age

To become really good at golf, such as being below scratch, do you need to have played when you were young or not. Are their any reasonably well known pro's who didn't start golf until their 20's.

I don't think age really as that much to do with it. I did't start until I was 15 and the other day I played with a 15 year old who was playing off 5 in only 2 years. Many people would kill for something like that, what counts is how enthusiastic you are.

I reckon it's mainly down to the amount of time you have available and how good a relationship you have with your teaching pro. As you get older, though, you may get less flexible which can make it harder to learn and you'll probably be a little more stuborn in your mental attitude too, all of which can hamper your progress.

Being in your 20s is not too late ... maybe if you're planning to be world champion it is, but there's no reason you can't hit scratch. Getting a tour card is going to be slightly harder however. I love playing the game and though I play to a reasonable standard (3 at the moment) it's unlikely I'll make it into the big time but I don't let that worry me too much.

Paul

Hi hooperd,

As far as I am concerned, there is no reason why you couldn't become a scratch or better golf if starting at a later age. I have a friend who is a golf pro who started golf when he was 17. By the time he was 20 he had his RCGA card (Canadian pro card). I, on the otherhand, started goolf at the age of 10 and 16 years later I am finally playing down to an 8. Bottom line, as far as I concerned, if you can excel at other sports you can excel at golf. It just takes a lot more practice. I know lots of people who are excellent athletes, but get really frusterated golfing because the figure they can just pick up clubs and be really good. Golf RARELY works that way. There are a few exceptions, but those people are few and far between.

As for my comment about being an exceptional athlete to begin with, that is not always true either, but it sure doesn't hurt. Look at Phil Mickelson. He is having a tryout with the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens tomorrow (Friday) and they are serious about starting him in a game.

Just go out and have fun. If you are lucky enough to end up with a scratch handicap, good for you. Who knows, if you dedicate yourself to the game and practice religiously, you may be one of the lucky ones who can play to par!

__________________
Gord

Quote of the month:
"It's easy to see golf not as a game at all but as some whey-faced, nineteenth-century Presbyterian minister's fever dream of exorcism achieved through ritual and self-mortification." ~Bruce McCall

Oh, how you all make me feel that I do not belong to teh gold world at all.

I started learning golf when I hit 49 years!!!!!!! I play for fun and I am able to play to the 28 handicap that I acquired in one year since I started. I have even picked up a couple of awards playing for some local tournaments.

Unless someone wants to make a living out of this (there is no reason why people should not aim for that), I treat golf as a great recreation.

May be I will start my son early. He is around 10 years and just about the right time

HooperD,

How about the latest PGA winner JL Lewis. He turned pro at age 35. He has won twice on the tour.

GolfBald

HooperD,

How about the latest PGA winner JL Lewis. He turned pro at age 35. He has won twice on the tour.

GolfBald

I played in a 4 ball last week and I was the youngest at 37. One guy was 92 another 77 and one at 65. It all depends how able bodied you are at that age.

I'm 62, been playing about 8yrs. Handicap is 16. I believe it is neither my age in regards fitness, my actual ability in being able to hit good shots, nor time restictions for practice that is in the way of inprovement.

Whatever I can do in practice I fail to put together on the course. There is a mentallity, a psychology present, perhaps it is inhibition, lack of belief or confidence, that is at the root of preventing me bringing this handicap down drastically.

Any views?

There could be a mental problem. I'm the other way round; I have bad practice but together reasonable rounds for my ability. With me I think it's the , "Can't see the wood for the trees" thing. What I mean is I try too hard in practice but relax during the round.

Maybe other people in an attempt to try and get a better score during the round try and give it a bit extra where as I work on distance etc during practice. Give it a go, next time you play a round say to yourself, "This shot will only go as far as it goes and no further" and really mean to accept the thought and the resulting shot. Then just swing as easy as you can without too many thoughts clouding your mind. If you drop a shot you drop a shot, then you have to move on and not think I gotta get back that shot on the next hole. If you happen to birdie the next hole it happens.

Paul

Sounds good, Paul. Actuall, after reading some hints here (oh, and analysing the swing on the video clip), about taking divots and keeping the left wrist flat, I went out for an hour and got some fine results.

Cheers, Doug.

Paul,

I agree totally. I was stuck on a 12 Hcp for years and never thought I would get any better. My wife bought me a book by Dr. Mike Rotella, Golf is not a game of perfect. I broke through 12 to about a 6 just by understanding the mental part of the game. When I get stuck now I always start be rereading that book. If that's not it I look to Straus waltzes!!!

GolfBald

12 t0 6. Hm. (Makes secret note of book author.)

age

To answer the initial querie (seeing the poster is only 23yrs old) - and this is not golf specific - to get to the top in any discipline needs dedication beyond what most are prepared to put in; I would say even to the point where it ceases to be enjoyable as a game and becomes almost a chore. I remember Nick Faldow saying once he would come away from practice with his hands bleeding (probably an exageration) but he made his point. An example of determination.

Probably, as in most sports, if it come natural you probably think you don't need to put that much practic in. Well, do you want to go to the top?