Players selected in Golf SA&aposs High Performance program have hit the sand dunes at West Beach this week, as part of the squads intensive first training camp under newly appointed state coach Gareth Jones. The new SA High Performance program is being supported by Golf Australia as part of a nationally coordinated high performance pathway designed to identify and nurture the next generation of golfing talent. Jones, the Adelaide Shores based professional, who had previously worked in the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) golf program and also acts as SA state teams coach, forms part of a national panel of six state-based coaches who will oversee and implement their respective state high performance programs. “My role involves identifying a group of players who we think are going to benefit from being in a program that targets the technical, physical and mental aspects of their game,” says Jones. “We need to identify players that we think are worth investing in and inevitably there may be some drop outs and fresh additions to the squad along the way. “The idea is to get the players more accountable to their training and they will be expected to turn up to all scheduled sessions whether it it be physio, fitness conditioning or our organised camps. “I will also be responsible for working with the players&apos own coaches, and providing those coaches with additional tools to assist each players development,” he said. The nine squad players attending this week&aposs camp had the additional benefit of drawing on the experience of SA tour professionals Adam Bland and Peter Cooke, who joined the squad at Adelaide Shores for both the technical and conditioning sessions over the last couple of days. “I think the players have really enjoyed having Adam and Peter along to the camp and this is something which we will try to continue throughout the year when the boys are available,” said Jones. The inaugural two-day camp also utilised the skills of two of golf&aposs highest profile coaches, with 3D biomechanical swing expert Ryan Lumsden and conditioning guru Ramsey McMaster travelling to Adelaide from Melbourne for the two-day camp. McMaster&aposs conditioning sessions proved the most challenging, with squad members performing a tough range of fitness drills across the soft sands of West Beach. Jones said that data gathered from Lumsden&aposs video-based swing analysis and McMaster&aposs fitness drills would prove vital in assessing players&apos progress going forward. “We will try to implement a plan over the next few months for the players to improve both physically and mentally and we will test them again in a few months to monitor that progress,” said Jones. As part of their ongoing program, squad members will be able to utilise the services of Unley-based physio Greg Rosenbauer and SA Sports Institute strength and conditioning coach Michael Riggs. In addition to the ongoing training programs, Jones indicated that further squad camps would be held in May and October. Golf SA High Performance squad: Max McCardle (Flagstaff Hill) Anthony Murdaca (The Grange) Jenny Lee (Glenelg) Zac Fuller (Tea Tree Gully) Emma Ash (Kooyonga) Sarah King (Royal Adelaide) Daniel Spears (Kooyonga) Brad Moules (Royal Adelaide) Charles Shaw (Kooyonga)
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