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Cindy Reid and her all-star cast of teaching professionals.[Cindy Reid Academy]
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By David Ferguson
Cindy Reid is acknowledged World's No. 1 Female Golf Instructor, and the knowledge and expertise she has garnered over 25 years in the golf industry would see off many of her male counterparts too. At the Mission Hills Golf Academy by Cindy Reid she has committed to bringing the benefits of a career in playing and coaching golf to a new Chinese clientele.
As the former director of instruction at the PGA TOUR's TPC Sawgrass, Reid had the opportunity to work with several professional golfers including Vijay Singh, Jim Furyk, Fred Funk, Davis Love, Tom Kite, Sophie Gustafson, Deb Richard, Rocco Mediate and many many more. For ten years now she has worked with the US Golf Channel, and has also provided on-air playing tips for CBS Sports, USA Network and NBC Sports.
Her golf tips are featured widely in golf magazines across the world, and she has authored several golf instructional books including, Cindy Reid's Ultimate Guide to Golf for Women and Get Yourself in Golf Shape which was foreworded by Vijay Singh.
Reid has been selected as the Honorary Coach for the China – Hong Kong Executive Women's Golf Association for the next 3 years.
She started her career in golf as a player, spending 6 years on the US LPGA Tour and 3 on the Japanese Tour. She won three professional tournaments, but increasingly found herself drawn to the coaching side: "As a player, the only way to succeed at the highest level is to be very self-centered. I'm more of a giver, and I found that I wanted to share my knowledge and experience with others," she says.
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Reid in action at Mission Hills.[Cindy Reid Academy]
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She has been in China for six years. In 2007, Tenniel Chu, head of the family who launched and who own the Mission Hills complex, invited Reid to come to China and establish the Mission Hills Academy. At first she was hesitant about the prospect – reluctant to leave an established business with over 5000 clients in the West. Now, she is glad to have taken the plunge.
"I'm happy I made the decision," she says. "There is a huge opportunity to grow the game here – the market has barely started." But unlike many would-be entrepreneurs who come to China from the West, she is sensible enough to recognize that China is not a "money tree". "Some people think you can simply walk into China and make a lot of money. That's just not true. It takes time and hard work to establish a business here."
