What Should a 5 Year Old Focus On?

[zwon13]

Today I hit the Simulator with my 5 year old son. I wanted to see where I was with my "newer" Irons. My son was hitting his clubs for the first time. Unfortunately flight-scope would not pick up on any of his hits. However towards the end of our shared hour season he was getting good contact and that was all I was looking for out of this. As the year moves on what should I focus hit practice on and what realistically should I expect from hit? I don't want to push him to far and him give up.   Any suggestions out there, I know during the summer we will be at the range every morning before hitting the pool at the Club. 

[Golfingdad]

Fun.

[phillyk]

The focus should be on having fun and building speed.  Let him swing as hard as he can in any way he can.  If he wants to move his feet around instead of staying steady, let him.  Let him grip how he wants, swing how he wants, etc.

Edited January 24, 2019 by phillyk

[Patch]

Not trying to be funny, but I have tutored 5, five year old girls on golf. 3 of them stayed with the game long enough to be successful with their own games. The other two went for soccer, and basketball. Only the youngest, now 14, continues to "hang" with G-Pa at the golf course, on a regular basis.

The #1 goal of importance was for them to have fun. Having fun bred a continued interest in the game. They had the most fun putting, then chipping, then pitching, and so on.  . 

#2 was getting their own style of their "fist pump"  down when the ball found the bottom of the cup. They all knew what a terrific putt/shot looked like. 

At that age, it is all about having fun with Mom, Dad, Siblings or G-Pa

Edited January 24, 2019 by Patch

[mcanadiens]

37 minutes ago, zwon13 said:

every morning

Good points from the other guys, but these two words sound really ambitious for a 5-year-old.

[JetFan1983]

My guess would be having fun. The last thing you probably want is your five-year-old deciding that video games and cartoons are cooler than golf. 

[mcanadiens]

22 minutes ago, JetFan1983 said:

The last thing you probably want is your five-year-old deciding that video games and cartoons are cooler than golf. 

Man am I glad I didn't have a mouthful of coffee when I read this.

 

[Missouri Swede]

Until I saw which thread this was in, I was going to say dandelions, beetles, and puppies. 

[Buckeyebowman]

Like others have said, let the little dude focus on fun! Young'uns don't have a long attention span. As soon as it stops being fun, head out and go get an ice cream cone! And it doesn't matter whether it's golf or anything else. If it's not fun, the kid will lose interest. 

[iacas]

Fun.

And a little safety.

[RussUK]

7 hours ago, iacas said:

Fun.

And a little safety.

This ^^

My 5 year old loves going to the range. I'm looking at getting him into the local junior academy this year. They get them doing fun golf games that teach them the basics etc. but without them noticing they are actually being taught.

If they are having fun and enjoying it then they'll learn a lot better and quicker. keeping them engaged is often the tough part.

[boogielicious]

13 hours ago, Missouri Swede said:

Until I saw which thread this was in, I was going to say dandelions, beetles, and puppies. 

So you've coached t-ball too?! 

 

[TN94z]

Another vote for just having fun. I take my 3 year old girl with me when we go now. She might swing the club 5 times the entire round. She mostly plays in the sand, building sand castles that I must rake down after every hole...haha. But if you ask her right now what she thinks about golf, she will enthusiastically tell you " I LOVE golf!"  She will even ask to go to the golf course and comes out and swings her clubs in the garage when Jacob and I are doing our super speed protocols. I also try to leave it on the tv in the background while we are playing with her doll house too...lol. She even knows some of the tour players names now. I think if you try to get too technical with them, it may push them away. I know my little girl will get frustrated if you start trying to show her grip and feet placement and she will walk away. So I just let her do whatever she wants to when she has the club in her hands.  It is amazing how much they pick up just watching you swing.

Edited January 25, 2019 by TN94z

[rehmwa]

16 hours ago, Missouri Swede said:

I was going to say dandelions, beetles, and puppies. 

I'm going with this.  If the 5 year old is excited to come with dad and hit a couple and watch, and just be present (and stay out of the way of swinging clubs) then It's a win.

18 hours ago, zwon13 said:

Today I hit the Simulator with my 5 year old son

DONE - you win Dad.  all he wants to do is hang with you and do stuff, you're on it.

[Righty to Lefty]

Just get him out there and let me swing away...He already thinks you are superman when he sees you hit the ball so he will be trying to impress you with his shots also and he is always watching and taking notes. I noticed that my Son quickly picked up my little nuances like hovering the club etc.  He of course was in the bunker making sand castles 20 mins later but that's what kids do ! 

 

[dennyjones]

On 1/25/2019 at 7:00 AM, boogielicious said:

So you've coached t-ball too?! 

 

or soccer!?

[bkuehn1952]

I let the grandkids drive the cart, with hovering supervision.  We would take a lunch break after 5 holes.  We always played a 2 person scramble. They all turned out to be good kids, safe drivers and adequate golfers.

As virtually everyone has said, as long as they are engaged and having a good time, you are on the right track.

[DrMJG]

Most said here what I was going to say. Keep it fun and let him keep going to watch dad golf is a way to share your love.

Edited January 28, 2019 by DrMJG