Global Edition

Amateur Golfers ‘no better than they were 60 years ago’

12.23am 15th October 2009 - Media - This story was updated on Monday, October 31st, 2011

9 out of 10 golfers today are no better than their counterparts were sixty years ago, claim experienced golf teachers Steve Gould and D.J. Wilkinson in their new book “The Golf Delusion”. They suffer from the golf delusion, the notion that the latest tip or ‘magic cure’ will turn them from rabbit to Tiger.

Author Steve Gould says: “Amateur golfers, wherever they are, make the same basic mistakes. Believe me, we’ve seen thousands over the many years we’ve been teaching golf. It doesn’t matter what fancy equipment you buy, which new DVD you watch or even if you see a ‘mind guru’ to encourage positive thoughts about your swing. The truth is that amateur golfers need to learn a structured swing model, like the one we outline in our new book The Golf Delusion: Why 9 out of 10 Golfers Make the Same Mistakes.”

Gould and Wilkinson have more than seventy years teaching experience between them at the Knightsbridge Golf School, where they have overseen the swings of everyone from Hollywood stars (like Hugh Grant and Sir Christopher Lee) to TV icons (such as Bruce Forsyth and Anton Du Beke), from sporting legends (Sir Jackie Stewart, Gianfranco Zola) to champion golfers (Stephen Ames, Juli Inkster and many more).

Film star and fervent golf enthusiast Hugh Grant agrees, and writes in his introduction to the book: “No one in the world has had more golf lessons or seen more teachers than I have. All I can say is that time and again, I come back to Steve and Dave and they always put me right. I truly believe that their obsession (inherited from Leslie King) with the early part of the backswing is indeed the key to a proper swing.

“When that part of my swing deteriorates, I have no chance. And when they’ve put it back in the groove I play my best. The same applies to countless friends I’ve sent to their basement, and to my aged father who has never been easy to teach. This book is a brilliant distillation of their wisdom, and if you care about golf you would be insane not to read it.”

The Knightsbridge Golf School is located at 47 Lowndes Square, SW1 and was founded in 1951 by Leslie King, a pioneer of golf swing tuition. The longest running golf school in the UK, it has given lessons to many thousands of golfers over the years (both famous and not so famous). Only one person has been banned from the School, legendary golfer Sir Henry Cotton (and that was because he distracted the other pupils from their lessons).

Steve Gould and D.J. Wilkinson have more than seventy years teaching experience between them. They studied under Leslie King, founder of the Knightsbridge Golf School, and took over the School in 1989. Since then they have honed King’s teachings into a swing model that can be learnt by anybody.

“The Golf Delusion: Why 9 out of 10 Golfers Make the Same Mistakes” is published in hardback by Elliott & Thompson with a cover price of £20. The book contains many stunning images taken by golf photojournalist Charles Briscoe-Knight.

Both Sky Sports and Chelsea TV covered the book’s launch and Steve Gould and Dave Wilkinson hope it will have the same sort of success that their first book – The Swing Factory – achieved in 2003/4 when it got to the top of the sports best seller lists.

The Knightsbridge Golf School www.knightsbridgegolfschool.com

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