Golf Gurus

WP Golf’s corporate program caters to groups on golf outings at the WP courses. “We might offer clinics to groups before they tee off,” LaPour says. “Or we might offer some instruction to beginners while everyone else in the group is playing, so that they don’t feel left out of the experience. Then afterwards, those people could party with the ones who had finished the tournament.”

WP will also direct onsite seminars and clinics for employees at companies that belong to the Minnesota Employee Recreation & Services Council, a nonprofit professional association devoted to helping member companies enhance employee well being through, among other things, health and wellness programs, consumer discounts, recreation sports, and tournaments. “A one-hour clinic on putting or swings at lunchtime is a good way to break up the workday,” LaPour says. “And it can be a relaxing activity at the end of the workday.”

CES Fitness, Minneapolis
(cesfitness.com)

The Game: Sports medicine for golf and golf conditioning.

The Pros: Kevin Brabant has a University of Minnesota degree in kinesiology (the study of body movement) and is a former certified trainer with the National Association of Athletic Trainers. CES owner Jason Green has a degree in kinesiology and is a certified golf biomechanics instructor.

The Dance Floor: CES Fitness, conveniently tucked into a space on the skyway in downtown Minneapolis, is one of those marvels of design and architecture that appears to be bigger on the inside than the outside. Amazingly, the space comfortably accommodates the golf net, workout and physical therapy equipment, a yoga/pilates studio, and seven executive trainers as well as luxurious, spa-like locker rooms.

The process begins with a series of tests including body composition analysis, cardiovascular screening, physical movement screening, core musculature strength and function screening, and evaluation of balance and flexibility. Brabant uses video cameras, SwingView Pro software, and various exercises in order to assess the clients needs and make recommendations about the conditioning process. CES uses the Titleist Performance Institute’s golf fitness guidelines to help clients improve performance. As CES’s Web site claims, “We do not teach the golf swing! We provide your body with the tools to perform the golf swing to the best of your abilities.”