Golf mind coach Sean Lynch ‘manipulated girl’ before engaging in indecent acts, court heard

Sean Lynch is accused of using the skills once shared with a number 1 golfer in the world to manipulate a girl.

Sean Patrick Lynch teamed up with the world’s former No. 1 golfer, Jason Day, and earned a reputation as a successful mind coach.

But Lynch also used skills he once shared with ex-PGA Championship winner Day to manipulate a girl after allegedly molesting her, a Brisbane court has heard.

Lynch, 68, is accused of taking care of a girl before committing multiple indecent acts with the ‘gifted’ junior golfer from April 2017 to December 2019.

Lynch exchanged text messages and phone calls with the girl, engaged in “dirty talk” and showed her pornography, Crown Prosecutor Chris Cook said.

The golf mentor also sent indecent photos of himself and demanded something in return before engaging in physical acts with a “vulnerable young girl,” the court heard.

Mr Cook said Lynch convinced the girl not to talk about their “secret relationship” with anyone, including her own family.

During one alleged incident, Lynch also told her that “it would help her play golf so much,” he said.

“He’s a successful mind coach (with) Jason Day, all these people we’ve heard about,” said Mr. Cook.

“He was able to manipulate the mind of (the girl) not to tell her family about it.

“She didn’t say anything because she trusted that everything Mr. Lynch did was in her best interest.”

Even when she confided in someone, the girl was too scared to reveal too much, Mr Cook said.

He cited evidence from a junior golfer who asked the girl if she should hire Lynch as a mind coach at the end of 2019.

“No, he’s an untrustworthy old man,” the girl said in the evidence read in court.

‘Why?’ the young golfer asked.

“Because he was bothering me,” the girl replied.

The girl later told police she didn’t want to tell the junior golfer too much “because I was just scared.”

The girl spent 12 months on and off with Lynch from March 2018, the court heard.

But she cut her contact from May 2019 and even blocked Lynch’s number on her phone after she “watched something on television.”

“They (TV show) were talking about people being cared for,” the girl said as evidence read to the court.

“That’s the first time I really thought . . . that sounds exactly like what Sean did to me — I’ve cut off all contact.”

Mr Lynch has worked with people like the world’s former No. 1 golfer Jason Day (pictured, left)

Defense attorney Tony Kimmins said some charges were based on the girl’s generalizations targeting her “hazy” memory.

The girl’s police interrogation was ‘all over the place, it was very difficult to follow’.

Mr Kimmins said the girl also looked like she was trying to think of something else to say in the police interrogation shown to the jury.

“On a number of occasions she has half a smile on her face (and) stops as if she is in some kind of trance,” he said.

“It’s not like anyone remembers what happened.”

Lynch pleaded not guilty to 11 charges, including indecent treatment of a child under the age of 16, possession of child exploitation material and grooming.

The trial for Judge Vicki Loury continues.