For Charlie King, golf instruction isn’t just about helping a player win the Masters. It’s about helping each golfer win their Masters, whatever that personal goal may be. It’s a distinction that guides the veteran instructor and 15-year PGA of America member through the development of programming for the new Reynolds Golf Academy, which Reynolds Plantation plans to open in spring 2007 in Greensboro, Ga.
“The foundation of the academy is to take the mystery out of playing golf,” King explains. “We’ll focus on personal strengths and weaknesses to build a core of essential golf skills that will improve any golfer’s game.”
King knows what he’s talking about. After all, King is a GOLF Magazine Top 100 Instructor. He has also appeared on The Golf Channel’s regular Monday night special “Your Game Night” which aired this past July. With such a powerhouse professional, it’s only fitting that a campus of equal proportion should underscore King’s instruction: With 16 acres and 6,550 square feet, the academy frames players in an expansive range, enclosed hitting bays, video technology, short game practice areas, classroom and dining facilities—all within close proximity to the TaylorMade Performance Lab, one of only four in the U.S.
The Reynolds Golf Academy, located on the Oconee Course, is one of few schools that offer quantifiable achievement within half-, one- and three-day programs that can also include individual lessons, clinics, and corporate outings. One stand-out component is King’s Red Zone Challenge Short Game School, based on his national 12-week challenge and classic instruction manual, “Golf’s Red Zone Challenge”. During this three-day school, golfers will learn how to take their A-game from the practice range to the golf course by practicing like the tour pros do.
“The reason golfers say they hit the ball great in practice, but can’t do it on the course is because they don’t do anything competitive in practice,” King explains. “In our school, we provide a specialized approach to change that by working on technique and then having students test themselves using that technique, where each shot counts. We immediately can show the impact of the technique, while teaching more effective practice patterns.”
The concept of quantifiable achievement is what helps the Reynolds Golf Academy stand out from other golf schools. By testing a player’s strengths and weaknesses at the outset of the school, focusing instruction based on those test results, compiling data throughout the school and then testing again at the end of the program, golfers get a measurable view of their improvement.
King follows the same approach through the other schools at the academy, including the Essentials of Golf three-day school that focuses on building a core set of seven essential golf skills within a total game improvement focus. Other academy offerings include corporate programming, women’s and family golf schools, private instruction and clinics. For those that want to continuously learn to practice better, the Reynolds Golf Academy is developing a coaching program, which includes weekly supervised practice sessions, discounts, events and more.
“By offering creative and flexible programming at Reynolds Golf Academy, we’re helping players identify what their personal Masters victory is,” King says. “And then we’re creating a plan to make that into a reality.”
For more information, visit www.reynoldsgolfacademy.com or call 706-467-1660.
