America's Top 50 Instructor, Erika Larkin

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This is the Coach Mo golf show, episode 10, season two. And I am so excited to have my special guest today. I have the very talented, very. I don't even know what I. I met you in person. Very enthusiastic, energetic, and smart golf professional here, Erica Larkin. Erica is recognized as the not only a top 100 instructor, but also top 50 in America. She's built herself a fabulous brand, lots of followers and author, and just a lot of cool things going on Golf school. So we've got a lot to talk about this episode, but thanks for taking the time today to be here.

My pleasure. Thanks for having me. Mo, it's great to be on with you. I love what you're doing. Yeah.

And like, I got to meet you a couple weeks ago in person at the Troon Southeast Summit, and that was really cool. And you did a whole segment on marketing and branding yourself and, and just, you know, see people on social media, but then when you get to kind of be in that smaller setting and talking with them one on one and, and I just thought it was really cool to, to meet you and, and you know, that you, you went out of your way to kind of like talk to everyone and get that connection going. So I thought that was really cool.

Well, thank you. Yeah, it was great to share and hopefully inspire more people to share, you know, their ideas on social media and wherever, whatever platforms they're on.

Yeah, I got to hear your story, but just for the listeners tuning in, if they haven't had the chance to listen to you on podcasts or follow your social media, if you don't mind giving us a little backstory of I know you played at JMU College Golf. Just a little quick, you know, leading you up to where you are today and then, and then we'll get in the questions I have.

Yeah, sure. I grew up in New York City and learned to play golf at a fairly young age with non golf parents. And we kind of learned together. Ended up playing well enough as a junior and got some mentorship. I ended up playing in college at James Madison University on partial scholarship for four years and knew I just wanted to be in the golf business. Didn't know exactly what that meant, but I graduated with a marketing degree, business degree, and wanted to be like in hospitality, working at golf courses, something like that. It wasn't really sure. And I did end up working for a management company and met Steve Wilsher, who's actually the director of instruction for Troon and, and he's been a great friend along the way. He's Mentored me also and how he's grown his golf business, he's encouraged me to grow mine. And certainly I've, I've stayed in Northern Virginia my whole teaching career the last 20 years, and started at a private club, became a PGA professional, did a ton of teaching with juniors and ladies and ran all the programming and learned in the trenches just how to teach from a lot of trial and error, honestly, and then went off on my own and developed my own academy at a public golf course not far from where I live now. And fast forward another like six, seven seasons and. And I've just spent now nine years at a private club in, called the Club of Creighton Farms in Aldi, where I've had a really interesting growth period these last nine years. I wrote a book, I got on social media, I posted consistently. I started really working more consistently with media outlets because of the exposure that I got. And so it's just totally taken my kind of level of, of golf celebrity, if you will, and, and really exploded it over the last, you know, few years. So it's been kind of a fun ride. I've tried to continue to work hard and social media is a grind. You have to keep posting to keep things going. And so I, I'm learning as I go. I've gotten better as I go and that's kind of where I am now. So, yeah, that's great.

And you know, like you said, it's, it's an evolution and you know, from where you start from and where you end up. I think a lot of us don't know what that journey is going to look like. You just belong for the ride of it. But, you know, I think you've become such a role model not just for golfers, but like female golfers as well. And just to start from not knowing even, hey, if I want to do this or what I'm going to do to where you are today, what advice would you give to. Maybe it's young girls, maybe it's young professionals who are trying to get their foot in and they're not sure. Should I teach? Should I, you know, work in the shop? Should I do marketing? What should I do? Like, what advice would you give to those girls who are looking to try to figure out their place in the golf world?

Yeah, I think the beauty about our sport is that you can literally be a part of it your whole life in one shape or another. Like my husband always says, the game ends for everybody. He was a collegiate and then pro hockey player and, you know, he Hung up his skates. Yeah, he played rec for a few years. But there's a point where you just, you can't play anymore. So when you get to that point where you've sort of reached your competitive peak, the nice part about golf is there is amateur golf. You can always play for fun. You can, you can stay competitive at whatever level you're at thanks to the handicap system, thanks to USJ events, things like that, club events. So find the way you want to enjoy the game for your life. And then beyond that, as far as work opportunities, I mean, yes, there are so many different ways to be involved if you are drawn more to like the fashion side, the equipment side, you like the marketing side of things. I mean there's just, you like media, you're good with editing, you enjoy doing product reviews, you want to coach, you enjoy working with kids, you enjoy working with women. You can have a niche in so many different ways and be successful. I mean, there's plenty of business to go around. There's different parts of the business. And this is. The PGA does a good job with their PGA works program. And I know the LPGA also does some things with, in terms of like mentorship and you know, being able to guide you to explore different areas. But I think doing internships, doing shadowing, putting your feet in the water and for, you know, some months, you know, getting a part time job at a course, see if you like it, maybe, you know, apply and, and see what it's like to be somebody's assistant in social media or in coaching. Because there's always ways that you can help if you have golf experience, you know, enough to do entry level stuff and like try get your feet wet in the business side of things. I just, I think it's a great industry, sports in general, but for me, coaching is so rewarding. I always like to say that it's, it's a flexible job and that you can kind of control your schedule but you know, you're at the mercy of when people are available. I've always worked weekends, I've traveled a bunch. But there's so much remote stuff you can do now. And making content is, is a whole nother way you can deliver coaching. But really, truly being with people, getting to know people, it's amazing who you can meet, it's amazing who you touch. And then seeing, particularly for me early on in my career, the juniors that I, I worked with and then literally seeing them grow up and what they did in golf or not was so cool, you know, so I Have kids that I taught in 2003 and now they are like married with their own kids. Almost calling me with like, hey, I want to bring my 5 year old to you. I'm like, what could I be? How could I have been in the business this long enough to teach, you know, kids of the kids that I was coaching? But I'm getting to that point and that's so fun though, to be able to feel like you've made an impact on somebody, to help them love the game or to remember the experience they had with you and want to come back or want to relive that maybe with their kids or in another way. I just think that that's really, really neat to be able to impact people like that in their golf life and then also as humans, because you spend enough time with these people on the lesson team, but then on the course, it's hours and hours and hours spent with people. You just get to know them on these levels. They really, truly become friends and sometimes even like family. So that's what I've enjoyed the most.

It's crazy. I mean, like you're saying you're impacting not only just people, but generationally and yeah, you become that sense of community and, and that closeness. Yet you spend so much time, you know, and seeing the kids grow up, It's a really, really cool thing. Now in your career, did you ever have a point in time? I mean, I know I've experienced it. Most people I talk to where you almost had like a roadblock happen, but it redirected you positive way where you didn't even know. But that roadblock became a blessing in disguise. Have you had to experience that?

Yeah, for sure. So in my career, I had been coaching, building my academy at a public facility called Stonewall. And I really wanted to build a learning center. And unfortunately, based on things that were happening at the facility, I wasn't able to get a ground lease and it wasn't going to happen. So I was sort of put in a position of, okay, well if I want to grow and do this, I need to move my business. And I. And I was comfortable there, but I could tell I was also kind of like outgrowing the space with the volume of students we had. And so it forced me to make a decision where was I going to go next? And serendipitously, an opportunity came up literally down the street and they were rehabbing a golf course that was, you know, not doing so well. And some business people in the area bought the course for a low Price. And they were like, we're going to put a bunch of money into it. We're going to build you, help you build what you want to build. It's going to be amazing. And there were a lot of layers to this because I had other family involved on the food and beverage side. Like, we kind of came in as a team team. And we rehabbed this property for about eight months, got it open. I brought my whole business over there, my staff, we moved everybody. We started selling memberships. And then unfortunately, on the business side of things, everything fell apart. Like, contracts didn't get signed. I just got, you know, kind of got burned that season with putting my trust that things were going to work out well and I didn't do the right things to create, I guess, guarantees that I was going to be protected in the. In the position I was in. So, long story short, mid season, I have staring down a whole summer of, like, people signed up for summer camps. I mean, I had to go someplace. I couldn't stay there. And luckily, I had a friend in town that there was really no teaching programs happening at this other course. And he's like, just come here and do your stuff for the summer. So I had such a hell of a, like, two seasons of moving twice, and I just felt like it looked so bad to my customers. I was trying to do my best to just salvage the season. I had staff I was responsible for. Like, I was so stressed. And at the end of that season, that new property was not going to be my forever home. It was sort of a stopgap. And I had to really, like, decide, like, where am I going? Are we going to move? Like, am I going to build something in another property? Should I just completely start over and, like, rethink what I'm trying to do here? Maybe building an academy right now and growing. This is not in the cards. Like, maybe this is just not meant to be. And so I had all these big dreams of what that was going to look like. And I literally made a decision that fall, and I told my staff. I'm like, I think we're going to call this the end for now, and I'm going to figure out what I'm doing next. But don't count on me for next season. Like, I'm sorry. So they were young guys, they moved on and all found great things that they could do. But I felt bad about it. But I said, you know what? Maybe this is the time I needed. I always wanted to write my book. I can take. Maybe I'll Take a sabbatical maybe. You know, I have young kids at home. Maybe I'll take some time off. And right around the same time, there was an opportunity at this, where I'm at now, which is Creighton Farms, to. To see about the director of instruction position there. They were a newer club. They never had anybody there before, and they were looking. And I knew the. The head pro there and a couple members. And so a few months later, I had an opportunity to start there. And it literally felt like I was starting over again, kind of, because I went back to teaching by myself in a private club. I was able to bring in guests and some of my local clientele, but it was like a fresh start, and I just didn't see that happening. If you had asked me, you know, a year before, I had all these ideas of what was going to happen and what we were going to build, and it was like, all right, I'm back by myself. I'm back teaching outside. I don't have my building. Like, okay, now what? So I wrote my book. So I wrote my book and I taught, but I taught a ton there. But, like, it wasn't what I was doing. It was just a total change of gear. And it was good. It was healthy for me. I needed that kind of reset. And then that was, again, like you said, a blessing in disguise or a pivotal moment that completely changed the course of. Honestly brought me to where I am now. Because if that hadn't happened, I probably wouldn't have wrote the book. I probably wouldn't have gotten on social the way I did and had the time to do that, because it does take time. So the time and energy I would have spent building my academy business, I put it into. I invested it back into, literally, like, myself and my content. And so that was the game changer. And, you know, things are meant to be. Sometimes that needed to happen. As painful as that was, that kind of year and a half, it needed to happen. And I'm, you know, thankful for it now. And, you know, we. We go through things and hopefully we come out stronger on the other side. I think that's hopefully what, you know, I look back and think has happened to me. I learned a lot. And, you know, now I've. I'm back in a position where I can visualize once again. Maybe not like next year, but, I don't know, five years, some. @ some point in the future, I will have that academy in the way I visualized it. It's just. It wasn't the time. And so you know, we take steps to do things along the way, we make decisions and there's. There's plenty of time to do many different things. And right now, the season that I'm in is. Is meant to be, I guess.

Wow. I mean, thanks for sharing that. And I didn't know that had happened. And we, we here at the academy had something kind of similar like that where, you know, we had to completely redirect what the plan was and what we're doing and facility changes and whatnot. So I know that that's a very scary time, especially when you feel like your whole business, you don't have that footing and grounding and so do that. But, you know, that led you to your book, like you said. Do you mind sharing a little bit about your book and what that's about?

Yeah, sure. I have a copy of it somewhere around here I have. Just so you guys can kind of get a feel for it. This is my book. It's called the True Swing. It's like a little blurry there. There we go. I know. I have that kind of filter thingy on. And so there's plenty of drills in the book and lots of great ideas of how to basically not only simplify the way you're trying to understand the swing, but. But have a foundation of how can you make a swing that's truly yours and also commits the idea of truly swinging? That's why it's called what it is. What does that really mean? Well, it means we're trying to get away from hitting at the ball. We're trying to get away from manipulating too much in our swing, trying to do things like lift the ball or try to physically hit down on it. Like, if you understand the basic geometry of the swing, or I'll even say the physics of a pendulum, everything kind of comes back to that. And my whole approach is really based on some old school stuff. If you don't never heard of this guy, look up Ernest Jones. You'll see that he was a popular coach in the 1930s and 40s and 50s, and he was sort of the grandfather of what I teach. And I've put my own spin on it because I've learned a lot of stuff more recently that would validate a lot of what he was saying and also challenge a little bit of some ideas. And so I've just put my own spin, my own modern spin on what was a really classic concept of swinging the clubhead and truly trusting that this basically pendulum model, glorified pendulum model, like, how can we Apply that in a way that's simple, in a way that's efficient, in a way that automates mechanics so you don't have to do as much thinking. Definitely I'm a little bit more visual kinesthetic coach. And that you'll come through in the book with a lot of metaphors, a lot of suggestions on what things may feel like. And so if that speaks to you, I would suggest checking it out. And since I've written that and I've done content all surrounding the book. I had done a digital course at one point that was for sale through one platform that brings the book to life. We've actually just relaunched that this week. It'll launch on Friday. And that's called the True Swing Sequence. It's going to live on performancegolf.com so I'll have all those links on my social and but if you're interested, just be on the lookout. If you're scrolling around YouTube and you're getting those golf ads, you'll probably see my face pop up sooner than later because they're going to do a big launch here soon with the whole curriculum, video curriculum that brings that book to life. So the book and the, and the videos certainly will, will live, you know, forever. But you know, beyond that in person experiences. Like I think that's what I love is now when people find me. This has been the most rewarding thing when people find me now online because they, or they might have heard about me or saw a video and then gone to my website and realized I have a book and then buy the book. They sort of start to buy into what I'm teaching before they ever take a lesson. Like before they come for that golf school, before they show up for the three hour lesson, they flew in from where someplace or they drove down from New Jersey or you know, they, they, they are already interested. They already kind of know and have had a taste of what I'm talking about. So those are great lessons because one, I'm not talking, you know, a different language to them. They're already speaking my language. They' understanding and, and, and dialed into the concepts and then it's really more about like how it applies to them and how I can like just fine tune like which drills they should be focusing on. Of the, you know, 50 that are in the book, like how does it apply to them? Where are their areas where they, they're still experiencing manipulation? Like how can we try and get that out of their swing and their motion? So I look at it that way, which is Looking at a golfer not to reinvent them, but more unlocking their best fluid motion. And so by default, they do kind of reinvent their swing. It gets more fluid, it gets more graceful, it gets more athletic. That's what is. I always say your true swing's already in you. And so it's more about just like letting it go, letting it out. And when you do that and you unlock that movement pattern, you already own it because it's already how you move. So that's what I try to do with everybody, is get them through, whether it's my content, my in person experiences. These golf schools is take people through this journey of feeling movement, feeling athletic when they move, feeling balanced, not trying to muscle their shot, and over swing in a way that they're overpowering and over controlling the intent to hit at the ball. So when we do less, we usually get more. I know that sounds really cliche, but it's about being efficient. It's about being, to me, again, smooth with your movements. And so slow is smooth, smooth is fast. It's amazing how when we actually do things and move in the right order, which comes back to the idea of like true swing sequence, which is kind of how this, this digital course is being pitched. When we do things in the right order, which is that athletic sequence of movement, we have a really good chance of getting for us our most potential clubhead speed. And so I think that that's rewarding for people to have those aha. Moments of like, oh, okay, I feel that. Yes. Like, that's what I. Or on my best days, that's how it feels. Now I understand, like, why I wasn't feeling that more often. And so when those light bulb moments goes off, those are the most rewarding moments as a coach. Mo, you know that, how that feels and, and what's super cool is that I get that feedback from people that I've never met. Like, people that have read the book or been watching my stuff online, remotely, overseas. And they've never even met me in person. They've never even done a remote lesson per se. And like, they'll email or send a DM and tell me how they had that aha. Moment. And it's helping them, like, how cool is that? You know, that's why I want to keep doing what I'm doing and do more of it is. It's, it's motivating me to just help more people and touch more people.

That's awesome. And now, like your book, your, your content, is there a certain type of Golfer, handicap of golfer that tends to gravitate to you and attend your schools and your lessons.

I would say it's mostly mid handicap golfers. I have quite a few newer golfers that are like in a year and they're sort of overwhelmed with a lot of information and then they find me and they're like, oh, this actually sounds really simple. And maybe before I get too far down the path, you know, she can help me get on a good track. Things like that I do have, I mean I teach plenty of junior students, still elite level juniors and you know, for them it's a little different. These are, might be themes that come up here and there throughout our lessons and, and you know, when you get, when you get six, seven, eight years in with somebody, yeah, it, it's, it's a little different kind of relationship, but the themes are always still there. I've had scratch golfers that are just in their own head and they want to simplify stuff and they come out and they're like, I saw your stuff. I just need something simple, can you please help me? You know, so it's like, it. Finding and trying to apply what I do to different levels of golfers is like a fun, it's a fun challenge, but it's very realistic. Like I think different levels of players can definitely benefit from the stuff that, that I do and how I say things. It could be just that there's that one little nugget how you were thinking about something, how you were feeling something, you know, letting go a little bit more, reducing tension in some areas, changing a feel of your awareness and your swing. Just something that you can catch a feel on. It can help different golfers for different reasons.

Right.

So, but I would say 80% of the people I teach are, are mostly adults and mostly in that sort of mid range, handicapped, trying to break through to that next scoring level, whether it's breaking 100, breaking 90, something like that. So. Right, yeah, yeah, so kind of, you.

Know, they can reach out to you, get on your social media, Erica Larkin Golf and kind of check out videos, get some tips, you know, then you know, where are they going to find your book? They can, they're like, hey, I'm, I'm buying. I want to learn more on your book.

So it's available on Amazon for sure. Shipping, you know, worldwide is probably easier that way. And then for a signed copy you'd have to order through my website, which I do all the time too. So happy to send you, send you one that way. And the digital course will be linked all through my site and my socials, but also, you know, later on this week into next week. I'm sure when this airs, you know, it'll be live, but performance golf will be a platform that you'll see a lot of my stuff live on in the, in the near future here. So I look forward to hopefully connecting with more of you out there.

Right, so you got, you got her social media page, you got her book, and then if you want to go meet her in person, you've got golf. So tell us a little bit about your golf schools.

Yeah, I do golf schools at Creighton throughout the main part of our season, which would say April to October and you know, once, twice a month, especially different parts of the year, I'll, I'll kind of annie up a little bit. And then there are like two and a half day retreats. You come, you can stay on property if you like. We actually have guest rooms at Creighton, which is pretty cool. I do very small groups. I like an intimate setting, so I don't take more than six people. If I have six people, there's another coach there. So we just really make sure everybody's getting a lot of attention. And so for that, like, you know, it's, it's a, it's a very intense, intense in a good way, like experience, you know, you get a lot of, of attention. And certainly we go over a lot of stuff in a couple days because the groups are small as far as on the road. I have affiliations with different properties over the. Mostly all over the east coast, hopefully, you know, more west as time goes on. But I'll actually be in Florida a couple more times this winter doing schools in the Fort Myers area at the new Aileron resort with my buddy Brian Newman, who's just launched his programs there. So we're going to collaborate and then, you know, other collaborations too. Sometimes coaches will call and I'll come to private clubs. So if you're at a place and you're interested in, in hosting me, certainly by all means call. Or if you have a group of members or friends that, you know, you're golfing buddies and you want to do something together, always up for talking about what custom groups can look like and happy to travel if it makes sense to do a golf school where you are as opposed to you guys coming to me. So all these things are options. But yeah, I travel. I probably do at this point. Somewhere in the range of 15 to 20 schools a year and growing. It's I feel like it's doing, I'm doing more of that and certainly plenty of private lessons, but maybe the scales are tipping a little bit into a little bit more of the group stuff. Always happy to do private sessions when people come to town and visit and certainly my local clientele, but yeah, come and visit, take some, take some classes or if you want to schedule like a block of private time, always I'm happy to do that. Everything lives on my website. Ericalarcin.com so easy for you to see the information and see what options there are, you know.

And I've been changing a lot of my programming to Group two, and I think there's some people that are going to say, you know, I like that one on one time. But you get in a small group setting, you get the one on one time. But what I like about it too is you have the ability to cover more topics, but you're also moving around so that, that client, that player gets time to kind of digest. I feel like if you're all over them for an hour straight just giving them a whole bunch of information, it can be, you know, information overload sometimes, but you kind of like 15 minutes talk to them, they've got a little time to process it, work through some fields, come up with questions on their own. You move on. And I, I feel like you're able to help a lot more people and they're also able to not, you know, take on so much of the cost. You can split up the cost for them. So I think there's a lot of benefits to golf schools and group instruction and, and I, I'm changing kind of the way I'm doing stuff here to, to hone in on that myself. So.

Yeah, that's awesome. No, it's great. I love, I love that. And it's neat when people connect in the class too. Sometimes you end up with people that come out with friendships they didn't know they were going to, you know, develop and, or hey, I didn't realize, you know, if you're in the area, let's get together after this and play some golf. So there's some cool stuff like that that's come out of my programs in the past and love to see when that happens. But yeah, it's neat to spend like two, three days with somebody. You feel like you get to know them a little bit more and you know, you have meals together and there's downtime in between and it's, it's cool to have those experiences with, with people and with groups so yeah, lots of, lots of ways to connect in person or remote. I love, love, love coaching and love helping people.

Now what's your advice to listeners on the show who, you know, maybe they're fans of golf, they're, they've secretly wanted to take a lesson or do a golf school and they haven't quite committed yet. What would be your advice to them to take the plunge in and get that formalized instruction? Ve is, you know, just watching YouTube videos or just trying to work on tips and you know, getting in the mirror with their club in their living room. Like, how do you, how do you take that? What's your advice to kind of take that next step? And why should somebody do that?

Yeah, I think getting some professional help is good. So that you're not taking, I would say don't take the wrong medicine. Don't take too much medicine. You don't want to over medicate. Like, you know, if you're doing something that is good, but you do it too much or for too long, you end up with a different issue. Like I see that a lot with folks that don't come as often as they maybe should when they're making a change. But if you're busy, you know, scrolling the Internet for what you think is your problem, you may be searching the wrong problem. So it's helpful to have that professional set of eyes to at least point you in the right direction of where you should continue to do maybe some research. I mean, that's what happens sometimes is people will come and they might not be able to do 10 lessons with me, they can only afford or do, you know, a couple lessons like, okay, well then here's the things you need to be focused on and then go, go away with this homework. And this is the topics, if you're going to look online, these are the topics you should be searching. Hopefully you don't go down the wrong rabbit hole, but stay focused on these things and check back or let's do some remote swing analysis just so I can do some touch ins with you. And then that way there's a little bit of maintenance and so that way they can check in later on and see where they are and get an, an update. It's like going for an I. Again, I say I bring this doctor analogy in, but you go to the doctor, hopefully you go to the doctor once a year to get your teeth clean, to get your, you know, blood work done like you need to. Healthy checkups are good, by the way. We like healthy checkups, but it's still that peace of mind of, of saying, okay, like I check I went to the doctor this year and like things are looking good, I'm on the right track. Or okay, maybe I do need to like rethink this issue now and it's good. I didn't realize I was doing that. I didn't know, you know, the trackman said xyz. I mean trackman or whatever technology might be used. Video is kind of like that blood work, that X ray to dig a little deeper and say you think you've been hitting it this way but actually you're in the red zone here for these numbers. Let's just before you go any worse, like, let's bring you back to this neutral area and work on these things. So I just think having those check ins, if it's once a year, twice a year at the bare minimum is a really good idea with somebody that you trust and you have a relationship established with. And then if you are online and you and you want to do something remotely, if that person has content and follow their content or if there's a more. I call it like a system or a method. But like, that's why I like the idea of what personally, of course I'm putting out there now is it's a complete system. It's all my stuff. You're not going to be like jumping around YouTube, hearing 10 voices. It's one voice with a plan that takes you through this, this concept, this process. And so it's thought out, it's organized, it will answer your questions. It makes sense when you look at it as a whole. So following a lesson plan, whether it's myself or other great coaches out there that have this kind of stuff, if you're going to do something, make it organized so that you don't get confused. And it's, it's kind of a complete system of concepts and there's a lot of good ones out there. There's a lot of good ones out there.

That analogy is fantastic. You know, like you'd go to the doc, you got a couple symptoms building, you want to, you know, nip it in the butt before it becomes a disease or a big issue. And obviously you're gonna, you might get a second opinion here and there, but you get too many cooks in the kitchen. The information, I mean, all coaches, there's so many great coaches out there. But even if you're listening to all those voices, it could, there could be some things where it could just kind of send you off in the wrong direction. Yeah, Create confusion. And so, you know, having that one voice is really good. And, you know, one of the other things I wanted to ask you is leading to where you've gotten today. Obviously, you know, it takes a village to become super successful and a lot of people helping out. And you mentioned Steve Wilsher, and he's been phenomenal in helping me in my journey as well. Do you have any other mentors that have helped you that you'd like to kind of thank in. In helping you evolve into kind of what Erica Larkin go is today?

Yeah, sure. So, I mean, early on, before Steve, there was a Frank. Frank Darby was a coach in the Met section who was very involved with the juniors. And that's how he kind of started mentoring me, met me at junior tournaments. He's been great, you know, early on through my college days, and then when I was first getting in the golf business, I mean, he helped me get some summer jobs and things like that. Right. You always need somebody that kind of looks out for you and, and has that. Those. Those connections. So he had a network that he was able to help me, you know, kind of get started and, and, and really, you know, those first steps of playing at that next level and getting in the golf business. And then Steve was great again, those early years when I was first actually becoming a PGA professional and trying to establish my academy, he had a lot of ideas on local marketing and networking that I should be doing and signage and things like that. And, and anytime I was at that network, next level of like, okay, now I need to hire some people or, you know, what do you think about this kind of programming or what the PGA initiative is doing? Are you going to do it too? I mean, there was a lot of that. He was just a great friend and sounding board after that. You know, I have kind of been teaching on my own. I haven't had a lot of, like, top coach influences or never worked for anybody else to see direct how they were doing it. But I. I gotta give. I had been a member of Proponent Group years ago, and I think that it would change names a couple times, but Lauren Anderson was the head of that. Cheryl's husband. And, and Lauren was also a good mentor and came in at a couple moments where I needed help negotiating contracts and the content that he was putting out about best practices of building a learning center. And if I needed a referral for, I don't know, something when Golf Channel Academy launched, I got pulled into that with him in a great way. So he definitely lifted me up to a next level of coaching. The years that I was a member of his group and I was in seminars, sitting next to Mike Adams, sitting next to, you know, all these really amazing coaches that I had looked up to over the years that I would have never been able to sort of rub shoulders with on a regular basis. They were part of that group early on too. So it was, it gave me great access to this next level of, of coaches that I learned, learned from. So even though I didn't do a lot of, you know, shadowing or teaching for other big coaches, I learn my butt off. I went to every kind of seminar and paid tons of money to go to certifications and bought the technology and learned all that stuff and asked questions when I was around these great coaches. And so I just think being a part of Lauren's group really helped me in my development as a coach during that era. And so I would give him a lot of credit for what he helped facilitate there during those years, whether he even realized it or not. So, yeah, I would think Lauren for sure. As of late, I've been around a lot of really cool business people and some even right now that are teaching me things that I didn't know how to do or didn't have the resources to do or maybe been overwhelmed to even understand how to do. Because, you know, at the end of the day, I think I have a pretty good marketing head on my shoulders. I know what things can be, but how to get there and put those processes in place and having a team that can help you and also mentor you is huge. So I'm kind of now at that phase. So if you ask me this question another few years, I'm sure there'll be a few names that I throw out there. But yeah, at the moment, I mean, I'm definitely in a cool place and come this far and it's like, okay, what's next? Yeah, different levels of marketing, different kinds of building platforms and building businesses on top of what I've already built. To me is like a little nerve wracking and also fun and exciting. So I, I feel like I'm kind of on fresh ground again. You know, it's like different parts of your career, you feel almost like you're starting over. It's not so much I'm starting over, but I feel like there's like another chapter now happening. And so I'm at that point in every, you know, they say like they say every seven years you're a new person. Yeah. Like literally all your cells regenerate, you're like a new person every seven years. And so it just may be that that's kind of like that next. What's the next evolution of me as a person, where I am at this point in my life and where I now am at this point in my career after these last seven years, which literally was its own kind of era of growth. So that's how I kind of look at it as I'm on that, like, nervous energy kind of side of things right now, trying to make plans for what these next seven years look like. Sure. Hey, so it's fun, it's good things.

I'm so glad you said that. I'm kind of in a similar space because academy is doing really well and thriving and it's like, well, what's next? How do. How do I evolve as a coach, instructor, person? And so friend and I started a business called Playing through Performance and it's specifically for girls golf development and trying to not only it's locally offered, but also virtually and trying to get the girls to develop with like a team of professionals. Like, we're going to assess them on their physical performance, their mental performance, you know, their overall golf games and create like a cheat sheet. Like, here's something you can give to your coach, like, and then they can tack. You know, this is specifically like customized for you and, and your ins and outs. But that is kind of the premise of it. But we're thinking like on a much bigger scale, creating a network with some of the local women's business societ societies. We have like legs executive golf society and it's all like female professionals. And so I'm getting the girls, like you were saying, mentorship, community. Like, it's so important for the girls in development, even if inside and outside of golf, like connecting these girls with, oh, you want to be like a physical therapist? Okay, well, here's a successful physical therapist in our network. You know, here, here's an opportunity to. To get mentored and shadow and get your foot in the door and get these girls you to business opportunities at a young age. And so we're trying to create that pathway. Golf is kind of the glue that holds all of this together. But the bigger picture is how do we create you to be successful young women and, you know, future leaders. And so like, that's the idea of.

This and kind of have to just start and then it figure you figure it out. You. You continue to fine tune it. That's awesome. It sounds great. And I think there's definitely a need for more of that and this in the golf space. And I love that. It's, you know, girl focused. It's awesome. So, yeah, best of luck with that. Keep me posted. I'll be, I'll be watching and if I can help in any way, that'd be cool. So, yeah, let me know.

Yeah, absolutely. But, yeah, so, you know, going back to mentorship and, and community and having people who, like you said, rubbing shoulders with the right people, it's so important and I think for kids to know and understand that. Like, I remember growing up, people were saying that to me, like, like, you know, you gotta network. You gotta network. And like, it kind of went in one ear and out the other when I was younger. And now I really understand the importance of that. And so if you were gonna give some advice to juniors and, you know, I like to have my guests give advice to parents as well. There's a lot of parents who listen on the show. What advice would you give to them.

For golf or for just life? I don't know, whatever you want. Like, put your, just put yourself out there. I think you want to lead by example, right? It's not about being braggadocious, but you also have to let people know what you're doing. So if you're trying to get recruited for college, you have to mark, you have to like, you know, send the letters out and make a video and like, present yourself well. And I just think that when you meet people, you're always creating an impression. So what, who do you want, who do you want to present? Like, who are you? Be authentic. Be your authentic self. But also don't discount your best stuff. Like, put it out there. It's, it's, it's okay for every day not to be your best day. Sometimes we don't always feel like our super high energy self. But when, I'll say it this way, like, when the lights come on and when it's, when you're in the spotlight, like, let your light shine. You're like, you know, don't hold back. And, and don't. I guess there's this, like, balance between being humble and then also showing people what you got. I think that that finding that is, is maybe the secret sauce of, like, what really successful people do. But in this day and age of having a direct platform to the world, like, don't underutilize that too. I think a lot of parents get cautious on, like, oh, I don't know if I want my kid on social media too much. And, and, and, you know, yeah, there's A balance to everything in life. But in my opinion, it is such a huge tool and opportunity to show people who you are, tell people what you think, share ideas. And even if it's not like we talked about, just the idea of networking, getting to know people, the amount I've. The amount of people I've met virtually through social media, that social networking has been huge for my business, whether I've ever met them in person or not. Like, like starting to connect with people online, messaging them when an idea is, you know, you have common ground with somebody saying hey and, and figuring out when you might be able to connect in person, trying to collaborate with other people on an idea, a project, a video, something like, I just, I love people seeing. I love seeing people be creative. I love seeing people putting themselves out there because it's not comfortable always to do that. But then you get to show yourself to the world. And, and like I said, lead by, lead by example. But at the same time, like, don't hide what you've got and expect, expect recognition or expect somebody to, like, magically find you. It's not going to happen. Right. There's so many great coaches, and obviously in this conversation, that's what we're kind of talking about, but there's so many great coaches that nobody knows about. And if they're happy doing what they're doing and they're fulfilled, more power to them. But it's almost like a shame that more people don't know about some folks because they just never put themselves out there. So that's a choice. Yeah, some people like to be more private. Some people are happy with being in their little bubble and doing their thing in their routine. But I also feel like, you know, you're, you're also, you have a gift. Everybody has a gift that they, like, can give to the world. So what is that? And like, give it.

Yeah, absolutely. And, you know, I think there's probably some people out there that, you know, fear of failure and, you know, what if. And, and they're doubting and questioning. But like you said, even for like the kids with recruitment and stuff, it's crazy. Like, Instagram is now like a visual resume and the first college coach does is they plug in, you know, a kid's name and account and look up and they're going to be able to distinguish if a parent's running the account or if it's the kid. And obviously parents, you know, let's. If the kids have a social media account, let them be the ones to operate that, because I mean, you can sniff out when a parent's running the account and that that's not them recruited.

And, and that's a good life. It's a good lesson for them to learn is how do you run an account with good taste and the right way and learning to what to post. And you know, how realizing that what you post does live kind of endlessly out there on the Internet and people are going to see it and finally like how you're putting yourself out there, you don't have to, you know, paint this false picture of who you're trying to be, but you don't want to put stupid stuff out there either. Like, that is a lesson to be learned. But that's not just social media. That's life in general too.

Right.

You know how, how you show up to the job interview kind of thing. Are you going to wear jeans and a sweatshirt or are you going to like wear something nice and comb your hair? Like, I mean, that's like a choice too. But yeah, like you said, social media is an audition. It really is. And I look at it that way. I mean, I am very conscious of what I put out because based on who sees it, and it could be companies or new companies that want to work with me on a branding project or something, then how I do my videos matters because they're looking at it possibly going to hire me for something else in the future. So selfishly, like, yeah, I care about how things post and I'm cognizant of that because it is, it's like a constant audition. Yeah, absolutely.

And the kids, like, for college, I mean they have a lot of these bigger schools have people who are specifically hired just to troll the Internet and see what people are posting. So, you know, as much as you think you put it on a private this or somebody's not going to see it. Like, if you're in that space where you're looking to get recruited, you could definitely have to be really careful. But also at the same time, like you said, like, like you've got to kind of brand and market yourself as why you might be, you know, why you might be a good fit for a team or for a certain school and why you're recruitable. And so teaching kids these skills, like whether they realize it or not, you're, you're practicing for real life in the real world after it's, it's your first job interview, essentially college golf. And so, you know, that's, that's what you've got to prepare for it. Like it's a. It's a big deal.

Yep, exactly. Exactly. No, it's a good process to go through. Being a student athlete takes a lot of time management and, And a lot of discipline, and I just think that goes a long way if you have the opportunity to be part of a collegiate program or a really good high school program. I mean, it's a great, great life experience. And it's, it's not something you'll ever look back and regret that you did. Like, even if you only do it for a period of time, you're gonna be happy that you did it and that you tried it and that you put in the work and it doesn't matter. It really, it. It doesn't matter how you play. Of course it does, but it doesn't. Like, yeah, I, you know, I wasn't an all star in college, but I had this amazing experience, and, you know, it was great. It was, it was great to, To. To know that I did that and I got through it and I contributed a bit, you know, here and there to the team. It's okay. Like, you don't have to be number one, but it was. It's really cool to participate.

Yeah. Like you said, the experiences, the community, the network, it's. It's. You don't know in what ways it's going to keep setting you up for your future endeavors. And so it's just, you know, the, the good, the bad, the ugly, and everything in between. Like, there's a rhyme and a reason for it. So when you're there, just kind of look at it as a learning experience and, and enjoy it. And it's temporary, so don't take it for granted either.

Yes, exactly. Exactly.

Erica, this has been amazing. I know you are so busy, so I don't want to take up, you know, your whole day, but any last final words to the audience?

No, I really appreciate you having me on. Mo keep doing all the great things you're doing. I know you're. You're changing lives. You're changing golf lives. You're influencing people. That's a huge deal and in very positive ways. So great job on you and, you know, good luck with your girls program. For people out there watching again, if you're looking to follow up with me, just go to my name. Ericalarcin.com you'll find all the information you need and all the social links and all that stuff. But, yeah, I hope that if you're out there and you're struggling, you're feeling kind of bound up with your swing, if you're looking to move better, you know, check out my ideas. Hopefully I can help you too and meet you in person one day.

Yeah, this has been great and I really enjoyed not only today but meeting you in person and look forward to following you and seeing what you put out there.

So thank you. Thanks so much, Mo. Have a great day.

You got it. Thank you. All right, that concludes episode 10 of season two of the Coach Mo Golf Show. Thanks again to Erica Larin for being on the show. If you'd like to learn more about Erica, you can find her on her social media handles at Erica Larking Golf and her book is sold on Amazon as well as a couple other platforms and it's called A True Swing. If you'd like to learn more about me and the Coach Mo Golf show, you can find me on social media at Coachmo Golf Pro as well as my website, www.coachmogolfpro.com. thank you so much for tuning in and supporting the show. I have a great lineup of guests coming up, so be sure to check back in in the next couple of weeks to see who is up next. Thanks. We'll see you soon.