Training Days

Golf schools tend to be concentrated in the warm states of Florida, Arizona and California. Even so, plenty of them have campuses in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast. No matter the location, though, you’re likely to find common features. Most, for instance, will offer packages in lengths of two-to-five days and some even seven days. The short game is often a focus (because that’s where most amateurs can most quickly take shots off their games), and videotaping of students has become a vital tool of modern instruction. Beyond that, schools will vary by the level of luxury you prefer and such extras as a spa, tennis courts and heated pools, which may appeal to a non-golfing spouse. Following are links to a sampling of schools:

Advantage Golf School
Advantage has schools around the country and one near Charlottesville, Va., at the Keswick Estate. Students stay at Keswick Hall, an Orient Express hotel, and have access to four golf courses, open only to club members and students. Rates start at around $1,900 for a two-day course, double-occupancy, lunch included. Instruction is given one-to-one and two-to-one. Amenities include fine dining, spa services, swimming and clay-court tennis. Listed among Golf magazine’s top 25 golf schools.
877-239-6609
advantagegolfschool.com

Ben Sutton Golf School
Ben Sutton has had a school in Florida for years but opened a second last year at the Windham House Resort in the Catskills of New York. Teaching is mostly done on a 9-hole executive course in the valley below Windham Mountain, and up the mountain is an 18-hole championship course open for students to play. The school offers 3-, 5- and 7-day courses. Rates start at $1,195 for a 3-day course, single-occupancy, meals included. The instructor-student ratio is limited to 5 to 1. The chief of six buildings on the property is a quaint inn built at the beginning of the 1800s. The emphasis here is golf, ideal for couples who both attend the school.
800-225-6923
golfschool.com

David Glenz Golf Academy
David Glenz teaches in what has become a golf paradise around the Crystal Springs Golf Resort in northwest New Jersey. Six courses lie near each other, including Black Bear, Wild Turkey and Crystal Springs. The Glenz academy offers a variety of options, including a three-hour, one-day, two-day courses, stay-and-play or commute, plus putting and short-game schools. Glenz has earned inclusion on Golf Digest’s list of 50 top teachers. A 2 1/2 day package, including two nights’ accommodations and daily lunch costs $999, double-occupancy. The instructor-student ratio is limited to 4 to 1. Amenities at the resort include tennis, racquetball, indoor and outdoor heated pools, full-service spa and health club.
973-209-6075
davidglenz.com

ESPN Golf Schools
These schools offer a good variety of choices from two one-day seminars to a three-day resort school. Three one-day classes, one for beginners and two others concentrating on parts of the game, are offered up and down the East Coast and cost $525. The beginners course comes with a set of Nike golf clubs and the other courses come with several Nike clubs each. The teacher-to-student ratio is 6 to 1. The three-day course is offered twice this summer at the Samoset Resort in Rockport, Me. The cost is $2,795 single-occupancy. It can be expected to include all the amenities of a luxury resort and a Nike golf club as well.
Samosset Resort
800-341-1650
espngolfschools.com

New England Golf School at Cranwell Resort, Spa & Golf Club
In the Berkshire Mountains near Lenox, Mass., the school runs under the auspicious of Golf Digest magazine. The heart of the school is a 60-acre learning center with a video lab and viewing room and indoor hitting range, restaurant and bar. Cranwell’s is home to an 18-hole irrigated course built in 1926. Guests stay in cottages, or in rooms in the mansion. Courses include 2- and 3-day weekend and 3-day weekday, starting at $1,899, single occupancy. All three can be taken as a commuter. Resort extras include an outdoor heated pool, four tennis courts and a 35,000 square foot spa.
800-243-6121
golfdigestschool.com — By Greg G. Weber