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Too late to become a pro?


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Hello everyone! Im 20 years old, and im wondering what you guys thinks about the chances for a 20 y/o boy to become a pro? My hcp at the moment is around 10. If i give all, and dedicates a lot of my time to golf, do you think I can become a professional player some time?

Best regards

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Hello everyone! Im 20 years old, and im wondering what you guys thinks about the chances for a 20 y/o boy to become a pro? My hcp at the moment is around 10. If i give all, and dedicates a lot of my time to golf, do you think I can become a professional player some time?

Best regards

Really tough to say. How long have you been playing?

I do know a 15 year old who was a 6 handicap, then dedicated his entire summer and more to golf. He got down to a 2.5 (officially 4.9). I think Dan (a 36 year old) from "The Dan Plan" got down to a 4 handicap. So, there is precedence to getting down to a low single digit, but to get from there down to a +4 handicap (pro level), is quite a leap.

It seems really daunting to go from 7-8 bogies per round down to 4 birdies per round. Just think about how hard it is for you to average that many birdies.

:ping:  :tmade:  :callaway:   :gamegolf:  :titleist:

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You should not care what other people think. It seems like a longshot but not technically impossible. I would ask myself "Why do I want to be a tour pro?" and let that guide you. If it is for fame and fortune then you probably won't find it there. But, it will take more work than you might think. There are thousands of kids younger than you in Florida that can beat you with just a putter and they will never make it to the pro level. You would have to dedicate every waking moment to this. There are loads of smaller pro tours out there than can give you a taste of the big leagues, start there. Play on some armature tour for a while, while you game is improving, that way you get some real completion under your belt and you wont go broke in the process. There are probably more people that would try to talk you out of it than say go for it. Id tell you go for it. Just realize that its a long road. You claim to be a 10-12 handicap based on your posting and screen name thingy. I don't know how long you have been playing or anything like that, but keep in mind guys on the pro level tours, NGA, Web, PGA, are well over the + range. There are people who are scratch golfers who think they are good and would never make a cut at scratch. Just set incremental goals, and shoot for them. If nothing else you will become a better player, and you can at least say you tired. Another thing I might suggest is find a teacher you can trust. I wouldn't start out and say you want to go pro, but you need proper instruction. Play against anyone and everyone in any type of weather. But most important, remember, its a game, have fun! Good luck to you and welcome aboard.

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Thanks for answers! I started playing golf when i was around 8. I loved the game, and so did my friends. The problem is that I played soccer aswell. At that time I was "pushed" to play soccer instead. So I've been on and off from the game, but I know that I'm talented. When I started playing golf i fell in love with the game very fast. I could play 12 hours straight without any problems. I think I will train very hard this year and take small steps. After this year I'll know a little bit more probably. I think I can get a much better hcp within a year of serious training.

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It's possible. If I had to put a number on it I'd say you have a 0.0000001% chance of making it on the PGA Tour. As I said, it's technically possible.
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Have you ever read Bob Rotella's "Golf is not a game of perfect"? There's a section in that book where - supposedly - there's a conversation between Tom Kite and a few college players, single digit handicappers, and they ask what's the difference between a pro and an amateur... since they shot pretty much the same score, with only a 4 stroke difference. Kite explains that it's pretty much... concentration and the ability to recover from bad shots.

Pro golf is much more than hitting the ball 340 yards... it's really about your mental game. Take a look at that book... it's a great golf manual. I love it. Rotella talks a lot about the "dreams"  of a player, and how you drive yourself and your goals towards those "dreams".

In any case, my son Nick, 14, has lessons with a great pro, who usually shoots 4-5 under par. The other day, he asked my son how often he was playing. My son answered "twice a week, on weekends". The pro's comment was: "Well, Nick, if you want to be a *good* player,  you should be playing every day. If you want to be a pro, that's a different ball game." So practice, practice, practice...

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That's a big fat yes.

Yours in earnest, Jason.
Call me Ernest, or EJ or Ernie.

PSA - "If you find yourself in a hole, STOP DIGGING!"

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Welcome to the site!

You've got a long long way to go from a 10 handicap to a Tour Pro but it's not impossible, just unlikely at 20 years old.  Getting to "just" a scratch handicap is going to take almost a full-time commitment, daily course access, range access and possibly a swing coach.

More important than what a bunch of strangers who've never seen your swing think, what is your plan to get there?

Joe Paradiso

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Have you ever read Bob Rotella's "Golf is not a game of perfect"? There's a section in that book where - supposedly - there's a conversation between Tom Kite and a few college players, single digit handicappers, and they ask what's the difference between a pro and an amateur... since they shot pretty much the same score, with only a 4 stroke difference. Kite explains that it's pretty much... concentration and the ability to recover from bad shots.

Pro golf is much more than hitting the ball 340 yards... it's really about your mental game. Take a look at that book... it's a great golf manual. I love it. Rotella talks a lot about the "dreams"  of a player, and how you drive yourself and your goals towards those "dreams".

In any case, my son Nick, 14, has lessons with a great pro, who usually shoots 4-5 under par. The other day, he asked my son how often he was playing. My son answered "twice a week, on weekends". The pro's comment was: "Well, Nick, if you want to be a *good* player,  you should be playing every day. If you want to be a pro, that's a different ball game." So practice, practice, practice...

I misread your statement earlier.

If my son could do that on a standard course, he wouldn't be in high school.

Seriously, if this is true your son should join the pros now.

:ping:  :tmade:  :callaway:   :gamegolf:  :titleist:

TM White Smoke Big Fontana; Pro-V1
TM Rac 60 TT WS, MD2 56
Ping i20 irons U-4, CFS300
Callaway XR16 9 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S
Callaway XR16 3W 15 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S, X2Hot Pro 20 degrees S

"I'm hitting the woods just great, but I'm having a terrible time getting out of them." ~Harry Toscano

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Ops. The pro shoots 4-5 under par, not my son :-). My son is a 13 hcp. Will fix the post!!

That's still pretty good for a kid that plays twice a week.

:ping:  :tmade:  :callaway:   :gamegolf:  :titleist:

TM White Smoke Big Fontana; Pro-V1
TM Rac 60 TT WS, MD2 56
Ping i20 irons U-4, CFS300
Callaway XR16 9 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S
Callaway XR16 3W 15 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S, X2Hot Pro 20 degrees S

"I'm hitting the woods just great, but I'm having a terrible time getting out of them." ~Harry Toscano

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I hear Paper Tiger is a pretty good book to read for someone who wants to make it to the pros a little bit later in life.

Though it may be discouraging (from what I've heard), it seems to be a realistic account oh how difficult it is to get on tour.

Joel Holden

https://twitter.com/JHolden138

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Larry Nelson proved it was possible but that list is probably still at 1.

The Champions Tour in about 30 years maybe.

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Larry Nelson proved it was possible but that list is probably still at 1.

The Champions Tour in about 30 years maybe.

Wow, I actually didn't know who Larry Nelson was.

Starts at age 21 and becomes a 3 time major winner!?!? Guy must have been extremely talented.

Joel Holden

https://twitter.com/JHolden138

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Wow, I actually didn't know who Larry Nelson was.

Starts at age 21 and becomes a 3 time major winner!?!? Guy must have been extremely talented.


Yep. Pretty amazing.

He probably figured after Vietnam golf wasn't that hard. :-D

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Wow, I actually didn't know who Larry Nelson was. Starts at age 21 and becomes a 3 time major winner!?!? Guy must have been extremely talented.

He broke 100 the first time he played and broke 70 in his first nine months of playing!

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I think you can, yeah. Practice a lot (read this , this and this ), and play as much as you can. It's more than doable.

Most importantly: don't let anyone give you shit about it. Gotta be mentally strong.

Hunter Bishop

"i was an aspirant once of becoming a flamenco guitarist, but i had an accident with my fingers"

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