Helloooo me little pufferfishies,

It's good to be back again, and I have lots to tell you about this week's Academy shenanigans!

This week we started our inclusive coaching with the pupils of Belgrave Special School (my Cammy's school). On a perfect afternoon, ten little chaps and chapettes joined Paul and Andy on our chipping green here at B & C for their first golf session. Their difficulties were far ranging, from Kleinefelters Syndrome to Global Developmental Delay to Dyspraxia but all seemed to have a great time. We will be coaching these little sweeties for the next five weeks until term ends, so they can really benefit from the provision. The more work we do with the one group the more this particular group can improve their movement, balance and sensory processing. Woo hoo, job done!

We have also been busy getting ready for our school games activators workshop, coming up in the next four weeks. This is where we work with our Golf Foundation officer Martin to ensure our skills for the Tri Golf Festival are honed and ready to take on the challenge of coaching over 120 children. This takes a bit of training and a bit of determination, but we absolutely love doing different things so we say bring it on!

I am starting to get excited about our trip to Wentworth now. It won't be long until we hold the Laddie Lucas Award in our own hands! There will be a full report of our day out in the next month. Unfortunately Kris will be left to hold the fort on that day, but he knows how much we respect and believe in his coaching and contributions so we'll be picking this one up for you as well buddy.

What have I been up to the week? Mmmmm I have been chocolate Labrador sitting, purchasing a slow juicer, gagging on spinach and cucumber juice (bleurgh that was super-vile), slurping on freshly squeezed orange juice (yummers) and eating healthy Greek salad and fruit. I have also been exploring other funding sources for more inclusion work - keep everything crossed for us!

   

  

Apart from that, I have been to the museum with Cam and out to the Forest of Dean to walk at Mallards Pike and Beechenhurst. I am so lucky to live in the South West, what a beautiful place we inhabit!

   

Now over to Paul....

Our Bristol and Clifton Junior Team took on Long Ashton at home at the weekend in a thrilling match, which went to the wire. Unfortunately we were just pipped losing 3-2 but I just wanted to say how proud I am of our budding juniors section. We fielded potentially one of the youngest teams in the country and the performances were simply outstanding. Well done guys!

    

The sun is out and the course is inviting us to get out there and achieve our goals. It's that time of year again where we start to compete and aim to reduce our handicaps. A methodical approach will definitely help.

BEFORE PLAYING

Do you have an outcome for practice?

In other words, ensure you know exactly what you want to achieve during every practice session. It may be simple, such as checking correct ball position or focusing on correct swing rhythm. Practice shouldn't necessarily be about hitting the ball well, but making improvements to your game. Why not use a coach to help you decide exactly how and what to improve?

Are you organised before you play golf?

Everyone has a different way of preparing to play golf. Some people prefer to get to the golf club just ten minutes before their tee time, but the best players will spend at least an hour preparing their body and mind to produce good golf. Personally, I like to be at the golf club almost two hours before I compete which allows me both time to relax and prepare thoroughly.

DURING PLAY

Do you concentrate on each shot, one at a time?

You could be playing poorly, you could be playing extremely well, but the key is to focus precisely on each shot as if it's the first shot of the day. You cannot do anything about the past, but you can influence the future. Concentrating solely on just the shot you are about to play is crucial to get the very best out of your round.

Do you save the review of shots until after the round?

Do you dwell on bad shots? If so, forget them, move on! Play with whatever game you have on the day. Even if it feels awful, keep trying, don't get upset and fight to the end. My swing felt awful at Burnham a couple of weeks ago, but just kept fighting and kept my score respectable just by maintaining a great attitude.

Do you visualise the ball landing where you want to?

Visualising a good shot instructs your body to do exactly what you want it to do. Without a plan in your mind, you will feel anxious. Jack Nicklaus used to say he would only hit a handful of shots the way he wanted to in a round of golf. It certainly didn't stop him from rehearsing the perfect shot in his mind each time, even if it didn't come off. Hasn't it got to help?

AFTER PLAY

Do you review your shots appropriately and decide what you are going to do?

Since I was around fifteen years of age, I have always reviewed my round of golf. I always try to work out a few statistics such as:- number of fairways hit, greens hit and short game details. I will also make a list of good shots and bad shots which will help me determine a practice plan. It's worth keeping a diary in your golf bag, especially if you only get to play golf once every two weeks like I do. This enables me to look back and remember what it was I needed to do to improve.

The best of luck with 'GETTING BETTER'. Back to Caren.

Thank yous this week!

Thanks to John Savva for our delicious grapes and blackberries (ooh I do love 'em) and also for bringing me a coffee, what an absolutely smashing bloke you are John.

Also my thanks go to my lovely auntie Christine and also to Dean, for bringing me and my brood a chocolate chicken back from France for our Easter munch out treat. It was sitting on my desk, almost too pretty to eat, but in a shop like ours, nothing stays uneaten for very long! Deeeelish!

We have also now received a delivery of Cypress Point shirts and windshirts. These are fantabulous value at £35....but EVEN BETTER, they are BOGOF! Yes BOGOF! Find a friend who is the same size and get them to buy yours ha ha ha! Failing that, buy one and get the other FREE, then sell on to someone else ha ha. You could start your own little business!

Don't forget that on 1st May my Aviva Funding project goes live - please vote for me at aviva.co.uk/community-fund and the project is Inclusive Junior Golf Festival for all. Come on guys we can do it together!

So I'm off to juice some sprouts (eek), see you all next time

Ciao for now

Caren, Paul, Luke, Andy and Kristian