US Kid's Golf - New 5 year old questions...

[Joey G]

My great-nephew turns 5 just in time to start the USKG Spring '19 Local Tour in 6 & Under. He's been playing/walking the local Par-3 courses and learning on my backyard facility since his 3rd birthday with a primary focus on having fun and making contact with the ball. I have recently started using the USKG "Early Start" booklet to guide his play-time with me but honestly feel that he's a little ahead of the curve here and am planning to start the Level 1-3 Beginner Books in the Player Pathway with him and coach him myself for now to get him more prepared for his first events.

This is the first of our first experience with the US Kid's Golf organization as my daughter & nephew didn't start playing until they were 12 & 14 thus too old for it...so there are a few things that we are unsure about and were hoping that someone here might be able to tell us a little about the program. Like... 

1 - Do we need to have a US Kid's Golf coach in order for him to participate in the Local Tour/Regional/State tournaments? We'll be taking him to some of the US Kids events at the PGA store nearby, using the USKG curriculum, and he gets a lot of time with me in the backyard working on putting, chipping, bunker play, and full swing with every club into a net. We're just not sure that (at 4-5 yo) he will get a lot more than he's already getting from paid lessons.

2 - It looks like the USKG Certified Coach program is more for Teaching Pro's to add to their certifications and continuing-ed type of credits...but, can a parent or family member get certified through the program just to coach as the USKG level? No intentions of trying to become a teaching professional but honestly, the more affordable it is for my niece (his mother) the better his chances of being able to stay involved in the program.

Thanks in advance for help, advice, and info...I'm sure more questions will arise but let's start with those for now.

Edited November 9, 2018 by Joey G

[TRUCKER]

You don't need anything. Sign up and go play. 6 and under play from about 25 yards. I haven't measured it but that's what it looks like when we get up to the green we see their tee markers. 

[Joey G]

Thanks! I think he can work with 25-50 yard distances all day long.

[iacas]

11 hours ago, Joey G said:

1 - Do we need to have a US Kid's Golf coach in order for him to participate in the Local Tour/Regional/State tournaments? We'll be taking him to some of the US Kids events at the PGA store nearby, using the USKG curriculum, and he gets a lot of time with me in the backyard working on putting, chipping, bunker play, and full swing with every club into a net. We're just not sure that (at 4-5 yo) he will get a lot more than he's already getting from paid lessons.

Just pay the tour fee and pay the individual tournament fees. That's it. You don't have to do anything else…

11 hours ago, Joey G said:

2 - It looks like the USKG Certified Coach program is more for Teaching Pro's to add to their certifications and continuing-ed type of credits...but, can a parent or family member get certified through the program just to coach as the USKG level? No intentions of trying to become a teaching professional but honestly, the more affordable it is for my niece (his mother) the better his chances of being able to stay involved in the program.

… including that. That's for professional instructors who want to be certified by USKG.

[Joey G]

Thanks, guys!