Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Reid.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I grew up in Ireland playing junior golf tournaments and just like most kids had aspirations to one become a PGA Tour player. I became quite a good player, top 50. Everyone thinks they are way better than they are and thankfully I noticed that some of my fellow competitors were just that next level ahead of me, I was correct, Darren Clarke went on to win the crown jewel of golf, the Open Championship and Paul McGinley a multiple winner on the European Tour and Ryder Cup Captain. During all my years playing, I was always very focused on having great golf swing and soon came to realize that my true passion was teaching. I began teaching golf in Austria in 1989 and did my training to become a PGA golf professional. On completion of my training, I realized there were about 400 instructors in Ireland and the competitor in me wanted to become #1. David Leadbetter was widely considered the best instructor in the world and I made it my focus to go work and learn from him. There were 2 openings available in Europe and about 3,000 applied for the job, after 10 to 15 interviews I got accepted.
In 1995, I started my 1-year training program in Orlando, Florida and eventually was based in Austria for the summer months and Spain for the winter months. I transferred to Ireland to run the Academy for a few years and eventually moved full-time to the USA in 1999 and was located in Sarasota Florida at the now famous, David Leadbetter junior golf academy. In 2008, we opened a new location in Irvine California and I relocated to run the junior program and create a west coast version of our highly successful east coast program. Unfortunately, we did not foresee the 2008 financial crisis and we shut down the Irvine location. I had the chance to move back to Florida but California is so beautiful, I decided to stay and set up my own teaching school in Irvine which I have been doing for 9 years.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Some of the biggest challenges is starting from the beginning and having no reputation or client base. This is one of the reasons I went to work for David Leadbetter, to learn from the best and become good quickly. I built my knowledge and traveled the world learning from other fellows colleagues. One negative of my business is weather, Ireland is too cold in the winters and Florida is too hot during the summer making it difficult to have a consistent income but southern California is perfect with pretty much year-round weather to teach golf. I did a lot of corporate work traveling to Bolivia, Brazil, Portugal, and India. These trips were incredible adventures and learning experiences but difficult for family life as I often went for 2/3 weeks at a time.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Mark Reid Golf School story. Tell us more about the business.
Today I operate my golf school at Strawberry Farms Golf Club in Irvine California. I specialize in one-on-one training for all levels of golfers, from beginners to winners and I work on all aspects of the game, full swing, short game, mental game and on course management. What sets me apart is my 10 Leadbetter training, learning the faults and fixes from the instructor that coached such famous players as Nick Faldo, Michelle Wie, Nick Price and Ernie Els to name but a few. I love showing students the before and after of their golf games and I send them video presentations of what they need to work on after each golf lesson.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Bad luck is relocating 3,000 miles away and opening a new business in 2008 during one of the USA’s worst financial crisis, good luck is realizing that you were spending beyond your means and helped me re-prioritize my life to not focus so much on material items but more on long-term financial success for retirement.
Pricing:
- Introductory golf lesson $75
- Introductory series of 4 golf lessons $375
- V.I.P. Membership 2 golf lessons a month $200
Contact Info:
- Address: 11 Strawberry Farm Rd,
Irvine, CA 92612 - Website: markreidgolf.com
- Phone: 949-829-1530
- Email: [email protected]
- Twitter: @markreidgolf
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markreidgolf/
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