I love Robert Jan Golf and this guy is the most effective professional development and golf instruction coach in Illinois!!

As far as the actual lessons and instruction are concerned, Robert Jan seems to be very knowledgeable and can easily spot things to correct or tweak to better your golf game. In 3 lessons, he has helped to improve my grip, stance, and swing (backswing and follow through). HOWEVER, my experience was completely soured by his attitude and demeanor. The very first lesson was scheduled for a Thursday at 5pm. I left work early at 4 and according to the GPS I would arrive at 4:41pm with plenty of time to spare. However, I have not been out to Deerfield before and there was heavy traffic on the freeway and the roads leading to the club. I parked my car at 5:05 and quickly walked over to the range. At exactly 5:08 I passed a gentleman in a blue shirt driving away from the range in a golf cart. Not knowing where to meet (there were no signs or previous instructions) I asked the lady at the range office and she told me that Mr. Jan is usually at the end of the range teaching, but she had not seen him, so she told me to wait at the entrance with her and another staff member. We waited until about 5:25 and still did not see him, and were becoming concerned. The staff commented that "he's usually only 5-10 min late, so this is strange". I then saw the same gentleman from before come up from the opposite side this time and parked at the end of the range. I asked if that was Mr. Jan and at first the staff said no, but then a minute later said they thought it was. So I walked over and introduced myself, apologized for being late, and tried to quickly explain the mix-up - but I barely got through my first sentence. When I mentioned that I actually passed right by him at 5:08 not knowing it was him (no name tag or clothing to indicate anyone working there), to my surprise, Mr. Jan immediately cut me off and told me "no you didn't, no way" and that I was wrong and was much later that that. He said he waited until 5:15 before leaving (absolutely untrue), and that I was lucky he even came back, implying he would normally take off in case a student was late. I again apologized for being late but he continued to berate me for being tardy, saying that other professionals charge $160/lesson and that students wouldn't dare to be late. He questioned why I did not call or text or e-mail - I tried to explain that I was driving and trying to find the place, but he did not want to hear it. At this point it was 5:30 and he told me I have until 6pm so "do you want to hit some balls or what?". I just shut my mouth and went through the half hour lesson instead of the full hour I paid for. After the lesson I apologized again and promised that I would not be late again, now that I know where the club was and the traffic conditions. My 2nd lesson was the following Tuesday at 3pm. I left extra early this time and arrived at the range (where we met last time) at 2:41pm exactly. I waited until 3:05 but no one showed up. I walked to the pro shop and they told me no one had seen Mr. Jan that day and to just wait at the range. I waited at the range until 3:20 and went back to the pro shop again to ask for Mr. Jan's phone number. I called (no answer) and left a voicemail saying I would be heading back to work shortly. A few minutes later I received a text message from a different number saying he was with a client and would be there in 2 minutes. After confirming that was in fact Mr. Jan I went back to the range. Around 3:25 Mr. Jan showed up the range and acted as if nothing happened - no apology at all. I was shocked that the previous week he was so upset I was 8 minutes late, yet he was almost a half hour late this time (and since I was early, I waited almost 50 minutes total). He did say he tried to call me but it must have been my father's number since he bought the Groupon for me. I later asked my father and he confirmed he did not receive any phone calls. Although we started at almost 3:30, the lesson ended before 4:20 (again less than the full 1 hour), and Mr. Jan was frequently checking his cell phone while I hit the practice balls by myself. My 3rd lesson was the following Tuesday, again at 3pm. I arrived even earlier this time at 2:38pm. I thought to myself there is no way this guy will be late again this time. But sure enough, ​Mr. Jan did not show up until 3:07pm - again, no apology and no explanation! I was bewildered. I really should have said something, but I am not the confrontational type and went through the lesson and thanked him for his time. When I was scolded for being late the first lesson, I thought to myself "boy, this guy is a true professional, and will not tolerate tardiness" and I can definitely respect that - after all, his time must be very valuable. So I made it a point to be on time - in fact, VERY early from then on. Unfortunately, it turns out that Mr. Jan is consistently late to his lessons (if the staffs' comments are any indication) and he is an obvious hypocrite. For that reason alone, I will not be back. read more