There is a phrase constantly used within the GOLFZON Leadbetter coaching methodology: fix the cause, not the symptom. Many students have been “fixed” multiple times by numerous coaches, yet the same issue rears its head time after time.

Each of those coaches did something technically reasonable; however, they simply treated the effect, not the cause. Keep reading to learn about the one skill that separates a good coach from a great one: the ability to diagnose before you prescribe.

Fixing Beyond What You Can See

Take a simplistic example of a student struggling with a slice. The instinct for most coaches is simple: the face is open at impact, so they should close it going into the release. The ball goes straight on the range after this change, satisfying both the coach and the student.

Then the slice comes back... why? Because the open face at impact was not the cause, but a symptom of a larger issue. The cause can range from improper grip to the player's own swing concepts. Release their hands all you want, but until the coach address the root problem, the cracks in the game will return.

Every coach in the GOLFZON Leadbetter Education certification program learns to implement this guidance. An issue you can see is rarely the fault you need to fix.

3 Levels of Observation

In the GLE Level 1 Certification, our instructors break this down into three major areas. When a student hits a golf ball, your eyes should travel in a specific order - follow the ball flight first, then impact, and finally, the club dynamics that created the shot. Once you know what the club does at impact and what it should do differently, find the solution by analyzing a player in this order:

1. The Setup

2. The Pivot

3. The Movement of the Arms and Club

Ball flight tells you the unambiguous truth about what happened at impact. The start line and curvature together provide the face angle and the path.

Impact tells you what produced that ball flight. Whether it's observing with a trained eye or through video playback, coaches can pinpoint factors such as low point, face-to-path relationship or dynamic loft.

The Three P’s: Preparation, Pivot Positions

It is critical to provide coaches with a repeatable structure for guiding this analysis. Leadbetter-certified instructors break down every swing into three categories: Preparation, Pivot and Positions.

Preparation is everything the player does before the club moves, including:

• Grip
• Stance
• Ball Position
• Posture
• Aim

The majority of faults are born here and persist through the swing.

Pivot is the movement of the body, including:

• Torso rotation
• Weight shift
• Ground use
• Sequence

This is the engine of the swing and the most difficult area to change without a proper framework.

Positions are the placement and movement of the arms and club during the swing, such as:

• Takeaway
• Top
• Transition
• Impact
• Finish

While many coaches may start diagnosing here, this is the final focus area for our instructors.

Run through the Three P’s in order, every time as a coaching discipline. The Preparation or Pivot phases often resolve most issues before even reaching Positions.

Coaching Fixes for Amateurs

While the best players can hide a fault with compensation and talent, amateurs tend not to. When something goes wrong in an amateur swing, they do not have the timing to rescue it, so the fault repeatedly shows up in the shot.

Ironically, this makes amateurs easier to coach. The ball will tell you what a player is doing wrong. The challenge is resisting the temptation to jump in and fix the obvious issue before you have worked back to the real fault.

Become a Problem Solver

For those early in their coaching journey, following this one simple habit will vault you ahead 90% of coaches: when you see a fault, do not reach for a fix. Ask what caused it and continue questioning until the answer presents itself.

Students feel this process at work even if they are not able to articulate it. They know the difference between a coach who is guessing and a coach who is diagnosing problems. The latter builds trust and leads to more lessons, recommendations, and trust.

At GOLFZON Leadbetter Education, our mission is to build coaches who are problem solvers.

Every coach, no matter how experienced, will misread a swing. What sets the great ones apart is the willingness to go back and trace the cause when the initial fix fails. That is not failure - that is coaching.