Bethlehem golf pro Eric Cogorno soon expects to be giving lessons via virtual reality, either from the golf course or the driving range or his living room. When that happens, Cogorno will be prepared.
“There’s nothing leading me to believe that the in-person golf lesson is going to get more and more popular in the future,” Cogorno said. “In fact, it’s all working away from that. In golf, like everything else, it’s adapt or stay where you are.”
Cogorno, a 29-year-old assistant pro at Bethlehem Golf Club, has begun branding himself in the world of online video lessons and virtual golf, where professionals can reach millions of frustrated players with a sound swing tip and the right search terminology.
His brand, Eric Cogorno Golf, includes a 17-month-old YouTube channel on which the Nazareth High and Lehigh University graduate delivers video lessons for a broad range of players. The channel is nearing 10,000 subscribers and carries a distinct style of clear language and simplified concepts.
The channel has led to additional platforms. Recently, Cogorno spent two days at Woodstone Golf Club shooting a series of about 50 short video lessons for Performance Golf Zone, a Florida-based company that delivers online instruction and golf training. The videos will be available as part of an instructional series this fall.
Though he still gives hourly one-on-one lessons, Cogorno sees a different future for golf instruction. Through his video series, and a planned subscription website onto which players will be able to upload their swings for analysis, Cogorno expects his teaching business to shift from the personal to the virtual.
The YouTube channel has advanced that process. Viewers have clicked on the channel from 193 locations across the world, and some have become clients. Cogorno has given lessons to players he met through the channel, some who have driven from New York or flown from Florida for a swing look.
Cogorno estimates that his online presence generates about 25 percent of his in-person lessons. In five years, he expects that number to be 90 percent.
“People are geting less and less scared of online lessons,” said Cogorno, who teaches at Bethlehem Golf Club and Phillipsburg’s Infini-Tee Golf Center. “We can record a couple of swings and figure out what they need to practice from the comfort of their home or on the course. It’s more efficient, time-wise.”
Cogorno began the channel Jan. 1, 2017, initially seeking to reach a broader audience with his instruction. The camera-operator was (and still is) Mary Lengle, a Bethlehem native and public relations specialist who took golf lessons from Cogorno.
The channel initially offered videos of Cogorno giving instruction (often to some of the better young Lehigh Valley players), then sharpened its focus to highlight Cogorno speaking directly to the camera. The lessons cover a range of topics, from fixing hooks and slices to chipping more consistently to reading greens.
Cogorno also delves into some advanced ideas, such as creating swing lag and compressing irons. On Masters Sunday, Cogorno made a video assessing winner Patrick Reed’s swing that proved popular. He hopes to do the same after each major this season.
Video views grew gradually, with one in February 2017 (“The Myth of the Magical Swing Feel”) being the first to top 1,000 views. Cogorno has developed a following sparked by positive commentary, and several clips have topped 20,000 views. The channel now grows by 100-150 subscribers per day.
“I looked at Eric from my PR background and I saw him as America’s golf teacher,” Lengle said. “People say, ‘I want to play this game, I want to enjoy this game, but what am I doing wrong?’ They’re frustrated. He has the capacity to take some of these golf concepts, which can be mind-numbing, and explain them in a way that you can understand.”
Following the YouTube channel’s growth, Cogorno is building a membership website through which he can teach virtual lessons to golfers worldwide. He wants the content to be applicable to golfers of every age and skill set.
Cogorno doesn’t necessarily want to be a television golf personality. Instead, he’s looking to channel his instruction into the digital age.
“The goal is to scale everything to say, ‘How can I help as many golfers around the world as possible?'” Cogorno said. “I definitely think that, in a couple years, I’ll be wearing a virtual-reality headset, giving a lesson to someone halfway around the world. When that happens, I want to be in position to be one of the first people to take advantage of it.”
mwogenrich@mcall.com
Twitter @MarkWogenrich
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