PROFILE
Title: Director of Instruction, Blackstone Country Club, Peoria, Arizona.
Years as a PGA Professional: 17.
Top achievements / honors: PGA Teacher of the Year for the Chattanooga Chapter (2007, 2008, 2011, 2012). PGA Certified Instructor, Trackman Level 2 Expert and TPI Certifications in Golf, Junior Golf and Power.
SOCIAL MEDIA / ONLINE
Facebook: @ToddMcKittrick
Instagram: @toddmcpga
RELATED: PGA Professional Spotlight archive
TAP-INS
What app is a must-have on your phone? Instagram’s Layout app. It allows me to turn basic pictures into side-by-sides in seconds.
What books would you recommend? Ben Hogan's "Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf", John Feinstein's "A Good Walk Spoiled: Days and Nights on the PGA Tour" and anything from Dr. Gio Valiente for the mind.
What podcasts would you recommend? "Sub Par" is the only one I listen too. Great interviews.
Who is your favorite golfer? It fluctuates who I root for but I would dream of swinging half as good as Adam Scott looks.
What is your most memorable round of golf? My PAT (Player Ability Test) at Torres Blancas Golf Club. Never before or since did I have so much riding on a round of golf.
Q&A
The First Call: What made you want to pursue a career in golf?
Todd McKittrick: As a very competitive athlete growing up, I found the same fulfillment in coaching people to their goals.
TFC: What is your favorite instructional tip to share with a golfer?
TM: Showing players how to hit balls with purposeful shape. For most golfers, learning how to truly draw the ball is a momentous occasion.
TFC: What advice do you have for someone considering a career in golf?
TM: Think about the job you want in your 40s and 50s and interview a couple of professionals who have interesting positions. Ask to see their resumes and learn from their paths and timelines.
Look to work for and under the most talented, innovative and experienced professionals. You will never learn more than your experiences in the field.
Consider a variety of positions within the industry. There are only so many head pro and teaching roles, but tons of untapped opportunities for those with a creative mind.
Never stop golfing. You became interested in the business for the same reason we all did ... you loved the game. When you lose your passion for the game, the jobs become a paycheck, which rarely lead to happiness.
TFC: What is the best advice you have received on your career path?
TM: Never stop investing and educating in yourself. The dividends are immense.
TFC: Is there a particular area of your job that you find most rewarding?
TM: I truly enjoy the satisfaction of an adult learning for the first time. So often as adults people just except where they are and what they do as a permanent situation. Getting them to have an achievement in golf and propelling them to a new hobby is an amazing feeling.
TFC: What is one challenge you currently see in the industry?
TM: We ask people of diverse backgrounds and various socio-economic positions to get involved with golf, but it is truly a false narrative. There aren’t enough public low-cost spaces getting kids from various backgrounds into the game.
This continues the the spiral of claims that golf is exclusionary.
Make accessible and affordable low-cost entry points into the game. Make them 3-, 6- or 9-hole courses to avoid taking up valuable restate. Encourage developers to make it part of there public and recreational spaces. Challenge community leaders to support golf for the engagement and positive values that golf lives by and that no other sport does.
Allow these spaces to be parks like the UK. The costs to maintain can provide community jobs and a tax base compared to the straight expense of a green space or court surface of any kind.
TFC: Do you have a preferred style or philosophy for teaching golf?
TM: I call my teaching style student backwards. I just truly listen to them talk about their experiences, their job, watch their mannerisms and behaviors. My goal is to learn as much as possible in five minutes — plus there own social cues — as I can about the student. I then construct my plan around there learning style. When I identify and speak their language the learning is fast and the buy-in is natural.
TFC: Where is there room for growth within the industry?
TM: Quick and interesting golf courses in urban areas with walkable designs. In the late '90s and early 2000s every multi-millionaire built a golf course for real estate with water falls and rock features that were difficult and not walkable.
TFC: When you look at your career, in what area(s) do you believe you have evolved for the better? And how so?
TM: I am a much better listener and more likely to seek other experts for advice. Early in my career, I was fearful of not knowing everything and of running a risk of losing clients. Now I am more likely to refer clients in an area I am not as skilled. I'll admit my own shortcomings and go study/research to fill in the gaps. Amazingly enough clients seem to respect that approach so much better.
TFC: How does being a PGA/LPGA Professional add value to your brand?
TM:
It is recognized symbol of expertise. It is viewed as a differentiator between people who work in golf and people who represent what golf is to the public.
I believe holding each other to a high standard further strengthens the symbol of our fraternal organization..
Corey John Higgs: I was playing high level junior golf as a teenager and one day I thought I'd like to become a full-time coach. I really enjoyed helping my friends and parents' friends play golf, so that's what I did. I remember asking my head pro Kurt if he thought I'd be a good coach, he said "Yeah you do a great job helping me with my junior clinics" and he helped me get started in the business.
TFC: What is your favorite instructional tip to share with a golfer?
CJH: The upside down golf grip drill. Take a golf club and turn it upside down. Grip the club by the clubhead — hover the grip about 1 foot off the ground. Swing the golf club to the top of your backswing and gradually swing your club back down, increasing the speed of the grip as you turn your hips towards the target. The goal is to hear the swoosh sound of the grip and shaft at impact and just after impact. If you hear the swoosh of the club at the start of the downswing (top of swing), the golfer is casting and losing their source of power. This would demonstrate incorrect sequencing.
TFC: What advice do you have for someone considering a career in golf?
CJH: If you are passionate about being involved in the golf industry, then go for it. There are many reasons why it's the greatest game and to be a part of it is very special indeed.
I would also say it's important to consider how our industry works. We are busy when much of the working population is off. Make sure you ask yourself this question: Are you good working weekday evenings and weekends?
TFC: What is the best advice you have received on your career path?
CJH: Work hard, back yourself and never give up. I had many days where I thought "I can't keep going," and on these days you need a voice of reason. I have had three great mentors over the years and all three told me to call them anytime when it gets tough and they will talk it through with me. Find a mentor. They have been in your shoes many times before and in tough times they will reassure you of the solutions that you may not be able to see. This person will be instrumental in helping you achieve your goals.
TFC: Is there a particular area of your job that you find most rewarding?
CJH: For me it's seeing the look on my students' face when they succeed at something. Hearing from students after a successful tournament result or seeing a student make their first par. I see so many different levels of joy each day and that's so rewarding as a human being. There's just about nothing like seeing a student get the golf bug — when you see them go through our player development pathways from start to finish. It's why I love this job.
TFC: Do you have a preferred style or philosophy for teaching golf?
CJH: My teaching philosophy is to first get to know my student well enough to understand how they are going to learn. This is often done over the phone or in person before their first lesson. Only after listening to the student can I start to develop a personalized development plan. If the student is looking to improve their swing mechanics, we will work on the driving range. If they need help with their short game, we focus on putting, chipping, pitching, bunkers and specialty shots. I like to see all students playing on the golf course — as part of all student plans we focus on all types of lies and cover course management strategies. A lot depends on our first conversation and really identifying the elephant/deficiencies in their game. Developing a player development plan that produces results has to have structure and a road map that gives the student all the tools they need to accomplish their goals. I strongly encourage all students to sign up for a monthly plan or even a lesson package to ensure they commit to ongoing lessons. I explain using this analogy: If you wanted to learn the piano, would you take one lesson and expect to learn/master this instrument?
TFC: Where is there room for growth within the industry?
CJH: AI — artificial intelligence — will help us coaches get faster access to students' deficiencies. Apps that measure students' overall game, driving range and course analytics help us identify and diagnose solutions in real time.
TFC: When you look at your career, in what area(s) do you believe you have evolved for the better?
CJH: I love working with people, so, first and foremost, developing a strong team dynamic is something I prioritize when I walk in and out the door each day. I'm only as good as my team, and it is not about me. This has been a tough lesson learned. I used to work 70-plus hours a week with a month or two of taking no days off. I was caught up in profit margins and running a successful business, but almost burnt out because of it.
I have gotten a lot better at managing my business, learning the art of making your own time the most valuable commodity. Lawyers would call this billable hours. However there is still room to improve and grow — being transparent, reaching out to my mentors when I need their help and allowing staff to take on greater responsibilities.
TFC: How does being a PGA/LPGA Professional add value to your brand?
CJH: It means we took three years in an apprenticeship program to earn the credentials to coach, operate and manage within varying roles in our industry. The qualification allows people to see we are experts in the entire game of golf and are given the opportunity to grow the game.