beoming a pro

Question
I'm 15 years old and been playing for 2 years i started off with a handicap of 36 and have had a load of lessons in the past 3 months and have reduced my hadicap to 24 how can i get better and become a pro?

Answer
Hi Dan,



You're making great progress with your game.  Naturally as you continue to make progress, the gains will be smaller and will take more time.  But being patient is part of the game.  In golf, your gains come in months and years rather than in days and weeks like in some other games.

The number one shortcut is getting good with your game from 100 yards and in.  I would recommend that you spend half your practice time on your putting and short game.  Too many new players are more interested in hitting the ball long.  That's important and fun so I'm not saying not to spend time on your full swing...but you will lower your handicap faster by becoming a great putter and wedge player.

The other thing I would suggest is that you continue to take lessons and get the best instruction you can afford.  A good teacher can reduce the time it takes to get good.  And if you are serious about this game and want to become a pro someday, you don't want to do it by trial and error.  Another tip I would give you is to avoid listening to too much information from all the sources that are out there now.  There are magazines, the Golf Channel, playing partners, books, dvd's, etc.  You can work on too much.  You can experiment too much.  For most of us, it's better to stick to one good source of information at a time.  If you take your lessons from a qualified PGA teaching professional, that should be enough for now.

Eventually you will want to begin to compete too.  Playing in tournaments helps shape your game and your competitive maturity.  It's important to do but there is no need to jump into competition until you feel like you have reasonably good control of your ball flight.  As your handicap gets down around 10 or so...begin to enter some amateur events and enjoy yourself.

Good luck to you in the future.

You chose the greatest game in the world.  Have fun!

Paul Dolman