Karl Worby explaining the intricacies of golf

Sport – and golf in particular – has always been at the heart of Karl Worby’s life.

Born in Swaffham, near King’s Lynn, in Norfolk, he first took up the game aged 10 under the persuasion of his Sunday League football coach, who was also greenkeeper at nearby Swaffham Golf Club.

Within a year he was shooting under 100 and he got his first handicap – an amazing 26 – at just 11.

By 14 he was off a one-handicap and by 15 he was off scratch. His professional status came a year later and after a three-year apprenticeship at Dereham Golf Club as assistant professional, he qualified as an official golfing pro at 19. He was, at the time, one of the youngest professionals in the country, as he explains.

“Most people don’t turn professional until 19 and then they are 21 or 22 when they finish their apprenticeships,” he explains as we wander down Skidby Lakes’ 18th hole.

“I was determined to qualify before I was 21 and as it stands now I’ve been qualified for 26 years which is something I’m very proud of.”

A move to the nearby Eagles Golf Centre, in Kings Lynn, followed Karl's apprenticeship but it was not until 1994 that he moved to East Yorkshire and the beautifully-designed and welcoming Cave Castle Golf Club.

Karl said: “Cave Castle had some of the most friendly members I’ve ever met and I worked there happily for six years.

“It was in 1999 that I moved to Skidby Lakes and I helped out with a lot of group coaching until the course opened in 2000 and the members joined.”

In the ensuing years, Karl – who has helped coach hundreds of people over his career – helped build up the course to the fantastic condition it is in today (for a review of the course, see our golfing section of the website).

But teaching has always been close to his heart and, as he begins his Golf Guru role for The Journal, he says there is one area in particular that people have to focus on during their rounds.

“Concentration is everything,” he says. “A lot of the higher handicappers struggle with this but it’s an essential aspect of the game.”

If you want to learn more about the techniques involved in golf, go back to the menu.

Click here for more from Karl Worby on the game of golf