I’m Darren Game
Golf is my Game, and Game is my name.
Helping children become the best versions of themselves, ready for the challenges they will face through learning to play golf, is what gets me out of bed and engages me each day with passion and vigour.
To coach or to teach—that is the question.
Before sharing my thoughts on whether I teach or coach, let’s first define these terms.
**Teach (verb)** – to impart knowledge or skill; to give instruction.
**Coach (verb)** – to provide instruction or advice in the capacity of a coach; to instruct.
While both terms have similar meanings and can easily be confused, I identify more as a golf coach.
Why do I feel this way?
Teaching often involves a set curriculum or specific knowledge passed from one person to another. For example, a chef teaches someone how to bake a cake, a mother teaches her child how to knit a scarf, and a father teaches his child how to grow tomatoes. In contrast, activities like golf, football, piano playing, or singing typically involve coaching, where an expert guides another person to help them improve and become better than they were before.
In teaching, facts and processes are transmitted to achieve a specific outcome. For instance, if you are baking a chocolate cake, the recipe clearly states to use cocoa powder rather than orange essence.
One might argue that there is a definitive way to swing a golf club or hit a golf ball. While that is true, I am not programming a robot to swing a golf club; I am working with a unique human being. Yes, the musculoskeletal system is similar among most people, but how it functions can differ from one individual to another. This is without considering the psychological aspects as well. So, although the human body may move in similar ways, adding a person’s individuality into the mix means that the ‘correct swing’ might need to be reconsidered. My mission is to work with each individual to help them enjoy playing golf and become the best they can be.
To illustrate this further, let’s consider the grip, or how to hold a golf club. Books, YouTube videos, and other resources often state that the ‘overlapping’ or ‘Vardon’ grip is the most popular. While it may be, what about a person who only has one arm or three fingers on a hand? Does that mean they can’t enjoy playing golf?
If you look at the practice grounds at a PGA or LPGA tour event, you’ll see some of the best players in the world using a variety of grips.
From this, I hope to encourage you to reflect on how we have been conditioned to do things in a certain way and to consider reevaluating our approaches. As the saying goes, we must flow with the times.
This article, along with those that will follow, contains my thoughts on the questions I constantly ask myself as I continue to love coaching golf to children, along with the answers I have developed. Who knows, five years down the line, I might be expressing different views—just as I coach now very differently than I did five, ten, or even thirty years ago.