What do you expect from a golf lesson?

[Boeing777]

Just last night laying in bed i told my wife i'm going to get lessons from a teacher from my golf club. Now this morning after reading all your post, I'm now very scared. Now i'm afraid i'm going to pay a bunch of money and get a crappy coach....GREAT, now i'm gun shy.......I go hit 1 bucket of balls at lunch, then after work i hit another bucket of balls at the club. But i really try to take my time on each ball, not just wack away at balls. Now what???

[wannabe]

I'm planning on booking a series of 4 lessons with a local PGA Pro Apprentice, beginning on the 15th. Yess!!

Reading through this thread has brought up a question for you teachers. What would you like your students to have done by way of preparation before the first lesson? Questions to ask ourselves and be prepared to answer? Warmup, pre-lesson practicing? Preparing of equipment prior to lessons?

To answer the OP, I must have some theory mixed in with the 'just do it this way'. I have a lot of head knowledge of the game and swing theory, and need to link theory with a mental picture and then translate to the physical.
Video and/or mirrors helps me a ton - let's me see how what I think I'm doing is/is not what I'm doing. Looking at someone else do something, and then trying to replicate it in my own body, or as my gaming son would say, "from FPS perspective", can get very lost in the translation without some theory and "seeing myself" feedback.
I'm also very trusting of the instructor and can pick-up & change quickly. My biggest issue is putting in the time & $ to really get my game going. '09's gonna be the year, I hope!

[skwon11]

When I was a kid, my Dad signed me up for lessons and I remember just swinging and the guy telling me things (all good tips) and my adjusting and that was it. But I'm not a kid anymore.

I took a golf lesson at the Del Mar (near San Diego) and it was the best 1 hour of fun I have had in a while. He watched me hit and then we talked about goals for the next year (break 100 and then 90) and how best to accomplish it with my swing. He told me what he had planned (ditch the driver for now, get more consistent (in regards to accuracy) with my other clubs and then work on my chipping and putting). He wanted to make sure I was ok with this and then off we went. He told me to write things down after the lesson. Within the 1st 20 minutes my slice was gone and then next 20-30 minutes were chipping and putting (more strategy (aiming, time in the air and roll of the ball)) as well as drills to work on galore. I wrote everything down and he told me he'd be happy to see me every week (business) but it would be good to see me if I couldn't accomplish my goals or had new goals. That was a great lesson and that's what I expect from one.

[starchuk]

I have a lot of head knowledge of the game and swing theory, and need to link theory with a mental picture and then translate to the physical.

I like it. You're going into your lesson with some knowledge that you trust and you know how you want to work on your changes: visually. I have always found my most successful lessons are those where I have an agenda and my questions that I want answered.

by the end of the lesson, you should know: -what part is going wrong (the cause) -what that does to your swing/path/clubface and why it goes in the direction it goes (the effect) -the understanding of how to fix it (where your body is going wrong) -the 'feel' and the drills to work on it (how your body feels to do it right) If you are a visual learner, then you should see your drill 'visually' so you match your feel with the Real.

[McGolf-Doggie]

Just last night laying in bed i told my wife i'm going to get lessons from a teacher from my golf club. Now this morning after reading all your post, I'm now very scared. Now i'm afraid i'm going to pay a bunch of money and get a crappy coach....GREAT, now i'm gun shy.......I go hit 1 bucket of balls at lunch, then after work i hit another bucket of balls at the club. But i really try to take my time on each ball, not just wack away at balls. Now what???

Then take it one lesson at a time, and put in the time in-between lessons, at the range, to implement the changes. Believe me they can take time to implement.

I needed several weeks to get some of the new swing changes grooved and readjusted. My experience of lessons was good. But I am experiencing the knock-on results more now -- months later -- because I've had time to consistently work on various aspects of the swing that the instructor taught me. It took a while to get the changes grooved, and felt weird at first, but now it's more second nature, and from there I can make smaller adjustments. I'm looking forward to the warmer weather — and less snow all over the place — so I can take the lessons to the next level.