(Written in June 2016 for the South Bay Easy Reader Magazine)

Golf is NOT Rocket Science

However, it helps if your golf instructor has the analytical skills of a Rocket Scientist.

As the upcoming golf star on the Redondo Beach Union High School boy’s golf team listens, his instructor distills the nuances of the biomechanics of the golf swing.  It seems simple.  Not easy, but simple.  The kinetic sequence of the golf swing IS simple compared to re-entry physics, trajectory reconstruction, estimation theory, and Fast Fourier Transforms.

It has been an interesting, non-intuitive journey for long time South Bay resident, Lee Woodard.  For 26 years, Lee worked for a small aerospace company that was later acquired by Northrop Grumman before completing his technical career with 7 years at the Lakeshore Learning Company as the CIO.

His name is familiar to many in Manhattan Beach because of playing years of competitive volleyball (both beach and indoor) and competitive tennis (at the Manhattan Country Club).

Lee retired 15 years ago, and he then turned his analytical mindset, system approach, and his thirst for learning to his new sport of golf.   He left the South Bay for a fast track to learn golf at private clubs alongside of elite players in Murrieta and then La Quinta.

He enlisted top team of PGA Tour instructors/trainers and PGA touring Pros to teach and mentor him.

In February 2014, Lee returned ‘home’ to Redondo Beach.

Lee is currently an affiliate of the PGA, the Performance Coach for El Camino College men’s golf team, owner/director of The Zone Golf Academy (ZGA), and a top golf instructor in the South Bay and maybe in the nation.

Prior to his position with El Camino College, he helped Tony Manzoni (Head Coach at the College of the Desert) lead the team to  the 2012 State Championship.  Tony says “I have never seen such a comprehensive and innovative teaching system in my 35 years with the PGA.  And what Lee did with his on-course coaching was magical.”

The proprietary ZGA teaching system is a comprehensive, multi-discipline development plan to master golf. It addresses a golfer’s mental game, physical game, and swing/stroke techniques.   As you might imagine, the ZGA has a collection of high-tech equipment including  video systems, launch monitor, K-Vest 3D Motion Analyzer, SAM Puttlab, and 3 biofeedback devices: all available at a private practice facility in Redondo Beach.

The ZGA system works.  Lee went from a 9-handicap to a 5-handicap in less than a year.  Then went from a 5-handicap to better than scratch in the next 5 months- at the age of 63! 

Instruction at the ZGA is unique and successful because of the following:

• Video is used every time so that the player can see what his/her errors look like compared with a model swing.
• A video summary of the lesson is given to the student.
• A practice regimen is provided including work that can be done indoors without hitting a ball.  This is great for people who do not want to grind on the range and/or they are over 50 years of age.
• All ZGA instructors are hybrids in the fact that they teach the mental game and golf technique depending on the need.
• Because of their knowledge in biomechanics, instructors never ask a golfer to get into a position that their body is not ready for.
• Instructors do not install a completely new swing: they merely suggest eliminating unnecessary moves and the associated compensating moves.
• The instruction is at the PGA Tour level.

Many of the secrets to golf performance involve the mental game, which  is about strengthening the thought-driven mental skills such as confidence, motivation, perseverance, strategy, relaxation, focused concentration, etc. 

And the mental game actually orchestrates your actual golf swing.  Your brain sends signals or messages through neural pathways to your muscles, ligaments, and joints. If your mind is cluttered or distracted, then the timing/accuracy of the swing are faulty. 

This is what causes inconsistencies even in a mechanically good swing: confused signals causing poor sequencing.   

The ZGA’s physical game efforts can  include resistance training, cardio, nutrition, core conditioning, Yoga, Pilates, and a proprietary Yog-Golf™ system to improve a golfer’s strength, flexibility, mental clarity, balance, posture, and integration of the mind-body-technique components.

The ZGA has also developed a proprietary Breathitation™ system to provide relaxation techniques and stress management for the golfer on and off of the course. Golfers can find free golf tips and motivational thoughts on ZoneGolf.com.