is it too late to start the path to a golf pro

Hey guys I was always told I had a natural talent for golf however I also had a natural talent for combat sports and chose the combat sports rout. I did wrestling in high school and boxing in college. however my history of brain cancer has kept me from competing in those sports but I still participated for the love of the sport but the final nail in the coffin was when I had a stroke about a year and a half ago and the doctors told me to stay away from those sports for life. I was greatly depressed but then decided maybe i can get into golf. It's a little late to consider the possibility of being on the pro true (probably could have done it if I chose the golf path instead of combat sports in high school) but I would like to be a pro at a club or a coach at a small school.

I have been hitting balls every day for the past week and my progress has been astronomical. A vast majority of my shots are strait. I am on the path to getting it all back after my stroke.

I am willing to put forth the effort (hours a day sunday though friday and all day saturday) and money required for a coach.

However I may only be able to commit part time for a while since I am 25 and need a job.

Right now my path is to keep practicing everyday and when I am good enough join an amateur locally.

what  do you think?

A golf pro as in a club professional? Or a PGA tour player?

The latter would be an impossible feat.

Yeah club professional I was thinking. PGA tour player would be nice but a little late for me.

If you work hard at it, it's certainly possible. Club professionals don't necessarily have to be scratch golfers. But there is more than just being a good golfer to become a club professional.

You should probably look at typical club pro salaries before getting too serious about it. I was surprised how little that job pays here at the muni level. And what it took to get there, the apprenticeships and all that made it seem like a position for only those that have decided being a pro is their only calling in life. I recently saw some jobs posted for a course run by the city and I had to look a few times to absorb how low paying they were.

My father tried to go the PGA class A club pro route when I was very young. He went all the way through his entire training, I think it took him a solid 6 or 7 years while he worked as an assistant pro making next to nothing. They would send him these books and tapes that he would have to learn and complete some type of exams that he sent in. Every rung on the ladder he completed required him to make an expensive trip out to either LA or florida for an expensive written test. When he finally got to class A he couldn't find a job as a head pro and remained an assistant pro until he quit.

A few years ago he regained his amateur status after breaking his neck. I think originally he wanted to a pro because he loved the game, but looking back he gets to play more now and enjoys it more because it's not his job. We even play a yearly 2-man best ball because he is an amateur again which is great!

So just as a warning, you sound like you love the game and that is your reason for wanting to be a pro, but it's not all glorious golfing and you might end up getting to play even less.

If you're talking about trying to become a touring pro well that is gonna be pretty god damn tough. Your line between the two seems a bit blurred maybe? They are so very different. On the other hand, if you had some crazy large pile of cash that allowed you to do nothing but golf all day every day you could probably get pretty good over the next 10 years. If all you want is to be a club pro, you could do that with a lot less practice I imagine.

I think I will shoot to play in this and get good

http://www.gcamtour.com/join/

doest sound like being a club pro is worth it

Just as well people with this attitude aren't becoming pros. Sheesh....

Most club pros I know certainly think it's "worth it". And they're not after glamour. Funny that.

How about you just play the game?

You might also consider rearranging your horse and cart. They are a little out of sync at the moment.

I wasn't being serious when i said glamorous I never thought it was. I wanted to do it because i love golf and wanted to coach a golf team or be an instructor as i said in my first post. but after hearing what people said i though perhaps it would better serve me better to be an amature player and continue on that path and be successful there