Big Golf Challenge

[cs1986]

So I have recently started a new blog about my own personal golf challenge:

Basically the aim is to go from having no handicap and having not played for 2 years to becoming a pro golfer on the pro tour by 2020, all whilst holding down a full time job by carrying out 5,000 hours of practice.

Has anyone else ever set themselves a golfing challenge? How did you do?

I know the challenge is going to be hard (almost impossible infact) but Im excited to see just how well I do and I will be documenting it all! Ive always loved playing golf and now I finally have the determination and the money! Any advice would be good!

[CraiginKSA]

Maybe the moderators should start a separate forum for all the guys who are going to play on the tour.  There are a lot of them.

Check out the Dan plan.  He's taking 10,000 hours to become a pro.

There is a ton of advice on this forum about becoming a tour pro.  Most of it is in the vein of, "forget about it - live in the now!"

Sorry, but this is a serious forum with a lot of single digit H/C guys who know how hard it is to shoot  under par on a 7,400 yard track.  They're very unsympathetic to people who drop in with a plan but after six months are never heard from again.

[cs1986]

I have read the dan plan. That is my inspiration as it says on my blog. I understood this to be a serious forum hence my posting here. Ive been out of golf for a while so im after advice. I know its pretty impossible and if i get down to a single figure handicap then that in itself will be q huge achievement for me but i wanted to give myself a personal goal and a dream to aim for. The difference between me and the dan plan is that i am not quitting my job to do this and i am also documenting how much it all costs and where the best deals are etc for people on a budget who want to play golf. I know how hard golf is as I played as a kid and whilst at college but i certainly wont be giving up after 6 months. Chances are i wont make it, but im excited to see how close i can get and im just after advice on improving my game

[sofingaw]

Good luck! Update regularly!

[Jake Goodman]

Good luck and have fun whether you make it or not.

[MS256]

Why do soooo many people assume they can be on the "pro tour" just because they decide to do it?

A guy last year told me he honestly believed that if he practiced enough he could be as good as the guys on the PGA Tour (and he was serious)...And this was right after I beat him by 8 strokes. SMH

Funny that I never hear that statement from anybody that's actually any good. It's always somebody with barely an athletic bone in their body, can't break 80 on a legitimate course on their best day, and has never really won anything or been close to the highest levels (of any sport).

I don't know what to say when I hear it but I'm thinking that maybe they should actually be able to beat some of us that know we would have absolutely 0% chance to play on the PGA Tour no matter what we did before they start thinking about the PGA Tour.

I know a guy that has been on and off of the Nationwide (Dot Com) Tours for years, has won State Amateurs, missed the PGA Tour by one stroke at Q-School, and played high level college golf. Never heard him make the statement that he could be on the PGA Tour if he wanted to.

Here's a novel approach: Win a few Club Championships, a few State Amateur Championships, mop up on one of the Mini-Tours, go to Q-School and qualify for the Dot Com Tour. Then maybe something like the PGA Tour might be possible...Not likely but possible.

[Mac62]

OP, here's an excellent read for you over in the Tour Discussion sub-forum (long, but worth it): http://thesandtrap.com/t/7771/mini-tour-play

Ben is attempting to do something very similar to what you're contemplating.  He's playing on several mini-tours and has attempted Q-school several times, all of which he's documented in this thread spanning the last 6 years.  That thread will give you an idea of what's in store for you.

[cs1986]

Thanks for the good luck wishes and i wilk certainly have fun! Ms256 - i should have probably mentioned im based in the UK and my aim is to make the Europro Tour which is a 3rd level tour, 1 below the challenge tour and 2 below the european pga tour. I know this doesnt make much of a difference but just wanted to make it clear that Im not expecting to be playing with Tiger Woods in the US Open. I suppose the Europro tour is equivelent to the dot com tour in the US? Mac62 - thanks, ill have a read of that when I get home!