent and uninformed.

The Cult of Stack and Jilt

The Stack and Tilt website proudly boasts, “A golfer swings his hands inward in the backswing as opposed to straight back to 1) create power, similar to a field goal kicker moving his leg in an arc and 2) to promote a swing that is in-to-out, which produces a draw (and eliminates a slice).”

Now, let me tell you something, there is this law of the universe which says “energy can either be created or destroyed,” so either these guys are defying physics or they have no idea what they are taking about. Further, the idea that the first move of the backswing determines impact is conjecture with a splash of utter fantasy.

These are the pontifications of a method — a set of prescriptions applied to everyone with the hope of some success through the placebo effect. It is one thing for a naive student to believe, for a golf instructor to drink and then dispel this Kool-Aid is malpractice.

Fooled by Randomness

In flipping a coin, or even a March Madness bet, there is a 50-50 chance of success. In golf, especially for new players, results are asymmetric. Simply put: Anything can happen. The problem is that when bad instructors work with high handicappers, each and every shot gets its own diagnosis and prescription. Soon the student is overwhelmed.

Now here’s the sinister thing: The overwhelming information is by design. In this case, the coach is not trying to make you better, they are trying to make you reliant on them for information. A quasi Stockholm syndrome of codependency.

Practice

One of the most important scientists of the 20th century was Ivan Pavlov. As you might recall, he found that animals, including humans, could be conditioned into biological responses. In golf, the idea of practice has made millions of hackers salivate that they are one lesson or practice session from “the secret.”

Sunk Cost

The idea for the worst golf instructor is to create control and dependency so that clients ignore the sunk cost of not getting better. Instead, they are held hostage by the idea that they are one lesson or tip away from unlocking their potential.

Cliches

Cliches have the effect of terminating thoughts. However, they are the weapon of choice for this instructor. Add some hyperbole and students actually get no information. As a result, these players couldn’t play golf. When they did, they had no real scheme. With no idea what they are doing, they would descend into a spiral of no idea what to do, bad results, lower confidence, and running back to the lesson tee from more cliches.

The fact is that poor instruction is about conditioning players to become reliant members of your cult. To take away autonomy. To use practice as a form of control. To sell more golf lessons not by making people better but through the guise that without the teacher, the student can never reach their full potential. All under the umbrella of being “certified” (in a 2-day course!) and a melee of cliches.

This of course is not just happening at my muni but is a systemic problem around the country and around the world, the consequences of which are giving people a great reason to stop playing golf. But hey, at least it’s selling a lot of golf balls…

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19th Hole

Vincenzi’s 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans betting preview

Published

1 week ago

Apr 22, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

The PGA TOUR heads to New Orleans to play the 2023 Zurich Classic of New Orleans. In a welcome change from the usual stroke play, the Zurich Classic is a team event. On Thursday and Saturday, the teams play best ball, and on Friday and Sunday the teams play alternate shot.

TPC Louisiana is a par 72 that measures 7,425 yards. The course features some short par 4s and plenty of water and bunkers, which makes for a lot of exciting risk/reward scenarios for competitors. Pete Dye designed the course in 2004 specifically for the Zurich Classic, although the event didn’t make its debut until 2007 because of Hurricane Katrina.

Coming off of the Masters and a signature event in consecutive weeks, the field this week is a step down, and understandably so. Many of the world’s top players will be using this time to rest after a busy stretch.

However, there are some interesting teams this season with some stars making surprise appearances in the team event. Some notable teams include Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama, Will Zalatoris and Sahith Theegala as well as a few Canadian teams, Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin and Taylor Pendrith and Corey Conners.

Past Winners at TPC Louisiana

2023: Riley/Hardy (-30)
2022: Cantlay/Schauffele (-29)
2021: Leishman/Smith (-20)
2019: Palmer/Rahm (-26)
2018: Horschel/Piercy (-22)
2017: Blixt/Smith (-27)

2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans Picks

Tom Hoge/Maverick McNealy +2500 (DraftKings)

Tom Hoge is coming off of a solid T18 finish at the RBC Heritage and finished T13 at last year’s Zurich Classic alongside Harris English.

This season, Hoge is having one of his best years on Tour in terms of Strokes Gained: Approach. In his last 24 rounds, the only player to top him on the category is Scottie Scheffler. Hoge has been solid on Pete Dye designs, ranking 28th in the field over his past 36 rounds.

McNealy is also having a solid season. He’s finished T6 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and T9 at the PLAYERS Championship. He recently started working with world renowned swing coach, Butch Harmon, and its seemingly paid dividends in 2024.

Keith Mitchell/Joel Dahmen +4000 (DraftKings)

Keith Mitchell is having a fantastic season, finishing in the top-20 of five of his past seven starts on Tour. Most recently, Mitchell finished T14 at the Valero Texas Open and gained a whopping 6.0 strokes off the tee. He finished 6th at last year’s Zurich Classic.

Joel Dahmen is having a resurgent year and has been dialed in with his irons. He also has a T11 finish at the PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass which is another Pete Dye track. With Mitchell’s length and Dahmen’s ability to put it close with his short irons, the Mitchell/Dahmen combination will be dangerous this week.

Taylor Moore/Matt NeSmith +6500 (DraftKings)

Taylor Moore has quickly developed into one of the more consistent players on Tour. He’s finished in the top-20 in three of his past four starts, including a very impressive showing at The Masters, finishing T20. He’s also finished T4 at this event in consecutive seasons alongside Matt NeSmith.

NeSmith isn’t having a great 2024, but has seemed to elevate his game in this format. He finished T26 at Pete Dye’s TPC Sawgrass, which gives the 30-year-old something to build off of. NeSmith is also a great putter on Bermudagrass, which could help elevate Moore’s ball striking prowess.

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