Spending time admiring Sedona’s stunning red rocks is always a good idea, and practicing your golf swings in their shadow is a pleasant way to pass the time. If you’re looking to improve your game, golf lessons can help. Heather Risk, head golf professional with Oak Creek Country Club and a member of the Ladies Professional Golf Association, has been teaching for more than two decades. Lessons are tailored to the individual’s skill level and can be one on one or for groups. For a beginner, Heather might focus on a short game, putting, chipping and then move on to a full swing. If the student is a seasoned golfer, she might help the golfer work on driver swings. Another part of the game she focuses on? The mental aspect. “What are you thinking before you hit the ball? What are you thinking after you hit the ball? What do you think is hindering you while you hit the ball? Those kinds of things affect your game more than probably any mechanics or physical thing that I can put into your golf swing,” she says.
Lessons typically take place on the driving range, a practice putting green, practice bunkers or a chipping green. Playing lessons will happen on the golf course. Her lessons are student centered. For instance, if the person is a visual learner, Heather will provide the person with a visual lesson. “Teaching is about listening. It is about talking,” she says. “It doesn’t take a lot to make a good golf swing. Just a little change, little tweaks here and there, and that tends to make people really happy.” She tells us that learning golf is challenging. “I liken golf to playing an instrument or learning a language. It looks easy on TV, but there’s a lot to it,” she says. “So golf isn’t quite like playing tennis or hiking or riding your bike. It’s something that’s a little bit more detailed, finite, like playing an instrument.” She realizes that golf can be an intimidating sport, but lessons can help change that. “Especially if you’re brand new, and you’re intimidated, go find a professional, go get some lessons, and find someone that you’re comfortable with,” she says.
Golf is another great way to appreciate the great outdoors. “This is probably one of the best golf courses in Arizona,” says Heather, of Oak Creek Country Club. “Golf courses have the best real estate.” – Teresa K. Traverse
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