If your child can sink putts with ease when playing with a toy mini golf set, you might be tempted to rush to enroll her in formal training. Developing golf skills in a child, however, most often begins with instilling a love of the game and letting the formal technical training fall into place later. While your child might ultimately benefit from golf training, you first should be sure the timing and type of instruction are correct.
Developing Interest
Golf Digest's John Elliott Jr. suggests taking small kids to the course and making it more about having fun rather than learning rudimentary basics such as how to grip the club properly. At this point, you should keep lessons short -- 30 minutes, tops -- and let the child dictate what you teach. Don't dwell on aspects of the game if the child is losing interest. Look for things to praise, and avoid criticism. At times, you might want to take a break from the game to play catch with a golf ball or draw faces on them, according to Elliott. The key is to make the golf course a place the child associates with having fun.
Considerations
Dave Castleberry, head professional at Cedarcrest Golf Course in Marysville, Washington, cautions against putting your kids into formal golf lessons too young. While size and strength are not critical to young golfers, children should at least have the ability to grip a club securely and maintain balance when swinging. In fact, Castleberry suggests not enrolling kids into golf lessons until they ask for them. Even if you sense great golfing potential in your kids, they will not lose anything from learning from you instead of a professional right away, nor should you worry about your kids picking up any of your bad golfing habits at this point, he said.
Lessons
Once your child is ready, you can find golf lessons for your child at your local private and public golf clubs. Find golf lessons that teach the gamut of golf skills: not just the swing, but putting skills, chipping and the use of irons. Courses also should teach etiquette and safety. You should prepare your kids before their lessons with some simple stretches and hitting a few balls at the driving range. You might want to attend the first few lessons to be sure the instructor is making it fun for the kids. Finding a friend to enroll alongside your child enhances the fun aspect and might encourage a longer commitment.
Potential
You should calibrate your expectations once your child begins golf training. Even if your child seems to develop golf skills easily, the chances of him becoming the next Tiger Woods are remote. College golf recruiters regularly see numerous players in their early teens who can drive a ball more than 300 yards and earn scores in the low 60s, according to Castleberry. Additionally, pushing too hard might turn your child off the game. Even if your child is not becoming the next phenom, he still is reaping the benefits of having regular outdoor activity, meeting new friends through lessons and tournaments, and perhaps even earning a college scholarship someday.
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