Golf Pro Profiles

 

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Name Name   
Andrew Proudman Piers Ward   
      
Age Age   
26 31   
      
What age did you start playing golf? What age did you start playing golf?   
Age 9 Age 15   
      
Age at which you went professional? Age at which you went professional?   
20 22   
      
Where do you live? Where do you live?   
Fordhouses, Wolverhampton Featherstone, Nr Wolverhampton   
      
What do you do in your spare time? What do you do in your spare time?   
Other than playing golf?? I'm a fitness freak - I play football every week & work out at the gym 3 times a week. I go to maintain my overall level of fitness but also concentrate on specific exercises to help improve my golf. 

Like Andy I'm keen on all sports but participation is limited due to work commitments. I regularly do specific gym routines and I appreciate how important a healthy diet is in playing good golf and do my best to advocate this with what I eat myself.

   
 
What was your first golfing achievement? What was your first golfing achievement?
Club Champion of my local Golf Club Club Knockout at my local golf club
   
Golfing Achievements & Qualifications Golfing Achievements & Qualifications
PGA Golf Professional, NLP Certified Golf Practitioner, Midland Assistant Professionals Champion 2003, Staffordshire Professional Matchplay Champion 2006, TPI Certified (Golf Fitness) PGA Golf Professional, NLP Certified Golf Practitioner, AA Golf Professional, TPI Certified (Golf Fitness)   
   
What's the best part of being a Golf Professional at the 3 Hammers Golf Complex? What's the best part of being a Golf Professional at the 3 Hammers Golf Complex?
Working in a superb location with excellent facilities. 3 Hammers has got a great atmosphere too which my students respond well to. I enjoy helping people to start playing golf and get enthusiastic about the sport. Similarly, working with the juniors is great fun - teaching them the skills they need & watching them progress their game. Their enthusiasm is contagious. Being part of a professional team who's sole purpose is to help the golfing public. Seeing my students improve and achieve their goals gives me huge staisfaction. I relish the every day challenge to maintain the 3 Hammers as one of the best golf facilities in the Midlands.
   
What is your golfing weak spot? What is your golfing weak spot?
Time! There's just not enough of it. The Academy is thriving & with teaching, practice, competitions & (a little bit of) social life - there's just never enough time! Just like I tell my students - if I had more time to practice - my game would improve even further. As with Andy - time is always an issue. Also - I contracted Glandula Fever in 1999 which meant that I hardly competed in any competitions or played golf for over a year. Therefore it's very important to me to maintain my level of health & fitness.
   
What is your top tip? What is your top tip?

Well there's two actually. Firstly - fitness. Technique is very important but being strong & flexible enough to perform the movement is equally as important.

Secondly - the mental aspect of the game. Players need to work on their mental skills as much, if not more than their physical game.

 

My top tip for beginners is to practice like you play. Golfers tend to make their practice too easy and are then not prepared for the tests that they will face on the golf course.

The most common questions I get asked is "how do I cure my slice?". The answer is usually in how the golfer sets up to the ball. Check your basics and you could well be on your way to curing the dreaded slice.

  
What are the future plans for the Academy? What are the future plans for the Academy?

The Academy is now so popular that in order to service our customers we need to expand to employ more coaches. We want to help introduce more people to the game & continue developing the ladies & junior sections. I'll continue to further my education on all aspects of coaching including the fact that Piers & I are now certified TPI Golf Fitness Instructors.

We also plan to develop the facilities at the Complex to better enable group coaching by creating an indoor teaching academy. Also we want to bring the awareness of how important the mental aspect of golf is to the player by running local workshops & seminars.

 

With the aid of the upcoming new facilities at the 3 Hammers we feel we can help golfers of all levels - from absolute beginners right up to fellow professionals. In the future months I'm looking forward to working with some more professional players on improving their game and maybe swopping some tips.

The new putting facilities coupled with the short course will make the 3 Hammers an ideal venue for more advanced players to polish up their techniques. I will soon be applying to be an Advanced Professional which can only be achieved by fulfilling a detailed list of criteria. This will raise the Academy's status amongst my fellow professionals.

   
What are YOUR future plans? What are YOUR future plans?
Although my main passion is for improving other people's game - I'm as competitive as they come! I love playing golf socially & often compete in tournaments. I feel it's important for me to relate to my clients & test out my own coaching methods. Increased practice, (win!) more competitions & to expand the Academy. As Andy has mentioned we are now qualified TPI Golf Fitness Instructors which will widen our scope and expertise in our field. Whilst my primary focus is teaching others and helping them to improve - I still compete in County and Midland Professional Tournaments. After all - my students want to know that I can at least hit the odd good shot!
   
What is your main goal for the future? What is your main goal for the future?
My goal would be to help develop a local youngster to become a touring professional. Improve my game basically. That way I am better placed to help others improve theirs.