PGA of Canada

COACH OF NEW COMPETITORS • LONG TERM PLAYER DEVELOPMENT ALIGNMENT & AGES: Train to Play & Learn to Compete (11 – 16-year old athletes) • ALIGNMENT WITH PGA OF CANADA COACH CERTIFICATION – Coach of New Competitors • ESTIMATED TIME TO COMPLETE TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION: 1 – 2 years • HOW TO ACCESS PGA OF CANADA COACH OF NEW COMPETITORS TRAINING: register online at pgaofcanada.com After being given an early opportunity in an existing role as an activity leader or coach, it is now time to implement the theory of books, lectures and workshops in the real world. This is often a shift from work in the Instruction Stream. Coaches will often pursue what amounts to an accountable apprenticeship alongside a veteran PGA member. Such a background will ensure appropriate discipline, a strong learning foundation and exposure to successful methods of problem solving. Here, the coach starts to explore his or her own methods. And while there are still many questions to be asked, a rich 10 learning opportunity of an expanding experience opens up. The coach will now have a sense of intended career direction, which may directly relate as much to what the coach finds enjoyable and fulfilling, as to a particular coaching aptitude or talent. As the coach is not in the High Performers Stream, many Coach of New Competitors coaches will coach two types of athletes-participation orientated competitors and performance orientated athletes. What to do and how to do it is part of taking ownership of self-directed learning. The mentor network guiding the coach here must be very carefully selected as individuals who will have the courage to say what needs to be heard, even when the coach would prefer not to hear it. Established experts and mentors are of course essential, but the coach must also look to those who have more recently (in the last two or three years) gone through the stage of development. Learning from mistakes as fast as from successes is critical. It is not unusual in this context for the coach to also instruct in order to augment his or her current income. This is a period of starting to build a viable career and thus alternative revenue streams may be

• Cover