Golf essentials: a pair of sneakers and a good attitude

BILLERICA -- Over the 32 years he's been in the business of helping people find their golf swing, Barrie Bruce has maintained a simple motto: "A Pair of Sneakers and a Good Attitude." With those two things, and a set of golf clubs, Bruce believes anyone can succeed (though "succeed' can be an optimistic term for some people, he notes) at the game that has been at the center of his life.

The 62-year-old Bruce, who hails from Beverly and now lives in Westford, has called the golf course his office since he was named the head pro at the Country Club of Billerica in 1972. Twenty years ago, he started the Barrie Bruce Golf School on the grounds of the club, where he has taught hundreds of golfers how to not only minimize their strokes through 18 holes, but at the same time enjoy the challenges the game offers.

Bruce was recently rewarded for his efforts when the New England PGA named him the Teacher of the Year for 2004. The former collegiate All-American will accept the award at a ceremony this fall.

"It's a humbling experience to be given the award," Bruce said last week during a short break from helping one of his students master the short game. "And it wouldn't be possible if not for the work of my staff."

Bruce, whose easygoing personality seems just right for his line of work, has racked up many personal accolades over the years. Along with his college exploits at Tufts University, he was the New England collegiate champion in 1962. Bruce won the 1967 Massachusetts Open and still wears a wristwatch that he won at a father-son tournament in 1949.

Bruce has seen it all during his time on the practice range. He has witnessed first-timers trying to figure out why they slice the ball so frequently, and he has coached the gifted, including Geoff Sisk, who competed in this year's US Open.

So when he talks about the difference between a good golfer and a weekend hacker, it's best to sit back and listen.

"The thing that separates people that play well from people that don't is the mental attitude toward learning, and I've always felt that way," he said. "I was in public school education -- eighth-grade math -- for 20 years in [Billerica], and it was more teaching an attitude in how to learn and being able to convince kids that they were capable of learning. And it's the same thing out here."

Bruce too often has seen someone slam a club or mutter one of those not-for-TV words after a poor shot. And he can't understand why. The game of golf is difficult, as he'll be the first one to say. It's better to forget the poor shots and learn from the good ones.

"I've always said it's an extremely precise skill played by imperfect machines called humans, and that's why it's tough," he said. "And yet on the other hand, that's where the satisfaction is because it's so difficult when you do hit a good golf shot there's a tremendous feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction."

Bruce has seen people grip the club too tightly. And he has seen players bring only their drivers to the practice range, whacking ball after ball as far as they can while not paying attention to the little things that make someone an all-around player.

He stresses three statistics -- fairways hit from the tee, greens hit in regulation, and number of strokes around the green -- that each golfer should keep track of during a round.

"Most golfers, from a physical standpoint, put too much emphasis on distance and not enough on consistency," he said. "The mature golfer is one who is very consistent in their shot making, no matter what level of distance they can hit it, and has a good short game. That's what separates a really good player from a beginning golfer."

Most important, according to Bruce, a golfer doesn't have to buy the most expensive clubs; a person just has to put in the time on the practice range to become a good golfer.

"I've always said to people you can't go buy a good golf game," Bruce said. "And there is no equipment out there that is going to transform you into a terrific golfer, unless you have the proper fundamentals."

Bruce also likes to remind people that this game is supposed to be fun, so they should stop getting so frustrated.

"I try to tell people that this is an escape, this is an escape away from the family and the business, where there's enough stress in our lives," he said. "This is something that should be fun to do and relaxing to do and allow you to get away for three or four hours."

Andy Nesbitt can be reached at anesbitt@globe.com.