Morton Golf LLC and the Haggin Oaks Golf Complex are thrilled to announce that Haggin Oaks PGA Golf Professional Shaun Barnes has been named the 2010 winner of the NCPGA Club Fitter of the Year. The Northern California Professional Golfer’s Association Club Fitter of the Year Award is designed to recognize a PGA Professional who has exhibited great knowledge in club fitting while striving to improve the game through properly fitted equipment.
Shaun Barnes first started playing golf when he was 10 years old, playing with his father and brother. Shaun and his brother played at Haggin Oaks in the Junior Golf program in the early 1980’s but he never took the game too seriously until 10 years later while earning an A.S. degree in Physical Therapy in Loma Linda University.
Shaun worked at Sutter Memorial and Sutter General hospitals as a Physical Therapist Assistant from 1995 until 2000 when he decided to switch careers. He attended the Professional Golfers Career College in Temecula, CA where he earned a specialized Associates Degree in golf management and graduated at the top of his class.
Before joining the team at Haggin Oaks Golf Complex, Shaun worked for the First Tee of Greater Sacramento at William Land Golf Course where he taught kids and adults the game of golf.
Shaun believes the most important element of coaching golf is the ability to make learning the game fun for the student. “If I am having fun during the coaching of the student, then in turn, I believe the student will have fun. My coaching caters to the student’s own abilities to help them develop proper fundamentals to maximize their potential and reach their goals.”
Shaun’s teaching philosophy is that for any golfer, new or accomplished, the game is best learned from the green to the tee. In sequential order of learning the different parts of the game, Shaun’s approach in coaching is: putting, chipping, pitch shots (bunkers), full swing irons, full swing fairway metals, driving, playing the game, trouble shots and course management. His approach also includes finding out the characteristics of each student by asking specific questions appropriate to the situation. According to Shaun, “I need to fully understand the student and know what learning style (visual, auditory or kinesthetic) each student excels at. I coach a strong base of fundamentals (grip, aim and setup), and the process (In-swing motion), which will produce desirable outcomes. Coaching the student to be mindful of what they are doing and why they are doing it will allow them to become their own coach with the ability to self-analyze and self-correct.”
This Section Award will be presented at the NCPGA Awards Ceremony, held on December 5, 2010 at the Northridge Country Club in Citrus Heights, CA.
