It’s not every day that you get to meet the greatest in a field. Well, thanks to Golfzon and its partnership with David Leadbetter Golf Academy, the world’s most renowned golf instructor came to Long Island for a press conference to celebrate the grand opening of the Golfzon indoor range in Westbury.

To refer to the Golfzon as merely an indoor range is a misnomer. Golfzon was founded by South Korean Young Chan Kim in 2000 and has since become a global force in game play simulation equipment. Golfzon not only has high-end simulators, but it has added moving swing plates to give you a variety of lies as you hit the ball, auto-tee and ball release, high-speed swing sensors, putting greens with slopes and cameras that trace the path of your putts and a high-end lounge for food and beverages.

But for me this day was the day to meet and talk to the man himself, David Leadbetter, the swing coach to many world No. 1 players and major winners, including Sit Nick Faldo, Michelle Wie, Se Ri Pak, Nick Price, Ernie Els and Patrick Reed.

His talk offered  many pearls of wisdom including things like:

“Learn as much as you can but teach as simply as you can”

“Get to know each of your students. Spend time talking to them, listening to them and getting to know who they are as people”

“I’m always trying to learn more every day just as my golfers are always trying to get better every day”

“Arnold Palmer was always  trying to improve and asked me to give him a lesson when he was 80 years old”

“Don’t be afraid to joke around and have some fun during a lesson. Golf is supposed to be fun.”

“There is virtually nothing written on how to teach the beginning golfer”

“The start of the backswing is crucial. Everything follows from that”

“A good drill is worth a thousand words”

I asked David three questions during the press conference. Since I knew he has taught golfers from every continent, my first question focused on his impressions of how golfers differ based upon nationality. Do  Asian golfers differ from the Americans and are European  golfer  any different? My second book focuses on this issue so I was  interested in his comments.

His answer was astute, concise  and corroborated what I know from my own research. Korean journalists lament that their young LPGA stars seem to disappear after only a few years. One leading South Korean journalist said to me, “We have no Juli Inksters in South Korea.”

David Leadbetter worked with both Lydia Ko and Michelle Wie so he knows a thing or two about the Asian golfer. Asian golfers, he said, are very family-oriented, respectful of their parents and therefore tend to be submissive to the parents, which can lead to certain issues including burnout.  In contrast to this, he described the American golfer as more independent and although the European golfers are family-oriented, their parents tended not to be over involved.

When I interviewed a number of Swedish golfers  on the LPGA years ago, they said the same thing. I was told by them that the government provided ample  golfing organizations, tournaments and affordable golf courses, but the parents were not involved so the kids grew up enjoying the game without much pressure.

My second question to David was to ask him what he felt was the key to his incredible worldwide success. Without hesitation he said, “I think the key to my success is that I like to help people.”  This is what we call altruism in psychoanalysis, a trait which Sigmund Freud considered to be a sign of mental health and maturity. Altruism is the dedication to serving the needs of others.

David Leadbetter emits sincerity, compassion, goodwill and humor. This is a compelling combination of traits that has resulted in his global reputation.  One of my patients works with David and she tells me he is one of the kindest people  in the world of golf.

Since he has worked with many of the best golfers on earth, I asked him what he felt was their key to success.  What distinguishes them from all the rest? What makes Nick Faldo, Nick Price or Patrick Reed better than their colleagues?  He smiled and said to me: “What they have is an undying, unwavering  belief in who they are and what they were put on earth to do. They all have an uncanny ability to focus, remain confident and to know that they were born to be No. 1.”

My impression of David Leadbetter is that by combining compassion, intelligence, sincerity, a desire for lifelong learning, humor  and an altruistic nature, David Leadbetter has arrived at the top of the mountain. Thank you, David Leadbetter, and thank you Golfzon of Westbury for bringing him to Long Island.