5 Things That are Ruining Your Golf Lesson with Chris Smith

Most golfers don’t fail because they aren’t trying… they fail because they’re showing up to lessons with the wrong expectations, the wrong habits, and no plan between sessions.

In this episode of #OnTheMark podcast, Mark Immelman is joined by Chris Smith, a Master PGA Professional and Golf Magazine Top 100 Instructor, to break down 5 common mistakes that ruin golf lessons—and what to do instead so your next lesson actually turns into lower scores.

You’ll Learn:

• How to get more value from every lesson
• What to stop doing immediately (and why it’s holding you back)
• How to practice between lessons so improvements stick
• How to communicate with your coach so you leave with clarity, and The simple mindset shift that makes training “transfer” to the course.

The 5 Things (and the Fix):

1. No clear goal for the lesson → Fix: define a “win” before you arrive (shot pattern, contact, start line, scoring goal)
2. Trying to rebuild everything at once → Fix: one priority, one feel, one drill—stack progress over time 
3. Collecting swing thoughts instead of building skill → Fix: convert tips into a repeatable drill + a checkpoint you can self-diagnose
4. No plan between lessons → Fix: a simple practice structure (block → random → on-course challenge)
5. Expecting range success to instantly become course success → Fix: train pressure, variability, and decision-making—not just mechanics.

If you’ve ever left a lesson feeling hopeful… then lost it by the weekend—this one is for you. Like, Subscribe, and comment below: What’s the #1 thing you want your next lesson to fix?