Laguna National Golf & Country Club Keeps Getting Better & Better
Soft launch of a new state-of-the-art teaching and practice facility
Patrick Bowers, Laguna National Golf & Country Club’s Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director had alluded to an eventful year for 2018 at the club’s official opening of its re-born Classic course and launch of its Moonlight Golf earlier in the 1st quarter of 2018. True to his words, Laguna National just keeps getting better and better as we move further into 2018.
At the end of June, Laguna National had a soft launch of its new state-of-the-art teaching and practice facility. The new practice facility has 2 levels with a total of 50 hitting bays, each with its own personal yardage displayed on the bay dividers.
In addition, the facility has a dedicated short game area with a putting green, a
chipping green and 5 practice bunkers. The short game area also enables golfers to hit shots of up to 80-yards and features a well-stocked pro shop offering a variety of golf equipment, apparels and accessories. Capping these off is a members’ lounge and a café for golfers to relax before or after their practice sessions.
Most notably however, is a new golf academy that will be making its home at the new facility. Expected to commence full operation in August 2018, the Leadbetter Golf Academy (LGA), a joint venture between Laguna National and David Leadbetter, will be staffed by a full complement of accredited LGA professionals.
The LGA at Laguna National will join Leadbetter’s worldwide stable of academies as its 37th worldwide and its 12th academy in Asia. During an illustrious career spanning more than four decades, Leadbetter has coached many of golf’s best-known professional players. In total, the players who were under his wing have won 24 Major Championship titles and over 100 individual worldwide tournament victories. Seven of these players at one time held the No.1 spot on the Official World Golf Rankings. The honour list is not short with Major champions such as Nick Faldo, Ian Baker-finch, Nick Price, Ernie Els, Se Ri Pak, Lydia Ko, Danielle Kang and Michelle Wie topping the list.
Leadbetter, who intends to make annual appearances at the Academy here at Laguna National, is widely accredited with inventing the modern golf instruction industry. Through his tenacity and passion, Leadbetter has pioneered innovations in the field of instruction that continue to have a lasting impact, not only on how the game is played, but also on how the game is taught. His interest in the techniques, mechanics, and intricacies of the game saw him authoring eight books on these topics, which have since sold two million copies making him one of the world’s best-selling golf instruction authors. His latest book, The A Swing, released in May 2015, proposed yet another alternative theory to transform the golf swing.
Bowers said, “David Leadbetter’s name is synonymous with success at the highest level in golf and we very much look forward to offering our Members and guests of the Club and Dusit Thani Laguna Singapore the best in golf coaching.”
Leadbetter, winner of the 2017 Teacher of the Year Award from the PGA of America, added, “I’m excited at the opportunity at Laguna National to set-up and develop the Leadbetter Golf Academy. We want to help golfers of all ages and abilities play better golf, shoot lower scores and have more fun. We are seeing more Asian golfers making their mark at the pinnacle of the game and I’m confident our Academy at Laguna National will help to nurture future champions from around the region.”
The new academy will boast several teaching technologies that will provide comprehensive analytical data for a golfer’s swing, such as: • GEARS - a full-body optical motion tracking system designed to measure and analyse every aspect of the golf swing. • SAM Putt Lab - analyses more than 40 important parameters of a golfer’s putting stroke. The data is displayed in graphic reports that are easily understood. • TRACKMAN – a launch monitor system that uses a radar that helps map key data parameters of a golfer’s swing such as club and ball speed, attack angle, shot dispersion, club path and face angle amongst others. • SAM Balance Lab – an ultra-high resolution pressure plate to evaluate balance and weight transfer during a golf swing and helps to correct poor balance and irregular weight shifts that are often responsible for swing flaws resulting in an unsatisfactory outcome of a golf shot.
Mark Bates, Director of Golf at Laguna National, said, “Prospective students can count on high quality instructional offerings with a focus on purposefully designed, long-term academy training where serious golfers from around the region can enrol and receive a dedicated daily curriculum. These students will have the potential to play professionally or high-level amateur golf. Singapore can be the Asian hub for these students and their families.”
As Leadbetter has incorporated his methods and philosophies into a stringent, holistic training program for teaching professionals to be LGA qualified instructors, the teaching professionals at the LGA at Laguna National will be poised to help keen golfers improve and reach their desired playing goals. Specially designed packages with preferred pricing will be made available to Laguna National Members and hotel guests of Dusit Thani Laguna Singapore.