The wow factor in coaching: transporting the learner with C.A.R.E.

Abstract

The paper is a typology of three elite level golf coaches, presented in a storied format using a creative nonfiction approach. The stories are based upon data collected through observations and interviews over the course of a year. In order to further decontextualize [protect] the subjects and aid generalization to support coach learning, a second layer of analysis was performed. Some caricatures emerged from the data and were developed using a transport metaphor to demonstrate how each coach impacted upon their players’ sporting journey. The interviews highlight many commonly held assumptions about professional practices in sports coaching that warrant further critique by anyone wishing to bear influence in the player development domain. Finally, we present a CARE framework which, keeping to the metaphor, will help each coach to build a better E-CAR.