If you were a natural athlete, and had Butch Harmon as a coach since you were four years old, what are the chances of you becoming pro?

[tmac20]

What are the chances of you becoming a PGA TOUR player?

[MEfree]

I think there are ranges of "natural athletes"

There are lots of kids who might be the best player on their baseball, basketball and soccer teams when they are in grade school- some may still be the star (in one or all sports) in high school and fewer yet will be stars in College or make it to the pros.  I expect golf is no different so you really have to define how good a "natural athlete" you are talking about.

Also, the mental side of golf is huge.

[David L Yskes]

I'd go so far as to say, if i would of had Butch Harmon as a golf coach since I was 14/15 when i first wanted to play golf in High School, I bet i would have had a really good chance of making the PGA Tour..

I say this, because we did a Golf week in Gym class and the first time we went out the teacher who was also the Golf Coach gave us all 9 irons, and here i was next to a kid who was on the golf team, and i was hitting my iron just as far as he was...  And then his reason was he didnt have his own 9 iron... and my response was why would that actually matter??? lol

But after that class i wanted to play golf really badly but my parents were a bit unsure about dropping a lot of money on a set of golf clubs... So i didnt get to play till i was 18 and went out and bought my own set of golf clubs...

[JetFan1983]

0%

[turtleback]

Originally Posted by tmac20

What are the chances of you becoming a PGA TOUR player?

23.42%

[rkim291968]

I'd say very good if you were born with mental fortitude - discipline, hardworking ethic, competitiveness, desire to succeed, etc.. Becoming a world class at anything these days require a lot more than physical tools & good coach.  All the physical talent and best coaching at early age won't do if you can't back it up with the gray matter in between your ears.

[MS256]

Oh, I'd say about the same as driving over to the Ga. state line and buying the winning lottery ticket.

Reminds me of the line from Dumb and Dumber. "So you're telling me there's a chance."

[LuciusWooding]

Originally Posted by David L Yskes

I say this, because we did a Golf week in Gym class and the first time we went out the teacher who was also the Golf Coach gave us all 9 irons, and here i was next to a kid who was on the golf team, and i was hitting my iron just as far as he was...  And then his reason was he didnt have his own 9 iron... and my response was why would that actually matter??? lol

Yeah you'd most definitely make the tour for being able to hit a 9 iron as far as some whiny kid on the high school golf team. I once won a game of horse against my dad, so I estimate myself to be able to dunk over Lebron James if I spent a couple days practicing.

[pepsiplusconker]

I would say this is very likely.

Paying from that early age is a huge thing in itself, then to have a top coach just makes the chance even more likely.

People on this forum who are at a handicap of 7 or less must believe they could have been + handicap easy, if they played from the age of four.

I can't believe people are thinking its unlikely.

[Shorty]

More inane ponderings to which there is no answer.

[Lihu]

More inane ponderings to which there is no answer.

I think it is directed toward the person answering the question. Would you have had a chance? Maybe you. I was pretty busy climbing mountains as a youth, and like most kids, thought golf was for middle aged men.

[MS256]

Originally Posted by pepsiplusconker

I would say this is very likely.

Paying from that early age is a huge thing in itself, then to have a top coach just makes the chance even more likely.

People on this forum who are at a handicap of 7 or less must believe they could have been + handicap easy, if they played from the age of four.

I can't believe people are thinking its unlikely.

Of course I can't speak for anybody but me but it's not even a close call. Even in my local area there are plenty of kids that start at that age. Most become good high school players. Some become good college players. A few win a State Am. and/or give the Mini Tours a shot. One did all of the above and made it to the Nationwide Tour but couldn't keep his card.

That story is repeated in almost every community in the country.

To be one of the best of the best is what is "unlikely".

[Topper]

Originally Posted by JetFan1983

0%

Not quite...probably 0.003% by my estimate.

[Shorty]

Originally Posted by pepsiplusconker

I can't believe people are thinking its unlikely.

Sometimes I seriously wonder if some of the members here have ever actually seen a top notch golfer in the flesh.

There are millions of kids who start young.

Having Butch Harmon as a coach might be an insignificant factor in the player's development.

[MS256]

Just curious. Somebody in the "if we only started young and had good coaching" crowd tell me why we don't see all of the children of the top coaches out there on the PGA or LPGA Tours?

Surely they taught their own kids to play. I taught my kids to play baseball (because that's what I knew). I would think that a golf instructor would naturally teach their kids to play golf.

[cipher]

If Butch were my coach I could have made it, unless I was having personal problems or something like that...

[pepsiplusconker]

Originally Posted by Shorty

Sometimes I seriously wonder if some of the members here have ever actually seen a top notch golfer in the flesh.

There are millions of kids who start young.

Having Butch Harmon as a coach might be an insignificant factor in the player's development.

Meh, you are right.

Now I think, the majority have people simply have a ceiling, which isn't high enough to become elite.

All elite sportsmen have that something extra that they were born with, that you can't really teach, golf is obviously no different.

[1484]

My kids have all started young and at our club there are a number of kids who are terrific players at age 9, 10, etc.

I think starting early with good instruction and some natural athletic ability gives you a very high shot at being an exceptional golfer RELATIVE TO AVERAGE.  And by that I mean having a nice natural swing, good understanding of the game and a good shot at being a scratch or low handicap golfer if you stick with it.  Even among guys who play once or twice a year you can still see the difference in swing and results among those who grew up playing.

From there to PGA pro, however, is such an order of magnitude leap that I think it's absurd to think "anyone can do it with some natural talent, great coaching and starting young."