About
Jim, who has been teaching golf since 1985, a 2 time Teacher of the Year, Certified PGA Coach, , Life Coach, and First Tee Coach, at the Monarch Dunes Golf Academy, located in Nipomo, CA in the middle of the Central Coast of California.
History: plays golf at a professional level, taught himself to play left handed at a proficient amateur level. In 1984 Jim was an All-American and member of the 1984 National Champion CSU Stanislaus Warriors Team. He is a two-time Teacher of the Year, Northern Chapter SCPGA (1996 & 2003), and the 2001 Club Fitter of the Year, Northern Chapter, SCPGA. Prior to coming to the Central Coast, Jim was the Head Golf and Teaching Professional at La Purisma Golf Course from 1990 to 1996. From 1996 to 2000, Jim acted as Director of Instruction for the Teacher Certification Program at the Professional Golfers Career College.
He then ran the Cypress Ridge Golf Academy from 2000-2006. he was the Director of Instruction of Monarch Dunes Academy from 2008 to 2019. In semi retirement now, one of JIm's passions and strengths is the development of golfers games, whether they are beginners to professionals.
He developed his left handed game to understand the needs of his beginners and intermediate players.
Other credits: Guest Speaker at the 2014 Symposium o Affordable Golf Finished The First Tee Advanced Coaches Training in Cleveland, Ohio in April 2012
As a Life Member of the PGA and Life Coach, Jim loves to continue to teach all levels from beginner to professional, and is now finishing books and many unique training aids he has created over his career, based on his groundbreaking philosophies for golf, including The Grip Print, Hilly Lie Formula, the Walls , and many other innovations. He always has said "You cannot lose the skill to hit it straight (once grip printed) but you can be confused by distractions.
“My job is to help coach you back to the center of the fairway & green."
He practices what he preaches, with his own professional right handed game and amateur left handed games.
Jim is very motivated and inspiring. His excitement for the game of golf is infectious and he maintains a faithful following of students all over the Central Coast. We think you will appreciate his enthusiasm and expertise as he helps hone in your game.
YOU CANNOT LOSE A SKILL…however:
Hey Golfers, as a golf teacher and coach for many years, I hear many say:“Where did my golf game go, where did my swing go”
So I’m Jim DeLaby,
-a PGA Quarter Century Member,
-a PGA Certified Coach
-a Certified First Tee Coach,
-and a Certified Life Coach,
And I want to be your Coach to help you find your golf game & golf swing.
Many times golfers will come to me and ask “Where did my game go?”, “I was playing so good, but then I had a bad shot, a bad hole, a bad nine, and or a bad 18 hole round. And I cannot find my game any more.”
Yes
When our golf games seem to have VANISHED , from hitting these bad shots to scoring higher than we are used to, we start to THINK that we have lost our games and our swings forever.
We become very HOPELESS and frustrated, and will try anything to get our games and our swings back... ie,
-new thoughts,
-old thoughts,
-many thoughts,.
-new teachers
-new training aids
-new books
-new clubs
-new supplements
-new philosophies
-more range balls
And so on
Then Our bodies get TIGHT,
-thus our hands tighten our grip of the club.
-And the RESULT is bad shots, high scores.
The Good News is You can’t lose a skill.
Your golf game, your golf swing in particular, has not vanished. You are, however, confused by many distractions or stressors.
My job as your coach will be to help you to understand how these distractions or stressors -create unintentional thoughts,
-that trigger unwelcomed emotions,
-that make us swing with unwanted tension,
-causing bad shots, bad holes, and or bad 9 hole and 18 hole scores.
Hey look:
...I’ve been in your shoes:
...I’ve been where you are currently:
As a right handed amatuer golfer to a a golf professional
-Beginner
-to intermediate
-to now an advanced player
-From having many different issues that had me thinking just like you, where did my game and swing go:
-from major injuries that affected my neck and back, and other parts of my body
-sicknesses
-Vertigo
-golf elbow
-knee issues
-spasms
-migraines
-neck and back
-major surgery
-major allergies
-greiving
-working 60 hour plus weeks
-fully confused
-Mood swings
-to having to move around the state many times due to several job changes
And I can tell you when going thru these things, they brought me to hopelessness with my golf game, as I thought each and every time WHERE DID MY GAME and swing GO
But in the year 2001, when some family events caused me and a avid golfing family member not to be able to practice anymore, due to major time constraints,
...as a player, teacher, and coach I needed a miracle at this time, and literally prayed for help. “Can a golfer not practice and still maintain his or her skill”.
After that it all changed as I went on a quest thru much research and experimentation to figure out if a golfer, can actually lose his or her game, with no practice.
And because of these findings, coupled with my utilizing these findings while developing my left handed game much faster than my right handed game
I now know without a doubt YOU CANNOT LOSE A SKILL, and it has nothing do with how many range balls you hit, or lessons you take, or books you read etc...
It does however have to do with how we think.
And I would love to spend time with you to teach and coach you with my unique life coaching and teaching philosophies that have been developed from my research and findings on how to think this way, because then you will realize without any doubt, you cannot lose your golf game.
And as we progress in our time together, and as you start to get it, you will say “wow, I found my game & swing, it never was lost, and now I know how to get it back with confidence not hopelessness, because I cannot lose my golf game nor my golf swing.
All golfers, especially baby boomer golfers, because I am one, I look forward to this journey to help you find your golf game and your golf swing.
Specialties
Experience level
How often
Student age
Goals
Owns golf clubs
Photos and videos
Reviews
Marilyn B.
Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
1. Inquiry: Please call or text me at 805-478-5723 and/or inquire through email at [email protected]. We will talk through your goals and issues (see more details below) to decide the course of action. Figure out the right program to match your budget (private 1 on 1, or small groups of 2 to 4 persons, or group clinics of 6 to 12 persons). Then, set up a time at Monarch Dunes to further assess your game and/or introduce you properly to the game of golf through our famous LEARN GOLF! Training Program.
2. Ability:
a. Are you a beginner? never played, and/or miniature golfer, and/or played once a year beginner... (we have all necessary clubs, or we can assess your clubs to see if they fit)
b. Or are you a novice? hit only on the driving range, and/or only play on par 3 courses, and/or only play in fundraisers to help out causes, and/or never keep score, and/or am a male who shoots 90s to 100 and/or female scores in 100s
c. Or are you an intermediate player who scores in the 80s to the 90s?
d. Or are you an advanced player capable of scoring in the 70's to the 80's?
e. Or do you have professional efficiency and score in the 60's to 70's?
...
3. What is your goals/issues? Possible answers include;
a. Just want to learn how to play.
b. Want to learn how to play the right way, as I never received any formal training.
c. Refresher lesson or review of basics
d. Short game issues (putting, chipping, pitching, Lob shot, bunker
e. Full Swing issues (Driver, fairway woods, hybrids, long irons, mid irons, short irons)
...
4. We need to identify specific error detection and correction issues before we start: I call this "One focus on One club on one issue."...
a. Topping ball (ball does not get airborne)?
b. Chunking ground before making contact with the ball?
c. Slicing shot (Curving to the right for a right-hander or left for a left-hander)?
d. Hooking shot (Opposite curve of the slice)?
e. Shanking shot (for right-hander goes 45-degree angle straight right)
f. Inconsistent
g. Golf Rehab issues need to slowly work back to their original form if possible (we work in tandem with onsite Golf Rehab specialist
h. Need to get fitted for clubs or to reassess the fit of the current set makeup... (we have on-site club repair and club maker specialist) and we have demos with some of the mainline club companies to fit you properly.
g. Getting ready for a specific event.
h. Course management issue (We have daily access to two different highly ranked golf courses, so we can arrange to do on course play lessons to meet all your course management needs. One course, our Par 3 course called the Challenge Course, has been designed as one of the most effective short-game training courses I have ever been involved with. And our other 18-hole regulation course has all the necessary shots and situations to help you improve.
i. Golf Psychology issues (like first tee jitters, 13th hole blues, hitting over water, out of bunkers, too long of a hole fear, better players intimidate me, my handicap never seems to improve no matter how much I practice or play, anger management, perfectionism, always play bad when ________ (fill in the blank), and many other issues like can't play with gabbers, etc...
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
Cerified PGA Coach
Certified First Tee Coach
Certified Life Coach