Michel Monnard again on the roads of Asia to spread the Swash Beliefs
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| Michel Monnard at Clearwater Bay Golf Club in Hong Kong |
Part of my missions goal was to help the Asians Yes! Distributor to promote the Yes! Putter and show local golfer on how they can improve their putting with Custom fitted Putters. Yes! Golf is pursuing it's target to offer it's customers more and more only custom fitted putters coupled with specialized Swash Putting Instruction which is Tour proven.
Responsible for the specialized putting instruction is the Harold Swash Putting School of Excellence and it's worldwide active Accredited Instructors Programme. This two day programme is aimed at Golf Teaching Professionals which are interested in improving their knowledge about Putting and increasing their revenue through additional sales channels.
In Lotus Hills I was joined by Yes! Golf's Asia Master Distributor David Largent, Edmond Wu and the Southern Chinese Distributor Mr. Wei. We had a 90 Minute teaching session with a selected group of members, 6 in total. The goal was to show the members a bit more in depth, how the Swash Putting Method could help them to improve their golfing skills.
After we have been kindly invited by the Director of Golf to the 12th Anniversary Christmas dinner of the Lotus Hills Golf Club, we continued our trip to Xili Golf Resort in Shenzhen. Xili was already part of our last trip in November 2008, when we held the first Asian Accredited Instructors course for Golf Teaching Professionals.
At Xili, with the kind help of Director Kai Smiths, we had booked two clinics with 3 hours duration. In each clinic we had 6 members being signed in. Accredited Instructor Marc Boggia was helping me and David Largent to conduct the session.
Stations where the Sam Putt Lab, Dual Video Camera Capture and Ball Roll Capture. The analysis of this data lead us to pick two to three priority issues in each golfers technique and then to work with those players trough work stations. Being 3 instructors, we had a great hands-on value for our pupils and they all improved vastly with their techniques. Marc Boggia is now the Instructor they can contact and continue to work with in the future.
Marc Boggia quickly recognized the value of the 2 day course and what this would mean for him and his Golf School in Hong Kong. Being specialized in Putting Instruction would give him an additional marketing tool, further knowledge and lots of ideas on how to make his golf school the leader in Putting Instruction in Hong Kong.
After Xili, before I continued my journey back to Mission Hills one more time, I had a meeting with the sales staff of the Southern Chinese Distributor for Yes! My mission was to help educate the staff in what customers will find the Yes! C-Groove Putter ahead of the competition and why some 20 odd player on the European PGA Tour use this putter without sponsorship.
Our venue was the Shenzhen Golf Club, in the middle of Shenzhen, the industrial heart of Southern China. At this venue the Asian PGA Tour stops for its annual Volvo Masters. Mr. Wei organized around 15 sales staff from the area to join the 90 minutes session on the Driving-Ranges Putting Green. It was fun to see how little golf experienced sales staff bit by bit started to understand why the Yes! C-Groove Putter is such a good product at a reasonable price. The 90 minutes went over quickly and off I was to the next station.
I decided to take up the opportunity and spend 2 ½ half days more in Mission Hills. After all, I did not only want to work, but rather enjoy a few moments of golf as well. The very kind staff at Mission Hills which I knew from the Asian Golf Development Summit had taken great care of me and organized rounds of golf at the Norman course, which is exclusively for members, the Nicklaus designed World Cup Course and the Faldo Course. I was thrilled with the organization the resort had in place. It just all went so smoothly and the courses where great fun and some holes quite a challenge. The Hotel itself is something a golfer looks for. Lots of space, not the usually hard Chinese beds, but huge soft sheets, linens and pillows. Transport around the huge resort (there are 12 courses with 3 different club houses) is running so perfect that your bag gets automatically transported to the course where you play next.
I can only recommend to all golfers, which would like to stay at one place and play several golf courses and enjoy a bit of luxury, that they fly out to Hong Kong and take the Hotel Shuttle Bus to Mission Hills and spend at least 4 – 5 days there. It is well worth the experience and on the way back a few days in Macau and Hong Kong are just great to round of a 10 – 12 day trip full of golfing and fun.
Leaving Mission Hills for Hong Kong was as easy as playing a nice round of golf there. The private transport, organized by the resorts reception took my right to Hong Kong Central where David Largent picked me up again. Finding a hotel in Hong Kong is not a problem, but finding a hotel which provides normal services at acceptable European standards sometimes is a hazel.
The next step was to visit golf hot spots in the Hong Kong area to tell our story and find new allies on the way to further step up our worldwide Accredited Instructors Programme in Asia.
David Largent took me on to Clearwater Bay Golf Club. A private club just on one of the most beautiful places you can imagine. Membership fees sky-rocketing to at about 500'000 US$.
After play we met with Golf Director Kevin Hind. A friendly discussion about what we offer and our plans to further present our instruction method on Asian soil set the base for firm interest from the management to have their golf teaching professionals further trained and specialized in Putting Instruction to Tour Standard.
After this meeting, David Largent drove me to the public course of Kau Sai Chau. The Kau Sai Chau property belongs to the famous Hong Kong Jockey Club, where profit is made with horse race betting. These profits are re-invested into public interest, and one of these places is Kau Sai Chau Golf Club. A stunning 50 odd million US$ was invested in a real pearl of golf course, on an as stunning place as Clearwater Bay. The Greenfee rate is at 590 HK$ on weekdays and 770 on the weekend.
Paul Riley, the golf school director has received us for a little chat and a drive over the spectacular south course. Lots of memorable downhill shots accompanied with great views make this course a day to remember. Just a pity that tee-times usually are booked out days in advance.
Paul Riley was greatly interested in hosting a Harold Swash Putting School at the Kau Sai Chau Golf Club, especially because of the fact that the Jockey Club has planned another huge investment into Kau Sai Chau to build a educational center for all possible professions in the golf resort area, from greenkeeper to receptionist. So the fact that we are specialized in Putting would be highly interesting to further improve the quality of instruction at Kau Sai Chau.
On my last day, I played famous Hong Kong Golf Club before leaving for Doha.
Arriving in Doha my plans where pretty simple: relaxing, joining a desert tour and stay overnight in a desert camp (brr that was cold, 8 degrees to be exact!) and see more of the local culture in a city tour and a day of exploring. And of course the Museum of Islamic Art.
I played the Doha Golf Club, the only course in Qatar. I was welcomed in the most friendly way and the staff where nothing but the perfect host to a very enjoyable round of golf with two Canadians who work for the Calgary University in Doha and a golf crazy Korean businessman working in the oil industry.
About Harold Swash Putting School of Excellence
Harold Swash has more than 40 years of experience in the golf industry as a coach, golf club designer and inventor of putting training aids.
Harold has coached many of the top professional and amateur golfers with his innovative putting training techniques including Padraig Harrington, David Howell, Henrik Stenson, Niclas Fasth, Soren Kjeldsen, Darren Clarke, Ian Woosnam, Constantino Rocca, Robert Jan Derksen and Nick Faldo to name just a few.
Harold Swash is making his teaching philosophy available for all keen golf teaching professionals who want to learn how to teach Putting better.
For more information about The Harold Swash Putting School of Excellence go to www.swashputtingschools.com
Swash Putting Schools Asia/Pacific, Australia, South Africa, Middle East
27a Banastre Road
Southport
PR8 5AW
Merseyside
United Kingdom
PR9 7SW
Contact: Michel Monnard, C./Roses 4, 07580 Capdepera (Mallorca/Spain)
Email: michel@swashputtingschools.com
Phone: 0034 639635634