Fairways • Summer 09
Hey, Listen Up!
Jim McLean

by Mike Stansfield

Jim McLean is considered one of the top golf instructors in the world and has taught more than 100 PGA, LPGA and Champions Tour players including: Hal Sutton, Tom Kite, Sergio Garcia, Curtis Strange, Bernhard Langer, Cristie Kerr, Ben Crenshaw, Gary Player, Liselotte Neuman, Peter Jacobsen and Steve Elkington.

There are eight Jim McLean Golf Schools with his ninth scheduled to open at the Red Ledges in Heber City, Utah in 2010. We caught up with Jim at the Grand Opening of the Jack Nicklaus designed Red Ledges Golf Course where he made some interesting observations about amateurs, pros, the economy and his new Utah school. So Hey, Listen Up!

By far the number one problem with amateur golfers is the amount of tension in their fingers, their wrists and their shoulders.
Not one in one hundred people hold their club too light.

When you struggle you go back to basics – your setup, alignments, tempo and swing plane. It’s really not that much different with a tour player.

Obviously they [the pros] are playing at a much higher level but they’re still trying to do the basics, swing path,
swing plane and then swinging with confidence.

Some weeks you’re on and some weeks you’re struggling. That’s just how golf is.

I don’t remember in all the years working with Ken Venturi that he didn’t say, “Most people don’t really lose their swing, they lose their position at setup.”

Golf teaches some great values to kids. You have to deal with a lot of situations in golf, frustrations and that’s hard for kids.

Golf teaches integrity better than any other game.

Golf teaches honesty, counting all your shots and accepting that when you have a bad hole you deal with it.

Kids can learn to control their temper by playing golf. When they hit a bad shot or have a bad hole, they’ll learn to deal with that and keep on playing.

Golf is a great outlet for people. It will always be a great part of business because you get to know people. You get to know people on a golf course.

Golf is really a special thing. You get out in nature and you get a chance to clear the mind and get away from all your problems.

I think that the best players aren’t always the best teachers.

A tour player is not thinking about everyone else. They are thinking about their swing.

Golf is the most selfish game in the world. We’re always thinking about our game. What am I doing? What happened to my game?

The teacher walks one step behind the player, you’re not out in front, you’re supposed to be that person building up the player’s confidence and helping them.

The ability to analyze a swing is a bit of a gift.

We’re going to be able to teach everybody here at Red Ledges. We’re going to try and do some real nice things for junior golf in the area.

I’ve been slow to expand. I’ve just tried to go to real nice places where I really want to be. And this is certainly one of them.

You wouldn’t really expect to come to Utah to do a golf school but these are special people and I’ll jump at any chance
to be associated with Jack Nicklaus and Tony Burns.

This is a very special place. You know it’s just one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen.

Mike Stansfield is the Marketing Director of Fairways magazine.