Path to the Tour?

[deasy55]

What makes you say that? I wasn't even the best 13 year at my club at the time, nevermind good enough to be a pro.

Originally Posted by Domenic

and if you can shoot in the 30's when your 13 you could surely make the tour no?

[Leftygolfer]

Is this a real question?  Are you winning your club championship and everything you play in?  Focus on school.

[the19thhole]

Practice, practice and practice some more and hope you improve. You're going to have to eat, sleep and live golf and even that may not be enough. You'll probably need some luck along the way. I know you are young and it's good to have a dream. We've all had them. The one thing you're going to have to work out is no one on this forum can tell you how to get on the tour.

[Domenic]

not everyone has the work ethic or strong desire to

[the19thhole]

Originally Posted by Domenic

not everyone has the work ethic or strong desire to

I have a strong desire to be a lot of things, but no amount of work ethic is going to make me successful at them.

[cheffdiddy_45]

Originally Posted by TourSpoon

Read Paper Tiger to give yourself an idea on what type of dedication you are looking at. Plus it will help with your reading skills in case the golf thing doesn't work out.

Seriously, I wish you luck and can say that it is great to dream. Just make sure that you throw in some intermediate goals along the way. Jr. Golf Goals, High School Goals, College Goals, etc.

"Paper Tiger" was a terrific read!  And I highly recommend it to this young man, as it really delves into the highs and lows of pursuing life on the tour.

[PooN]

Originally Posted by Shorty

I am a 13 year old guitarist.

I'm a beginner but I want to join the Rolling Stones.

Exactly how would I go about achieving this?

Now.....does that sound a wee  bit silly?

This is not a good analogy.  "I'm a beginner but I want to be in a famous band" is more accurate.

The reason you must make the statement more accurate is because it is impossible to be a guitarist for the Stones, while it is not impossible to be in a famous band.

We made fun of a friend for being a golfer in middle/high school back in the early 90's.  Now he is a college women's coach.  He may not have made it to the PGA, but he is a scratch golfer and is making a good living doing what he loves.  This kid is thinking he will be ranked #1 in the world after every birdie he makes I'm sure... let him do it.  Worst case scenario is he gets a good golf game to go along with whatever he does become.

[cheffdiddy_45]

Some of the responses to the kids question has me scratching my head.  Not trying to be controversial here, but what is with all the uppity responses?  I guess I just don't get excited over putting down a kids dream to play professional golf.  Hell, I admire the kid for shooting for the stars.  Maybe if he makes the tour, he won't be on a internet golf forum bashing other kids dreams.  Just saying.  Anyways.

[Shorty]

Originally Posted by cheffdiddy_45

Some of the responses to the kids question has me scratching my head.  Not trying to be controversial here, but what is with all the uppity responses?  I guess I just don't get excited over putting down a kids dream to play professional golf.  Hell, I admire the kid for shooting for the stars.  Maybe if he makes the tour, he won't be on a internet golf forum bashing other kids dreams.  Just saying.  Anyways.

Just sayin........

The path to the PGA Tour is simple.

Become one of the best couple of hundred players in the world.

A person old enough to ask the question is old enough to be told that there's no formula beyond what I have typed in the line above.

There are too many people on golf forums who try to sugar coat information and go on about "wanting it" being the most important ingredient.

I have no issue with any dreams - kids' or those of adults - we all need them.

My issue is with people who think that a kid can't handle reality and consequently type predictable and banal responses.

He probably knows what he has to do. Become damned good and beat everyone he has ever met and everyone in his district. How about that being a starting point?

Then become a club champion and get to +3 before he's16. That's a start. It might get him to the top 200 in his state.

Get real. Don't patronise the OP. He can speak for himself. And if he can't handle the truth, he won't handle the Tour.

[WarEagle]

I hate golf, but it's gonna pay my bills :)

[Kieran123]

Originally Posted by WarEagle

I hate golf, but it's gonna pay my bills :)

At 22 handicap - I hope the pro shop pays well

[Ernest Jones]

Originally Posted by Shorty

I am a 13 year old guitarist.

I'm a beginner but I want to join the Rolling Stones.

Exactly how would I go about achieving this?

Now.....does that sound a wee  bit silly?

Not trying to be rude, but seriously, you're putting the cart before the horse.

WARNING, THE FOLLOWING IS

Nearly everytime I read a post by you I get a chance to exercise my restraint, and I'm not even a Christian! So thanks for that, I guess in the long run it will make me a better person.

Carry on.

*to the OP, sorry for the hijack.

[Domenic]

OKAY..............thanks to all who encourage me

unthanks to all who say I will never make it, I suppose your just stating your belief but come on.....just remember what you say when your watching me light up your TV screen in 10 years.....

upside to thread: its gotten the most responses I've ever had

downside to thread: I'm going to have to insist that Shorty and all other negatives go listen to "Mean" by Taylor Swift

[Deryck Griffith]

Originally Posted by Domenic

OKAY..............thanks to all who encourage me

unthanks to all who say I will never make it, I suppose your just stating your belief but come on.....just remember what you say when your watching me light up your TV screen in 10 years.....

upside to thread: its gotten the most responses I've ever had

downside to thread: I'm going to have to insist that Shorty and all other negatives go listen to "Mean" by Taylor Swift

There is nothing wrong with goals or dreams.  I remember what it was like to be 14 and please continue to stay motivated to drive towards the goals you want.

The only thing I will say is to make sure your goals are focused.  Instead of thinking after the PGA Tour right now, think about how you can get from the 40s to the 30s.  How you can get up and down more, how can you swing better, how you can putt better, etc etc....streamline your focus to these specific things instead of worrying how to make the tour.

If you streamline your focus and start to improve, everything else will happen if its supposed to.

Good luck

[deasy55]

I wouldn't wish listening to Taylor Swift on my worst enemy.

Originally Posted by Domenic

go listen to "Mean" by Taylor Swift

To be frank, shorty just said what everybody was thinking.

At the end of the day, you are a 26 handicap asking what is the best way to get on the tour. I would say even a journeyman tour player was easily shooting around 75-78 at 13 years old everytime they teed it up (unless they started at a later age like Nick Faldo at 15 - and even he got down to scratch golf after about 12 months). The top tour players were all scratch golfers at 13 (Tiger, McIlroy, etc).

At my home club there is currently about twelve 13-14 year olds with a handicap in the 9-14 range, and I see none of them getting anywhere near the tour.

[cheffdiddy_45]

My advise to the young man would be:

1.)  Avoid asking open ended questions like that on internet forums.  Usually you are going to get a bunch of middle aged men with a obsessive desire to be the rightest person on the internet, putting you down.
2.)  Do check out the book that was recommended, "Paper Tiger".  Even if you have the golf game, the mental demands as well as the time away from family are waiting right there to nip you in the butt.

3.) School comes first.  If by chance you don't realize your dream of playing pro golf, have a back up plan.  Maybe something that involves you in the world of golf, without having to win the U.S. Amateur or The Masters.  Instructor, sales and marketing, course superintendent, manufacturer, etc.  Golf is a fast growing business.  The right education could land you in some awesome situations.

4.) Practice your butt off.  Now is the time to do that.  You are not bogged down like the rest of us with work, family, etc.  You can spend the time at the range or putting green that the rest of wish we could.

5.) You are probably going to have to spend some time on mini tours to get where you want to be.  Keegan Bradley was broke on a mini tour and a friend had to loan him some money to keep him going.

[Shorty]

Originally Posted by Domenic

downside to thread: I'm going to have to insist that Shorty and all other negatives go listen to "Mean" by Taylor Swift

You need to redifine your interpretation of "negative". You have to be realistic.

At this point, you are exactly where every other 13 year old with a love of the game is.

You are in love with the game and you fantasise about being on the PGA Tour.

Your game is pretty much where everyone else your age is.

Instaed of asking how you can improve and asking specific questions, you ask a general question which has been very adequately answered.

You have to become extremely good.

You didn't ask how many of us got to a plus handicap before they were 20.

You didn't ask who the best player we ever saw at 15 was.

You didn't ask about the best progress we'd ever seen and if the best players in our clubs were young or old.

You didn't ask how many of us had been close to turning pro ourselves or what reality checks we had along the way.

You didn't say that you had read several books about it and your resume shows that you are beating 18 year olds and already have broken par on such and such a course.

You stated that you shoot in the 40 s for 9 holes. On what course? Where? This means that you are someone who is probably shooting about 100 most of the time.

There is nothing wrong with that. Nothing at all. You are probably better than I was at that age.

For the record I was a trainee professional for a very brief time at 18.

If you want the following to be your advice, follow it at your peril. It will get you nowhere:

"Dream big! Anything is possible! If you want it you can do it, as long as you practice your short game."

Now---here is the real answer. Again. Get to a plus handicap before you are 18. Then you might think about winning a club championship at a medium sized club in a medium sized town.

[the19thhole]

Originally Posted by Shorty

You need to redifine your interpretation of "negative". You have to be realistic.

At this point, you are exactly where every other 13 year old with a love of the game is.

You are in love with the game and you fantasise about being on the PGA Tour.

Your game is pretty much where everyone else your age is.

Instaed of asking how you can improve and asking specific questions, you ask a general question which has been very adequately answered.

You have to become extremely good.

You didn't ask how many of us got to a plus handicap before they were 20.

You didn't ask who the best player we ever saw at 15 was.

You didn't ask about the best progress we'd ever seen and if the best players in our clubs were young or old.

You didn't ask how many of us had been close to turning pro ourselves or what reality checks we had along the way.

You didn't say that you had read several books about it and your resume shows that you are beating 18 year olds and already have broken par on such and such a course.

You stated that you shoot in the 40 s for 9 holes. On what course? Where? This means that you are someone who is probably shooting about 100 most of the time.

There is nothing wrong with that. Nothing at all. You are probably better than I was at that age.

For the record I was a trainee professional for a very brief time at 18.

If you want the following to be your advice, follow it at your peril. It will get you nowhere:

"Dream big! Anything is possible! If you want it you can do it, as long as you practice your short game."

Now---here is the real answer. Again. Get to a plus handicap before you are 18. Then you might think about winning a club championship at a medium sized club in a medium sized town.

I couldn't agree more. He asked the question and you gave him an honest answer. Why is that a put down? I forgot because now it's all 'if you work hard you can be anything you want to be.' That's just bulls*&%t. I could get all the singing lessons going and I'd still sound like a goose that's being strangled.

Honest answer would be he has to get a lot better than he is now and I mean a lot. People should stop blowing smoke up his ass telling him if he puts the effort in he can do it Maybe he can and I wish him all the luck in the world, but he needs a healthy dose of realism as well.