8yr Old Daughter Showing Incredible Potential - What Next?

Question

Hi there,

My 8yr old daughter is showing exceptional potential in golf with the most beautiful swing and consistent ball striking. She has been professionally trained by a local PGA pro who has suggested I should write to some of the golf organisations and major golf equipment suppliers. I'm not looking to benefit in any way from her potential, rather see her make the most of the talent she has and decide for herself if golf may be something she wants to pursue. Does anyone have any ideas what I should do? I am a 4 handicap (ex ***. pro), but don't feel I have the necessary experience to help her make the decision and / or know the best route to take. Thanks for any help you can offer.

Answer 1

Get her playing in some junior tournaments, see how she does with competition.  If she likes it, she'll do well, just continue to nurture the abilities. Could be the next Alexis Thompson...

Answer 2

My husband plays at your level. My son showed promise, but was burned out by 13 years old. :( Now he won't touch a golf club unless bribed, and he is 16. We had looked forward to him playing in HS team golf and maybe to a scholarship, but oh, well.

Get her involved in Jr. tournaments at your local courses. Do NOT try to teach her yourself. Leave that to the pros and coaches. Ask the course pro what he/she thinks is the proper steps for her. Take it real slow. Sponsorships can come later. Once she gets written up in the local paper, scouts and higher coaches will look for you.

When you play with her, let her play with you. WITH you, not for you. Nice mommy/daddy/daughter time. (You didn't give your gender) Leave your comments to her coaches/teachers, unless she totally breaks a rule of etiquette or something like that.

Good Luck! :)

Answer 3

The trick is introducing things like tournaments and competitions to her without her feeling like she is being pushed into anything.  I played junior tournaments for 6 years and I loved every minute of it because I knew that it was my choice to play and it was something that I lvoed to do.  My grandpa would drive me to them and critique my swing when I asked him to, but he never made it feel like I had to do anything or listen to him about my game.  A lot of kids end up feeling forced to play a sport and find themselves hating it in the end.  

Like everyone else said, look into some tournaments in your area, but then tell her about them and ask her what SHE thinks and if SHE would like to play in them or not.  Don't sign her up for anything that she isn't 100% enthusiastic about or you'll end up burning her out on the game.

Also, make sure she takes time away from golf to be a kid.  That's one mistake I made.  Golf forces you to be mature and responsible, which is a good thing, but it can also lead to growing up too fast.  She's 8 years old, make sure she still has sleepovers and acts in school plays or whatever 8 year old girls do.  Little kids need to be little kids.  Give her that and tell her that you will open the doors to the golf world ONLY if she wants them opened.

Good luck!

Answer 4

My 14yo daughter started playing golf when she was 8 (I used to take her with me to golf since she was 5). For the first couple of years I let her do her own thing with the other juniors at our club. Once she decided that she wanted to get better and take it a bit more seriously then I organised lessons for her with a local pro. In the last 3 years, she has gone from a 28 down to a 4, and is representing our club and also on the development squad for our province. I am off a 5 handicap myself, but I know I am not the right person to teach her. I waited for her to start enjoying the game before spending money on good equipment and lessons (she has much better gear than me and I am looking forward to her hand-me-downs).

If you can, approach some local businesses or golf equipment manufacturers about sponsorship - either in the form of gear or finance. Try and get her interested in tournament golf, and if she starts doing well, then you will have no problems with sponsors. Make sure she belongs to a club and has an official handicap.

Other than that, go out and show her how to have fun playing golf - otherwise she will get burnt out quickly. BUT do not push her.

Good Luck

Answer 5

Hopefully she'll be the next 13 year old Michelle Wie, not the one you see today.

You should let her decide what to do.