Former LSU and South Alabama golf coach Greg Jones explains why every hole is a par three, why wedges win tournaments, and tells stories about Floyd Horgan, a silver watch that never arrived, and walking with Jack Nicklaus.

Greg Jones grew up as a cart boy at Skyline Country Club in Mobile, played college and pro golf, and went on to win five Sun Belt titles at South Alabama before rebuilding the LSU program. After a stint as a State Farm agent, he returned to teaching and is now director of instruction at Steelwood Country Club in Loxley, Alabama.

In this conversation, Greg shares:
- His cart boy days and first job beating the rough at 13
- Floyd Horgan, the old school coach who shaped his game, and the story of the silver watch
- Playing a college round with Alabama football in his headphones
- Winning a playoff on his 21st birthday, the day Jack Nicklaus won the Masters, then walking with Jack at Pinehurst
- Coaching LSU and what the sideline looks like in Tiger Stadium
- His three part swing: pivot, elevate, hinge
- Why rhythm is the glue of the golf swing
- The "every hole is a par three" offense, the 50 to 120 yard golden opportunity zone, and why par fives are not worth the risk

Find Greg: Finish First Golf with Coach Greg Jones on YouTube, gregjonesgolf.com, and Steelwood Country Club in Loxley, Alabama.

Every golfer has a story worth preserving. Thanks for letting us help preserve yours.

Huntsville golf coach Craig Bocking of The Ledges explains how Tyler Watts uses the ground to hit a 355 drive at 140 pounds, how force plates and 3D motion capture shape his lessons, and why he tells players to have fun.

Craig Bocking coaches golfers from his studio at The Ledges in Huntsville, Alabama, using force plates, TrackMan and 3D motion capture to work with everyone from weekend golfers to college and professional players. He joins Chris Lemley and Gregg Dewalt to talk golf instruction, how the body is designed to move, and what he has learned from more than 25 years of coaching.

We get into how he works with Tyler Watts, who pushes nearly 200 percent of his body weight through his lead leg alone, and how that helps a 140 pound player hit a 355 drive. Craig also explains why rotation only works when the lateral move comes first, how he took Gabi Nicastro from 190 yards in the air to 250, and why he wants players in the studio when they are hitting it well, not just when something is wrong.

In this episode:
- How Craig went from the pro shop to teaching, and why he would have refunded his first lessons
- How force plates, TrackMan and GEARS 3D motion capture change what a coach can see
- Using AI and the TPI screen to see how a player is designed to move
- Tyler Watts and ground reaction forces
- The shared habits of elite junior, college and pro players
- Why Craig coaches players on the course, not just in the bay
- Why golf instruction on YouTube often fails players who cannot physically make the move
- Why he tells his players to go have fun, not go win

Guest: Craig Bocking, PGA Master Professional, The Ledges, Huntsville, Alabama
https://www.pga.com/coach/craigbocking

Timestamps:
00:00 Welcome to The Cart Barn
00:11 From the pro shop to the teaching side
02:09 The first lessons he would refund
04:28 Technology then and now
05:54 How Craig uses AI in coaching
07:53 TPI, Dr. Greg Rose and Swing Catalyst force plates
10:29 Tyler Watts and ground reaction forces
14:44 Who Craig coaches now
18:38 What elite players have in common
20:17 Gabi Nicastro and the lateral move
22:27 What a lesson with Craig looks like
27:45 25 years of coaching
29:40 Why come in when you are hitting it well
32:15 Tyler's Sunday 63
35:31 How to get on Craig's schedule
37:03 Technology is not the same as technical
39:34 The Ledges facility and putting academy
41:41 Hogan's Five Fundamentals
42:39 Last time he played 18 holes
43:45 Why not just use YouTube instruction
45:27 Information overload and playing with fun
50:30 Wrap up

The Cart Barn is a weekly storytelling podcast about golf in Alabama: the people, places, companies, courses and history behind the game. New episodes every Wednesday at https://cartbarnpodcast.com

Jerry West spent a week taking lessons from Jimmy Ballard at Pine Harbor in Pell City. When he got back to the LA Country Club, 23 of his next 24 rounds were in the 60s. The 24th was a 59 that set the course record.

In Part 2, Jimmy picks up right where we left off. Curtis Strange showed up with a back so bad he had to sit down after five shots. Jimmy put his swing side by side with Ben Hogan's and told him the rebuild would take five years, because that's how long it took Hogan. It did, and it was followed by a run that included back to back U.S. Opens. Jimmy also warned a young Jerry Pate that his swing would tear up his shoulder. Pate didn't want to hear it while he was winning everything, but after the surgeries he called Jimmy for help.

Along the way there's a dinner with Joe DiMaggio that ended with the best compliment of Jimmy's career. There's Arthur Ashe breaking 100 once golf was explained to him in tennis terms, and Peter Jacobsen skipping back surgery after one adjustment on the range. Coach Bryant tells Jimmy that fundamentals were all he ever taught. And Jimmy doesn't hold back on where he thinks today's speed chasing swings are headed for players' backs.

If you missed Part 1, go back and start there.

Every golfer has a story worth preserving. Thanks for letting us help preserve yours.