November starts off a bit cold, out comes the polo neck jumpers, here comes the winter!

I am working on my new 2012 golf school brochure, new venues and a new picture of me on the front, thanks to the help of Linda Clark for her patience in taking the photos and helping with the set up of the brochure.

I am packing my case to go off to Spain for my golf school with the girls from Oslo, Norway. This is one of the fun schools I do. These girls work hard and party hard too, so I know I am going to work hard this week. It is great to see all my friends form Oslo and put them through their paces and help them to understand the changes we are going to make. The golf courses were in great condition and we were able to make the most of the wonderful practice facilities of Novo Sancti Petri. We had two birthdays that week too, Mona and Kristin Berg who has been a long time friend and who is the organiser of their week with me... and it was a good one, thank you girls you were fab!!

So home and back to my normal week. I did my last 3 hour short game clinic of the year at Kingsway. It was in nice but cool weather. We covered long and short pitching as well as putting and chipping with drills to help the ladies remember their clinic... a great day was had by all.

November and December have been a little quiet, so time to get ready for 2012. I have had some of my pupils ask me to help them with goal setting for them and their golf. This is great as we talked together and planned their practice sessions and their practice rounds so the time they spend will be used to better their golf. I have talked to people about how they practice and how important it is to have quality practice and to practice with a real purpose. So many people forget after about 10 minutes or so on the range that they must hit to a target and keep this in mind. Let me ask you a question... ”Have you ever said to someone 'I hit it great on the range but seem to lose it by the time I get to the course...' so frustrating”. Well, what has changed between you hitting it great on the range to standing on the 1^st tee?? The answer to that is YOUR STATE!! On the range you are relaxed, but by the time you get to the course you’re up tight and tense, so we have to keep that nice relaxed state you have practicing and take it to the course. Breathing smooth and slow will help... ”It is impossible to tense and to be breathing correctly” SO how do you breathe??? Try some deep breaths, I know this will help.

We in Cambridgeshire have now started our junior program for the winter and spring. It’s called the county golf partnership program. This year I am working with two top pro’s in Crage Watson and Alistair Currey and we will be working out of Brampton Park Golf Club. After our first session I must say I am so impressed with some of the raw talent we have, so I am looking forward to seeing these children grow into real golfers.

As it is the end of the year I look back to some outstanding results that some of my pupils have achieved. There have been some great changes in handicaps, names on boards in their clubs, winning their first competition and some of my newer players playing their first 18 holes and getting a handicap!!

I am so lucky to meet and be part of peoples leisure time and see them grow as players understanding just what they have to do and doing it and seeing results for their hard work, so I thank you all so much and wish you all the best for 2012.

So a big thank you for your time in reading my winter news letter and I look forward to meeting you in 2012, please let me know how things are going... I am here to help!!!

As September kicks in the weather changes, not nice for anyone! I did my usual “SOS.GOLF” day at Bedfordshire GC. What a nice day. Despite the poor weather in the afternoon we did manage to get everything done! A nice day with a good bunch of girls. Working on a great mix of long and short game alongside some skills tests we all had fun, so thank you to them for a great day!

My senior’s class on a Tuesday morning at Kingsway is as popular as ever. We started on a programme covering a list of topics which will take us right through till February, weather permitting that is!!

All is going well with me. I am getting ready for my winter season, I have my first  school at El Rompido in October, I am sooo looking forward to that as it is such a good venue with 2 great courses, it will be nice for me to play too, as we have our Ladies Pro-Am there in 2012.

But before then we have the Tarleton Festival week at Islantilla, now this is a fab week of competition in the sunshine of Spain, we normally have around 100 people playing in different formats, a fun week I must say.

September always sees me getting my new golf school brouchure ready for 2012, with the help of Linda (aka Zorro) Clark who takes the photos for me, we put it together along with the NEW dates for my UK schools at Staverton Park Spa & Golf Hotel along with my 2 day specials with my friend Geraint Dixon at my club at Bedfordshire Golf Club. it’s great to work alongside him. Geraint is a great club fitter, so if you ever need some new clubs just give me a call and we can sort you out. It is important to have the right clubs, so it is worth getting them fitted for you.

I have also delivered some 3-hour short game and long game clinics at Kingsway Golf Centre, these sessions are as popular as ever. I really do like coaching 2/3 hour sessions, as we can cover so much and still have plenty of time.

Half hour lessons are fine, but sometimes are over so quickly, its hard to change something and have time to feel secure in the new approach, so I feel we can accomplish so much more in an hour or more where you have time to properly “bed” the changes in. My personal trainer days are also great for people who want a good 1 to 1 session, to cover what you need plus video of course. If you would like me to do you a winter program please contact me. I will be doing a number of different sessions this winter such as a 3 month program where you have 10 hours tuition, video and supervised practice, a great way to kick start your 2012 golfing season, if you fancy that call me!

I am continuing my education as a coach by attending coaching seminars by the leading golf coaches It’s great for me to be able to keep on top of what is new in the world of coaching and improving my knowledge and service for my pupils.

My El Rompido golf school was great, we had just fantastic weather from +23 to +30! We were able to cover all aspects of golf with plenty of time to play & practice. It was great for me to get to play too. The courses (both of them) were good and the greens were very good, so we were able to do some great on course tuition, the group worked hard and we saw some great understanding and improvements. Derek Wittering won the competition with 38 points... all I can say is he gets better with age! Del’s form comes and goes, but his class is permanent! The secret pairs competition was won by Vivien Ward and Fiona Rae with 54 points. Well done to them all! See how it went...

For me it was home, get the washing done and pack for the Golf Show at Harrogate.

The golf show was great, I got to meet up with some great pro’s I have not seen for ages and friends in the golf business, reps, salesmen and women with whom I have done business in the past and will do in the future. Of course I got to see some of the new products on offer for next season.

I also got the chance to go to two seminars, I went to see Michael Hebron who is an NLP master practitioner and his talk was on Modernising teaching and learning.  The other one was with Ian Clark who is one of the busiest coaches in the UK and his seminar was on how to run a profitable and vibrant teaching business. I love to go to as many as I can, keeping up to date is so important in my business, there is always some new idea, some new skill I can learn which makes me a better coach. When I have been on these coaching conferences it just makes me more determined to keep improving ME, I get a big buzz out of it and cannot wait to get back on to the coaching tee!!

Back home to get ready for my school at Novo Santa Petri with the girls from Norway... bring it on!

A big well done to Sergio Garcia on the last two weeks of winning.....the boy is back!!!

So is summer kicking in?? We all hope so! I am really enjoying teaching at Bedfordshire Golf Club and so nice teaching in shorts!!

I have been putting together a junior program for Bedfordshire; I am going to do a few drill and skills days, just to mix it up a little for the kids as after all it’s about having fun as well as improving their golf. So we will be having some fun and games with them I have some great drills for them too.!

I was able to get to The Open. What a great place to go watch, enjoy, meet old friends such as Sandy Lyle who won the Open at Sandwich in the 80’s who I have not seen for years, which was really nice, also I was able take some photos and videos and teach too!

I was among a team of teaching professionals teaching at the R&A swingzone, just at the back of the practice ground. We did sessions of 4 hours where we gave 15 minute lessons, so at any one time there were 10 pros teaching! Just a big buzz for me, the only downside was that I was only able to do it for 2 days this year, as last year I did the whole week... and of course in 2012 I will be there for the week!

It is such a great place to go, I have been lucky enough to get on to the practice ground and get up close to the players. For me it’s great to see my sponsors, Mizuno, it’s great to see what is new, and of course to say thank you to them for their continued support of me!

I love the Open - I am a big fan. My first was a long time ago at Royal Birkdale where I took time off school to go and watch and was hooked from there on in. I have been lucky to go to lots of them and to be on the first of the teaching set-ups, which has gone from strength to strength... so a full week teaching for me next year.

What a great win for Darren Clarke winning The Open.  What great skills he showed on the golf course; controlling himself whether he hit a great shot or not.  Links golf can be hit and miss ie. you can hit a great shot up the middle and end up in a bunker... that’s just the way links golf goes. But he carried on believing in himself, not getting ahead of himself and he had FUN out there too. What a great fella, a super win for the normal man, the question is, how long did the party last!!! Nice one Darren enjoy it all!

As the summer gets in to full swing I have my 2 day summer school at Staverton Park Golf & Spa golf hotel to look forward to and my 3 junior summer schools to do at Bedfordshire Golf Club and short game clinics at Kingsway Golf Centre...so I will be kept out of trouble this summer. At the same time I am working on my 2 day schools getting the dates all sorted out for the end of the year and next. This time of year I start looking at dates for my winter golf school program too, so I now have my dates out for schools in Spain. I will be going to El Rompido in October, Novo Sancti Petri and Islantilla in November. I am sooo looking forward to going to these courses, as I know them all and would recommend a trip there... all good hotels and courses with great teaching facilities.

Summer school at Staverton

Junior summer school

In August some of the girls from the pro-am had a get together down at Bowood and Kingsdown Golf courses. It was great to see the girls, and needless to say we had a great time!! It was nice to play 2 good courses in great condition with fab people. I am pleased to say my team won the first day at Bowood, Loz, Elaine, & Linda played really well. So thanks girls it was a blast!!

The Girls at Bowood

So it was back to work after a little break, it was nice to see all the juniors working hard and most importantly having FUN practicing their golf. I ran a one day clinic at Bedfordshire G.C. for them and I am pleased to say the weather was kind to us and we were able to work on their skills. I set up different targets and flag positions on the range and short game area to test them, it was great seeing them all learn by trying different things, then we took them on to the par 3 course. A great day of fun was had, now I am looking forward to the next one.

May sees me at the ladies pro-am in Spain, this is possibly the best week of my year, I get to play golf with my friends and get to meet other friends who I only get to see once or twice a year, as they live in Norway, Holland and Denmark... not forgetting all the ladies who live in the UK!

Its great fun, everyone is competitive, and wants to do well but at the same time they all let their hair down on the karaoke night, so take a look at the photos on my website and see the fun.

I then had a golf school, the week after which was also fun in the sun. Islantilla is one of the very few places where we can hit balls from the grass on the range and it also has a great short game area and two good putting greens, so a pleasure to be at!

The day after I got back we had the last of our Cambridgeshire Juniors CAP teaching days at The Gogs, it’s great to see all the kids improve and have some fun with the drills and skills tests.  Over the 6 sessions all the kids have improved so much that between them they have lost over 100 shots off their handicaps, so we are all very pleased for them.

May 21^st and 22^nd I had a golf school at Abbotsley, it’s always great to see new people and give them some advice on their game and clubs, so a great weekend was had by all.

Now for me it’s time to get my teeth stuck in to my new teaching role at Bedfordshire G.C. it’s a great place, we have a purpose-built covered driving range, plus we have an 18 hole golf course and a really good par 3 course.  In fact the last hole is 296 yards (par4) so a good challenge and the other holes range from 109 yards to 164 yards, so a real mini course and great for new players and fab to do short game schools on. We also have a large putting green and a large short game area with 3 bunkers and a big green to sharpen up your short game on, so I am looking forward to doing clinics and schools there.

A quick turnaround and I am off to Spain for the last of this season’s golf schools. It was at Valle del Este. What a pleasure it was, great weather great condition. My group were put through their paces in the Spanish sun shine. We covered all the aspects of the game and we did some skills tests, always good. The winner on the last day was Jan, the secret pairs were Fiona and Viv and the best putter was Debbie... a great week with fab people... I now look forward to the next one, in fact we are taking bookings for October, with my November “Girls from Norway” is now full!!! Woo hoo!!

Home to rain, but it did not stop the Cambridge CAP kids enjoying their competition day at Malton Golf Club. It was great seeing all the kids we have been working with enjoy playing and really thinking about their strategy around the course in the Texas Scramble teams....really had a great time!

As the days get hotter..I am pleased to say more people are around and playing more golf. I have just started a beginners group at Bedfordshire, it’s great seeing people get excited when they start hitting the ball up in the air and remembering what they need to practice... also we have started a new junior Saturday group, the Future Stars, again it’s great to see the kids enjoy their challenges that I have set them.  So things are going well at Bedfordshire Golf Club, I am getting to know more of the members and picking up more lessons, I am really enjoying my new challenge and working with Geraint Dixon the head pro.

I am continuing to keep my education up with keeping on top of what is new in the world of golf. I attended a Stack and Tilt teaching conference at Hemingford. It was great to be with like-minded professionals all wanting to keep learning and improving so WE can help the people we teach, it was a great day... just keep learning!!!

As I came to the end of June I am preparing for my weekend schools at Staverton Park and my 2 day school at Bedfordshire GC working with Geraint Dixon. These weekends consist of a mix of tuition, play drills and club fitting... something new and I am sure we will be doing more next year.

I have got myself a new toy... the ipad2 this is going to be great for me on schools away, as it is much lighter than a lap top and being able to use my new Casio EX-F1 super fast camera too, all working with the now famous V1 video software, is a great new thing for me and my school in Spain, as at home of course!

As March kicks in I was still in Spain at the end of my school in Almerimar, now what a great week that was. It is always good to meet new people but even better when I get to meet and coach new people as I did this week.

Then I came home to catch up with things and get sorted at Kingsway, which is now the main place I teach and is a great golf centre with very up-to-date facilities. I teach the seniors on Tuesdays and that is always good fun, we work on a different topic every week so we can cover everything over the course of a few weeks! The group are also talking about doing a 4-day trip to Islantilla in Spain for a mini-school in October or November.  It would be great as it would be good to see the guys on the golf course, so I am looking forward to that one already.

I will be offering these 4 day schools to everyone and we will be taking groups of only 6 people so I can get to give everyone some real special time both on the course and the range.  I know sometimes it’s hard to get away for a week, so this could be the one for you if you fancy a mini school in the winter with some friends then get in touch with me and Tarleton and I will do the rest!

12th & 13th March I was working with some fellow pro’s at the Gogs teaching the Cambridge Juniors on the golf partnership scheme. We are there over the weekend with a great bunch of kids doing skills tests, long game drills and warm up exercises, what a great weekend that was.

The weekend of 19th & 20th March we did our 1st golf school weekend at Bedfordshire Golf Club. This is a new venue for me and it was great to put the people through their paces. Geraint Dixon, the head pro there, did a club check for the people on the school which was very interesting for one and all to see the difference that correctly adjusted clubs can make. It’s great seeing people on the course as it’s so easy to line up on the range mats but not so easy on the course, so lot’s of good work done that weekend!

On my birthday I headed out to Spain to play in the Tarleton mixed pro-am at El Rompido. This is a 5* Hotel with 2 great courses, in good condition. I had a great day with every one being so kind to me... my room was huge, a suite with a jacuzzi in it... very nice.

My team and I were defending our trophy and we were certainly up for the challenge.  I had 4 out of the 6 team members from last year, Rod & Sue Brown, Roger & Janet Poat and our two new ones were Cliff & Marilyn Davis... what a dream team hay!

After the first round we were in the lead by 17 as we scored 159 over the North course. In the 2nd round we scored 158 as Cliff played a blinder and was cut by 2 shots.  Now I think that made him even more confident to play the next round and as sure as eggs are eggs he had 40 points. Cliff was really the star of our team and I am very pleased to say we won!! We had 156 on the last round to win by 30 points.  The whole team played their part in our great win, every one had shots of brilliance, shots of real quality and we holed some great putts, on the fast, great greens.  I really loved the week at El Rompido, it is definately one of my favourite places to play and to do golf schools, so a big big thank you to my FAB team for a great week in the sunshine of Spain.

There were 3 birthdays that week, mine on the 24th^, Sue Brown one of my fab ladies on the 26th and Brian Knight the MD of Tarleton Golf, the organisers of the 2 pro-ams we do and the golf schools I do... so a special week I must say, what a great job well done by all the pros; Lora Fairclough, Ali Johns, Nicky Lawrenson, Carol Pope and Jo Pritchard, and of course all our amateur players too... looking forward to 3 wins in a row next year!!

So that was the end of March, we all came home with a nice sun tan.  I went off to join a new gym as I have not been able to do any running or gym work since Almerimar as I have had a chest infection and bad cough - that nasty thing that was going around, so I was not looking forward to what the coach would have me do, but I must say it was great to get back into it, what a great gym, they have spent 3 million on the refurb, and it’s great, so I am looking forward to using it a lot!

April kicks in and so does the nice weather in the UK. So it’s great to teach in weather when you don’t have too many jackets and over trousers on.

Getting busier at Kingsway with group lessons, ladies, seniors and individual tuition too. Now the Masters has got everyone excited and out on the course.

I am now preparing for the ladies pro-am, I would say the BEST week of my year, 80 ladies have fun in the sun....and Oh boy they will I am sure have great fun.

I am excited also with the fact I will be doing weekend schools at Staverton Park Golf and Spa Hotel this year. We have been working hard on getting this all sorted for this season, with Brian and John from Tarleton.  So here are the dates so far... and I would say if these dates don’t suit you and your group of friends just let me know and we will see what we can do to get the days YOU WANT.

The start of the ladies pro-am has come, all the build up, what fun we had! It’s great to see all my friends, and meet new ones.  See how it went... Now we are all planning 2012, I know we have just come back but we need to get sorted as it’s such a important week it has to be right...

The week after the pro-am I had a school at Islantilla wich was great, the weather got better and the sun shone all the week.  My group was put through their paces and we did some great work. The winners were Lin and Bridget... so for me it was back to the UK to teach the Cambridge juniors and get ready for the first school in the UK at Abbotsley, so it’s all go.

January started much better then last New Year, a great party with my friends!

The down side was that this was my first year without my Mum, so every New Year will be difficult.

I’ve been working hard to get my brochure out, with all the dates of my UK schools. I have a new venue at Bedfordshire Golf Club working with one of my previous assistants Geraint Dixon who is now the Head Professional and General Manager there. We are going to run three 2-day schools at Bedfordshire with the first one in March. It will be great to work alongside Geraint again and these schools will be a little different as it’s not common for two pros to work together, both bringing their different expertise to help a group improve their golf.

Geraint and Denise

My first school of the year was at Benalup, it is the Fairplay Golf and Spa Resort, near Jerez in Spain. A great place and it ticks all the boxes as it is a true 5 star resort, one not to miss next time as I go there every year just after Christmas!!

It was then a quick turn around for me as I was off on my holiday skiing at the fabulous Filzmoos in Austria. The weather could not have been better -12 degrees with plenty of snow. So a great chance to do some real off piste skiing. It is great for me in many ways, as I am not the coach, I am being coached, a big reminder on how it feels to be on the other side...

So now I’m back and in the swing of teaching at Kingsway, we are re-launching the teaching side there and it’s really exciting, we want to get more people into golf, and I will be working hard to get more ladies, we have lots of good offers, so watch this space.

Still continuing with my gym work and running, but it is hard on some days but I feel so good when I’ve finished!!

I am sad to say I now have moved from Abbotsley for my day-to-day teaching...but I am still doing my 2 day and summer schools there. I will miss seeing all my friends and all the members there, as I have spent a long time teaching there. I am looking forward to spending more time at Kingsway... which is only 25 minutes from Abbotsley, so I will still keep in touch with those I teach and see all my friends.

The new website for Kingsway is now live and you can book on-line. I look forward to seeing you there. I will continue to do my personal trainer days and V1 video lessons there, so you will receive the same high standards but at a new venue. I am so looking forward to my new challenge there.

I have also been asked to work with the Cambridgeshire Golf Partnership (CAP) junior programme as part of the coaching team, which is great.  I have taught CAP sessions at Bourne G.C. and Gog Magog GC and it was good to see so many young people really enjoying their days and all the fun things we put them through.  The next sessions are on 12 & 13 March and I’m very much looking forward to another enjoyable weekend.

I have just come home from a great golf school at Almerimar in Spain. I had 16 great people working their little socks off with their new ideas and drills. We had a good week in nice weather, so we were also able to cover a lot of aspects of the short game which I really like. I was able to show them their swings on video and it was a real revelation to some as they had never seen themselves on video at all.  Talking them through the video gave them a really clear picture of what they need to do now! A fab week with great people, I thank you all! See how it went...

Then it was back home and no time to rest as there was open weekend at Kingsway, so my Sunday was busy.

1^st November I am up at silly o’clock and off to Luton airport for my last golf school of the year. It was at Novo Santa Petri and I was looking forward to a great week with 14 girls from Norway. For them it would be their last golf on grass this year, as when they get home it will be very cold and all the courses will be closed. That means for the next few months they will be only able to hit balls in the nets and in large “hangars” but at least they still meet up once a week for a play!!

What a great week that was, we covered all we needed to do, I worked them hard, and gave them lots to think about and gave them drills to back everything up... important! We talked about the importance of having a routine and sticking to it. The winners were Kristin & Mona who were the secret partners and Line was best on the day with 35 points!! Well done to them all and I believe this is now going to be a tradition!! Thanks girls, you all rock! See how it went...

So for me back home to the cold, +22 in Spain and +5 at home, what a change.

Now back I will be working on my brochure and my UK schools, and I hope to get them out before the New Year. This is also a great time to up my fitness, I love going to the gym and going out running... not to sure I want to run to much in the cold though, but I am going to up the routines!!

On the 10^th I was off for my first meeting of the county coaches (CAP) at The Gogs, so that was great to get to meet the rest of our team.

As December kicked in so did the poor weather, the coldest November ran in to a very cold and snowy December. But I am pleased to say that our senior’s coaching groups were still popular. We have been working on good routines, good practice habits, just keeping it simple, with great results I may add. It’s been bright sunny days but very cold.  In fact today -7, but still a good turn out of people. This really is the time to be looking forward to some golf in the sunshine, some winter sun in Spain. I have lots to offer you, different venues and prices, in fact if you and your group of friends can only get away for 4 days then there is a trip for you... just drop me a line and let us do the rest!!

Still having fun on twitter, I have met and exchanged some great teaching experiences with other golf pros from all over the world, it’s great to hear what other pros do. I am @hastingsgolf on twitter, why not follow me!!

More snow!!! OMG were does it all come from. Just about every golfer I know is desperate to get out and play golf, but it does not look like there will be much going on until the New Year. We have been open at Abbotsley but it’s not what you would call golf with temporary greens and of course too much white stuff. There have been big sales on orange balls as people just want to get out and play, but at least the driving ranges are open....as long as we can pick the balls up, you can practice.

The Cromwell Ladies had their Christmas lunch this Sunday, what a laugh!! Games, which I am not good at, and singing and dancing, again yours truly is not so good at, but you have to give it a go, so a good time was had by all.

Xmas with Cromwell Ladies!

As we come to the end of 2010 I would like to wish you all a Fab 2011 with lots of good health and happiness, and of course great golf. It has been great for me this year to meet up with old friends and to make some new ones, so ALL THE BEST to you all and I look forward to seeing you at some point in the coming season... REMEMBER, there is still time to get away for some winter sunshine golf with me, call me!

Have a great one, luv Denise xx

As September kicks in I wonder if this really is the end of the good weather?? Well so far it isn't as I did an NLP Master Class 2-day school at Abbotsley in great weather. This was my re-vamped NLP school as I have been working on a new format and folder to accompany the course and I am very pleased with the results so far. The NLP course enables me to work with people who want to improve the way they think on the course, how they prepare and how they can keep good scores going on the course. So we had a great 2 days working on lots of things including the importance of routines and sticking to them whatever happens to the ball...

I also have now got a twitter account... it's all new to me, but I have found some great people to follow and there are lots of people following me! I am 'hastingsgolf' if you fancy taking a look and I will do my best to post things!

I had a nice text message over the weekend. Suzie Dobson has done it again!!... she is one of the people I have been working with this year and had just won her 3rd boarded competition at The Cromwell Club. She has come down from 28 to 19 so far this year and I am so pleased for her.

It's great to hear from people and how they are doing. It is important to have goals and this is a great time to look forward to the next season and decide to set your own goals. So think about what you would like to be playing off by this time next year??? Now think about how you are going to do that?? Then think about when or how you will know when you have got there??

To reach your goal, you have to have a plan, work at your golf and take time to achieve it. I can help you with those things... so get in touch and we can come up with a plan to get you to fulfill that goal!!!!

The Tarleton Festival week once again was a great success. For the first time ever in this long running event, a lady (Jane Rae) was the overall winner. I am proud and very pleased to say that she is one of my pupils!! What a great week for her and all my other pupils who were there and picked up some prizes, Guy, Helen, Claire, Linda, Rae, Jane, Mandy and all the others well done! great week...

There were two bits of very sad news over that week, Brian lost his brother after a spell in hospital and a heart attack and a very old friend of mine Dr. Jenny Quantrell passed away after her long fight with cancer. She really loved life and her golf and was one of the most positive ladies I have ever had the pleasure to teach and meet. She never complained at all during the years I have known her and she battled through the pain. I know both of these people will be sadly missed.

There was also some good news for me when I got home from Spain; I have been asked to join the Cambridge junior teaching team as one of the coaches. I am so pleased as I have been wanting to get involved with the county juniors for ages and I am so excited to be on the team!!

Back home for me, teaching at Abbotsley, and catching up with everyone and of course watching the Ryder Cup... just fantastic.. come on EUROPE!!! Feel the passion boys!!!

Soon I was packing again, and this time off to Valle del Este for a school in the sun. We had a great week in fab weather so we were able to cover all we needed. It is great to have a good group who are open minded and ready for a change. We worked on all the usual stuff and I talked to them about the importance of having a routine and sticking to it. This is something that does not come so easy, so we practiced the routines on the practice ground making sure it was the same every time and then took it to the course and I must say with great results... I just love my job!

The winner of the week was Viv Ward with 33 points and Trudy was the winner on the putting with 31 putts over this course, I feel this was a great effort! Well done to them all and thanks for a great week!!

As the month comes to a close I am back home and it's getting cold...not nice for golf but it's important to keep all the practice up through the winter... keep going guys!

As July arrives, the weather continues to get better and it's great to just get out onto the golf course. I have just delivered two 'passion for the short game' clinics; one at Kingsway and the other at Abbotsley. These clinics continue to be very popular as the short game shots account for around 43% of the game so improvements there can make a real difference to your score. I will be doing some more, so watch out for details in the newsletter.

Talking of newsletters... I have up-graded mine and I am very pleased with the result. I am using some new software and I think the results looks sooooo much better. Your feed back is always important to me, so if you have time, please let me know what you think so far and what you would like to see in future newsletters!

On 10th July my bags were packed and I was off to Scotland to teach a mix of adults and children for the PGA and the golf foundation at the Open. It was a very full week Sunday to Sunday and I really enjoyed teaching all the kids from little beginners to those off +1 handicap. There were 18 golf pros per day teaching from 9.30 to 6pm, so we got through quite a lot of people between us. It was a great mix and I have to say there is some good talent out there.

our teaching tent

Geraint Dixon one of my old assistants from my Kingsway days

me and my coach from tour days, Alex Hay

I was able to get onto the range and take some video with my new Casio EX-F1 camera. It can shoot 300 frames per second so the results can be seen in real slow motion. I feel the practice ground is the best place to see all the top players as you can get closer there than on the course. The standard of play was, as always, first class in weather that changed by the hour, so the winner Loue was a worthy winner on this fine golf course.

I look forward to 2011 down at Royal St Georges... the only problem is finding somewhere to stay!!

I was soon back to Abbotsley and Kingsway to resume schools and lessons. It's nice to go away but always good to come home. Setting up for my summer school and ordering all the shirts, just hope I get the right sizes and colours!!

Also getting all the final venues and dates for my winter programme... really excited about that!

Teaching in the rain... well the golf courses are in need of the wet stuff I have to say, but I am pleased I finished my 2 group short game lessons before the heavens opened!

I am keeping up my running and have now built up to 8k, I am so pleased my knees have held up this far.

Off up to Birkdale on Thursday for the Ladies Open. A chance to get some more video of the top lady players to add to my library of swings. It will be nice to catch up with friends and family too, as I have not been home since my Mums funeral in January... it's always good to go back up north!!

Back down the motorway to get ready for my ladies summer school at Abbotsley. What a great 3 days we had and we were lucky with the weather too. I had 9 ladies who I put through their paces, starting with long game, then we did a bit of short game, and I showed the girls how to keep the ball low when trying to get out of the trees... a bite of lunch then on to the Abbotsley course which I must say was in great condition.

the girls practicing hard

We played a Texas Scramble where the team of Maureen, Pat and Jane won by 1 point!!!

Day 2 started with chipping and putting. I also showed the ladies some special shots at the back of the 18th green on the Cromwell course...now that was good.

After coffee we went to the bunker and then we had an hour of power!!

We then played 18 holes on the Cromwell... good fun.

The last day was with us all too soon, this is where I get to play 6 holes with each group on the Abbotsley which was great, seeing all the ladies work hard on their course management. The winner of the day was Sheila with 43 points. Thank you ladies you were all great and I look forward to 2011 when I am going to change the programme.

The Abbotsley Summer School team

Back to normal work, teaching at Abbotsley and Kingsway. It's always nice to catch up with everyone.

I am still running and now up to 8.5k, it's great I really do feel good after I have cooled down!!

Sunday 14th I travelled down to Southampton with Rae Webster and Linda Clark to have a day of golf with ex-England footballer Matt Le Tissier... Rae successfully bid for this day in a charity auction back in March and kindly invited Linda and I to join her and play with Matt. We played at Royal Winchester Golf Course in great weather. I must say we had a great time. We played a match with Matt and Rae v Linda and me. We had a great close match that ended in a draw. What a nice man Matt is, I would like to think he had a nice time too... I guess when he found out he had to play golf with 3 women his heart dropped, but as we all can play a bit, everything went well.

Matt Le Tissier, Rae Webster, Linda Clark and me

The only down side was that I think I broke my toe!... I kicked my holdall when I got out of bed (in the dark... ouch!!) so no golf or running for me for a while!

As August comes to an end I am gearing up to getting my dates out for 2011. There will be schools in the UK at Abbotsley and of course Spain. There are dates for the end of this season. Starting on 9th October going to Valle del Este. Then 1st November at Novo Sancti Petri, which I am pleased to say is now full. It's going to be a Norwegian week!

Then I am off to Penina in Portugal on 9th November and on 18th November it's back to Valle del Este... so I am really looking forward to that.

I have had a wood pigeon nest outside my living room window, and I am pleased to say the baby is now out of its shell. ( I know pigeons are not the nicest of birds, but baby ones are!!)

My toe... well... we are on the mend!

As May came in I was at home back from the fab pro-am. Getting back to normality is always difficult after such a great week, but getting back into working at Abbotsley and Kingsway was good, catching up with everyone and seeing how things were going.

It was not long before I was packing my bag again as I was off to Spain. My first week was at Islantilla with a great group of people all ready to get to work on their golf, in just great weather, in fact it got up to around +30 for most of the week, so everyone got a tan and improved their golf. We worked on all the things they would need to get home and improve their score. I always say after Islantilla your home course will feel easy... and how right was I as Susy got back to the Cromwell and had 46 points and Keith had 39, so I was so pleased all their hard work paid off so soon. Please take a look at how the week went and who were the winners!!

My second week was at El Rompido just about 25 minutes away from Islantilla. This week my group of girls came from Tromso in the far north of Norway. There was still snow on the ground when they left, so for them it was their first time on grass this year. We in the UK take playing golf in the winter for granted but for these girls their golf season only lasts between May and September, so they were up for a great week and plenty of golf in great sunshine. The girls made the most of the good weather, as soon as they were off the course at around 5.30pm they were down to the pool to top up their tans!!

Top player was Doris, she was the most consistent over the week. A great time was had by all and I really look forward to seeing them all again soon, I may get to go to Tromso some time this summer.

So it was a road trip for me to end my time in Spain. Brian and I drove the van from El Rompido to Almerimar, and on the way we had some meetings to sort outpotential other venues for the end of the year and the dates for next, so meetings at Islantilla El Rompido, Valle del Easte and Almerimar.

It was then back to the UK to get my schools ready for summer, and to get work at Kingsway up and going again.

It was lovely for me to be able to sleep in my own bed, and to do some cooking. The thing I miss most when I am away is a good curry, well any really spicy food actually, so it was off for a hot curry for me almost as soon as I had unpacked!

Things at Abbotsley are improving nicely now Viv Saunders has taken back control of the running of the 2 clubs. She has made lots of improvements over at the Abbotsley and we have a new shop at the Cromwell. Two new chefs and new bar staff have gone down well, so I am looking forward to meeting my Ladies Summer School in August, with new menus for them to sample!

Kingsway is on the up too. My mate and head pro Mark has moved on to be the pro at Bourne GC, and I wish him all the best, I know he will be a big hit there as he is one of the best pros I've had the pleasure to work with. So it is all change at Kingsway too. I am going to spend more regular time there and I am looking forward to working with Alan and Tia as we have lots of things going on, with junior summer camps and beginners groups lessons to work on, so we are busy busy!

8th June I played in a pro-am run by one of my oldest friends, Maxine Burton at her club Hurtmore near Guildford. What a great day!!, it was in aid of breast cancer, with every last penny going to this great cause. All the pros had 2 teams of 3 and we played a 9 hole drop back, so really nice to play with 6 different people. My 2 teams came 16th and 6th, so we all had a good day. Max and Dee made a fab £4, 300, so I am so pleased for them. It really is hard work getting all the players and sponsors for a day, so a big thank you to everyone who played their part in what was a great day!!

Back home for me to work on my schools in the UK. I was organising a 'Passion for the short game' session at Abbotsley and Kingsway too, and I had a day clinic.

It's great to be busy, I am now spending more time over at Kingsway Golf Centre and it is good to catch up with old clients and of course meet new ones.

Kingsway is one of the best driving ranges in this part of the country, and it has a 9 hole golf course and a 9 hole pitch and putt, so just great for the new or beginner golfer. Over the summer we will be doing a series of summer camps for children. We hope to do 5 or 6 dates with 2 of the golf pros spending a day with the group taking them through all the basic things plus having some fun competitions too. So please bring the kids along. For more info please email me.

As June comes to an end I have been busy sorting out the dates for schools I will run at the end of the year and in 2011. So far I know that I am going out on the 9th November to Portugal to the hotel and course in the fabulous Penina. On the 18TH November it is Valle del Este, and in December I shall be getting the last of the 2010 winter sun at Islantilla. I am sooooo looking forward to them all, so please call Brian at Tarleton on 01604 633633 for booking and all other info.

Roll on the Open Championship at St Andrews, where I am working for the PGA and Golf Foundation teaching... it's been 10 years since I last did it so I am so excited!!

As March came in I took hold of my new TOMI PUTTING SYSTEM. This is a state of the art putting system which looks at club head alignment at address and impact, club head path and speed at impact, plus all the other important things that matter in helping you become a better putter. So I am really excited to be using this great new tool along with some indoor putting software which I will be putting in place at Kingsway from the end of March.

Once more I am at the airport, this time off to Almerimar, a place I always look forward to go to as it's now like the Almerimar club! The same people come year on year, so it's great for me to catch up with them. There was one missing through illness this year as it was a pity Alf could not make it. However I know he is looking forward to coming to Abbotsley later on in the year and of course to Almerimar in 2011.

The other club members, Derek, Rae, Sally, Alison and Pat, were all up for a good week and to show the others the way round. A great week was had by all, and Derek was the last day winner. See how it all went.

I then went back to Abbotsley to get ready for the season there. Abbotsley is now back under the management of Vivian Saunders (the owner who had leased the club out to Crown Golf) and it is now undergoing a great change... and I must say things are exciting!!

Home for a short time to catch up with friends and work stuff, and prepare for the mixed Pro-Am down in Spain at El Rompido. What a great place, all the groups were excited to play golf on good fast greens and in warm weather, in fact lots of people played in shorts all week... well I did, when in Spain you must be in SHORTS!!

A great week was had by all. My team were just great and led all the way. 1st round 154, leading by 8, 2nd round leading by 9, and the last day 142, and won by 11!!! What a great week, and to top it off it was my birthday on the last day of the competition, so I had a fab time!!

Another great thing for me was I was playing with my new set of MIZUNO MX 300 IRONS, they are just fab... go and try them, I know you will love them!!

A big thank you must go to Brian Knight the CEO of Tarleton and John Barnes for yet another great well-organised week... Tarleton are simply the BEST!!

I am a lucky girl as I get to work with these boys a lot, and enjoy the organising side of the company, all the hard background work is worth it when it all goes to plan! Check out how it went!

Home again and time to get ready for my Easter School at Abbotsley.

It is always nice to do schools in the UK, as much as I like all the travelling I do like sleeping in my bed, and seeing my mates, and going out for the odd curry!!

There was some time to catch up with things at home and then I was off again, this time to Novo Santa Petri for a golf school. I like this place as it ticks all the boxes - good courses, great practice grounds (all 3 of them!) and 3 great putting greens, so a good time was had by my group. The weather was not too bad either, just a little rain in the morning, but nice in the afternoon. See how it went...

I was then off to Islantilla to help get ready for the Ladies Pro-Am... but that damned volcano very nearly put a spanner in the works. My group at NSP had a pretty long holiday as the flights were not going when it was time for them to go home! So they enjoyed some more golf in great weather, while I headed off to pick up the van and the trolleys.

Thank goodness, the flights started and we were able to get everyone in for the pro-am by 6pm Thursday night. Some of the girls had planned to get there 3 days before, but were so pleased just to get there on the right day. There were lots of changing of flights and airports to get all the girls in and Brian too, he was meant to be there on the Monday, but Wednesday had to do.

It was a great week, with real nice people. I was the defending champion, but not with the team that I won with. My new group and I did our best to defend but were well beaten by Ali Grays team. This was one of the best weeks in my year but just went so fast. However I have great memories and meeting new friends was just the best part. See how it went...

I know everyone is already looking forward to next year and wondering when and where the competition will be held. As it is the 10th anniversary I know it will be special, so watch this space, as soon as I know... you will too.

A big thanks must to Brian Knight and John Barns - the dynamic duo! The boys done well and everything was as smooth as ever.

THE LADIES PRO-AM REALLY ROCKS!!!

The New Year came in with a bang, and plenty of snow just about all over the UK, cold and windy and for most people no golf, so a great time to get away.

I had some bad news early in 2010, my Mum sadly passed away on 2nd, she would have been 89 in March so had experienced a long and mainly healthy life happily living in the same house for the past 50 years. However she had a severe stroke and I know that had she survived she would have been unable to look after herself, or get around or communicate effectively and would have just hated that. So in some strange way it was for the best, I know she did not want to leave her house, so going so quickly was a blessing for her... a hard thing to come to terms with for me and the rest of the family and friends she left behind, but I know she is a better place and in no pain... I will always miss her!

So I have to get on with things, as I know she would have wanted me to.

My first school was at the great place of Benalup. This is fast becoming one of my favourite places. It is a real true 5 star resort, it really does tick all the boxes, in every way. The weather was not the best we have had but that did not put a dampner on the week and every one had a great time, check out how it went.

So it was home to sort more things out and pack again, but this time it was for my holiday. Skiing in Filzmoos with the same group I have been going with for over 16 years. We had great weather, cold every day around -10 so the snow was great. At the end of the week once again we had a race, and I am pleased to say I won again!!! What a great week with fab people and I look forward to 2011.

Home once more to sort out my mail drop, so lots of sticking of stamps, and filling envelopes, not my favourite job but one that's important. There was also some news from Abbotsley as Vivien Saunders the owner had taken it back from the company who have been running it for over 14 years (Crown Golf). So it's all change there and I am sure things will be different and Vivien hopes to improve all aspects of the courses and clubs there.

So here I am once more packing, but this time I am off to Turkey, a new place for golf schools, and I am really looking forward to it, again the weather here in the UK has been poor, so I am looking forward to taking a school there.

Turkey was great, I have to say it started in the rain, but warm rain, and by the end of the week it was up to +19. So much better than the UK, as I was getting sms from friends saying it had been snowing. I and the group were happy to be in such a great place, what a hotel, a real 5 star Cornelia Diamond Spa resort, I would really recommend this one, it may be 4 hours by air but it was worth it. We played the Faldo, Kings, Queens and Princes course plus the Sueno Dunes and the Carya. I cannot wait to take another group there, so watch this space for more info on dates, it is worth the effort to get there — see how it went.

Back home to work on my NLP talk at the Bedfordshire, and get ready for my next school plus get ready for our mixed pro-am in Spain, so there is always lots to do, but it's so cold +4 today, not nice after Turkey, so bring on Spain!

I've also been in meeting after meeting! Some with Brian at Tarleton working on our two pro-am's the mixed in March and the ladies in April, not to mention my schools in Spain. Other meetings at Kingsway near Royston as we are having a re-launch of this great driving range that I have been associated with since 1992. New power tees, new balls, a big paint job, and heaters in the bays and a revamp of the academy are all planned. We are having an open day on 28th March, so come down and see us.

On Wednesday 17th I received my new MIZUNO MX300 IRONS!!! I am a lucky girl, being supported by such a great company as Mizuno, so a big thank you to everyone at Mizuno and especially Paul Walker for his most generous continued support. I can hardly wait to get to use them... when the snow goes, and again it's -1 here today. See the new clubs...

So I am packing again and all ready to go to the airport on 28th February for my school in Almerimar, one of my old time favourite places, as it was here I did my first school for Tarleton, and the European School of Golf!! Check out how that went...