Q&A w/Tathata Golf Founder Bryan Hepler

Growing up in Wenatchee, WA (Central Washington), I fell in love with the game of golf at a young age. After a successful junior career, I ended up getting the chance to play for a national championship winning Wake Forest team and went on to more than 30 years of learning from the greatest golf instructors, martial art teachers and spiritual masters across the world. Now 48, and a residence of Scottsdale, AZ for the last 20 years, these teachings have culminated into the realization of a childhood dream with the introduction of Tathata Golf in 2010 and it’s ultimate launch in 2015.

 

1). What separates Tathata from others teaching golf today?

Tathata Golf differs from typical golf teachings today in almost every way. Tathata Golf offers:

1) a completely new way to learn and train through movement training at home

2) a completely new set of fundamentals based on the movements of the greatest golfers and athletes of all-time

3) the introduction of 2,500 year-old martial art mental training practices and principles as well as timeless movement and striking truths

4) all delivered through one of the most thorough and structured mind, body and swing learning and training curriculums in the game of golf.

 

2). You wake up in the morning – what drives you professionally?

There is a burning passion at the front of our hearts to spark and help sustain the largest period of growth the game has seen over the next 10-15 years through better golf. It is for the betterment and prosperity of all current and new golfers, professionals, courses/clubs, companies/organizations and associations that relentlessly drives us in all that we do and to become a worldwide leader in golf learning, training and education. With contact sports losing favor and golf being introduced to the global stage in the Olympics, the sport as a whole has one of the biggest opportunities for growth it has nearly ever seen.

 

3). Is it fair to say the bulk of teaching done today is simply nothing more than Band-Aid remedies and therefore little real opportunity for overall improvement in one’s game?

A sound and effective golf swing is a combination of many different movements that dynamically come together in synchronicity and harmony. Typical golf lessons today do tend to be based on quick fixes and random tips with no place for student’s learning to start and eventually end while learning all that is needed. It is a lack of curriculum and structured pathway of learning that has lead to golf being taught in this way.

Tathata Golf introduces a 60-day, 6-chapter (1 | Body, 2 | Hands & Arms, 3 | Pressure & Impact, 4 | Speed & Strength, 5 | Short Game & Putting, 6 | Shape & Trajectory), structured curriculum to build every part of every golf motion that is helping to shift this pattern in instruction and support teachers and golfers across the world.

 

4). Define the word “progress” when student and teacher are engaged?

Progress is a word often associated with seeking something other than what currently is. As inspiring as the quest for progress can be, it can also lead to years of frustration and a never-ending lack of satisfaction that can ultimately lead even the most passionate golfer to give up the game. It is the purpose of Tathata Golf to help all who come answer every question about every part of every golfing motion so that they are “trained.” Rapid and sustained “progress” is obviously a by-product of this form of learning/training but with this the unending pursuit of progress is softly quieted. Once someone is trained in all of the fundamentals of driving a car, they simply get to look out in front and enjoy driving.

 

5). What’s the biggest myth in golf instruction?

The influence of how the body moves and its affect throughout all golf motions is one of the most overlooked aspects in teaching today. If we simply train the body to move efficiently the whole motion of the golf swing reacts with it. It’s as if we forgot how to move and create pressure, which builds speed and strength to support the shape and trajectory we envision the ball to travel on. We in the industry have simply forgotten over time, to allow golfers to move and react with a golf shot like a child at play. As Brandel Chamblee likes to say “What he (Bryan/Tathata Golf) is doing is correcting golf instruction, bringing it back to its truest form.” Brandel understands these movements were always there for us to see, we just didn’t know what to look for until now.

 

6). People are under severe time constraints through daily life — how does Tathata and your overall program deal with this day-to-day reality?

Tathata Golf offers an In-Home 60-Day Training Program. Each day of training is roughly 45-60 minutes in duration and students can move through the program at a pace that is right for them and their schedules; the effectiveness of the training doesn’t change.  There is no need to visit a golf course and no need for expensive golf equipment for golfers and newcomers to the sport everywhere to build world-class golfing motions in the comfort of their own home in just days and weeks rather than months and years.

 

7). Golf is experiencing a drop in total players playing the game. What do you see being key in turning that around?

What are always encouraging to take note of are the 327 other courses in planning and 269 others currently being built around the world (as per the R&A ‘s Golf Around the World 2015 publication). While this can be a sign of the passion and enthusiasm still shared by so many for this great game, golf is in real danger of missing out on entire generations of future golfers as the current golfing demographic continues to age and many leave the game as they struggle to improve.

A potential catalyst for turning this pattern around and sparking the sustained growth of the entire industry over the next several years, would be offering golfers and newcomers a way to play the game at a dramatically higher level than what we currently see today.  Current golfers would play and enjoy the game more while newcomers could learn to excel at the game in days and weeks rather than years. This is what led us to the creation of Tathata Golf and the world’s first 60-Day Program we offer today.

 

8). Best advice you ever got was what and from whom?

From an early age my parents taught me to seek the advice of the best teachers in the world and work with them personally whenever possible. I applied this thinking to several different authors I liked and different golfers and instructors I revered. This turned into a passion and led me to work with several of the top golf instructors, martial art senseis and spiritual leaders across the world over the last 30 years. It is this high level of expertise and teachings from several different disciplines that combines together and is delivered through Tathata Golf’s practices and principle and the world’s first 60-Day In-Home Golf Training Program.

 

9). If you could change one thing in golf what would it be?

The level that golf is played at around the world. With contact sports beginning to lose favor and golf being introduced back to the global stage for the first time in more than 100 years, the game has a window of opportunity to capture the attention of individuals around the world or fear missing out on entire generations of future players. At Tathata Golf, we are driving by a passion at the front of our hearts to make this game radically easier to learn, play and excel at for all who come. With this, the entire sport is poised for an unprecedented period of dramatic and sustainable growth far beyond what we even saw during the “Tiger-boom.”

Tathata Golf is proud to announce a three-year partnership with the American Junior Golf Association as the preferred Golf Training Program of the AJGA and partner of the ACDS Junior All-Star Series.

The AJGA is dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. With more than 6,600 members from all 50 states and 55 different countries the AJGA is a leader in the fostering growth of golf’s next generation.

“It is an honor to establish a long-term relationship with the AJGA,” said Bryan Hepler, founder of Tathata Golf. “To look at the future of our sport and help train and develop the best junior golfers all over the world is very rewarding.”

Tathata Golf will provide a special discount for it’s 60-Day Training Program that students can do from their home, gym or hotel while on the road.

“The AJGA does such a great job preparing these juniors for college and life, and we are grateful to be able to come alongside them and be part of that preparation,” said Hepler. “Not only do we look forward to hosting tournaments with the AJGA but also hosting unique junior golf schools at the Tathata Training Center in Scottsdale during their winter and summer breaks from school.”

Tathata Golf will serve as the Title Sponsor of the Tathata Golf Junior All-Star Championship at El Conquistador Golf & Tennis on the Canada course, Jan. 13-16, in Oro Valley, Arizona. This tournament will be the first of 16 ACDS Junior All-Start Series events Tathata Golf will support in 2017.

“The AJGA is excited to bring Tathata Golf in as our preferred Golf Training Program,” said Jason Etzen, AJGA chief business officer. “The unique training program that Tathata Golf offers will bring a new benefit to our members.”

Headquartered in Scottsdale, AZ, Tathata Golf is already revolutionizing the way golf is taught and played worldwide. With over 110,000 hours of learning and training consumed by students in their first 15 months, the 60-Day In-Home Training Program has been met with rave reviews from students and several of the most well-known and well-respected individuals and organization throughout the industry.

The 60-Day Program combines timeless martial art movement and striking principles with the movements of the world’s greatest golfers and athletes of all-time. Provided through a structured curriculum of learning and training, students of all ages, body types and ability levels are improving at paces rarely ever seen in the game.

About the AJGA
The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls, ages 12-19) of more than 6,600 members from 50 states and 55 foreign countries. Through initiatives like the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant, a financial assistance program, and Leadership Links, a service-oriented platform that teaches juniors charitable-giving skills, the AJGA fosters the growth of golf’s next generation.
TaylorMade-adidas Golf became the AJGA’s National Sponsor in 2016 after more than 25 years of support. Rolex, which is in its fourth decade of AJGA sponsorship, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004. In 2007, after 12 years of support, Ralph Lauren became the AJGA’s second Premier Partner.
AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 600 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Bubba Watson, Webb Simpson, Sergio Garcia, Hunter Mahan, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, Zach Johnson, Justin Thomas, Stacy Lewis, Ariya Jutanugarn , Alison Lee, Lexi Thompson, Inbee Park, Paula Creamer, Brittany Lincicome, Cristie Kerr and Morgan Pressel.

About Tathata Golf
Headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, and founded in 2010, Tathata Golf provides golfers with a unique new and enjoyable way to learn and improve at golf quickly. Tathata Golf has unprecedented support and strength from industry leading individuals and organizations in the game of golf.

The company has been strategically developing the Tathata brand, products, facilities and logistics to offer a unique and innovative Mind, Body, Swing and Life line of training products. The practices and principles of Tathata Golf bring together this training in a simple, but revolutionary new way, combining the timeless teachings of martial arts and the movements of some of the world’s greatest golfers and athletes. Tathata Golf offers a variety of training options online, in-home and live in-person and has delivered more than 100,000 hours (50 years of golf lessons) in their first year.

For more information, visit TathataGolf.com