December, 30 2003 | SHARE:
The best junior players in the
sport often have a distinct advantage over
their fellow competitors; their parents.
Many times we have gotten to know some of the
best players and their families and the one
trait they all have in common is that the
players are working with their parents as a
team.
Teens can be very tough to communicate with and
when you combine that with a "head" game like
golf it's often a delicate balance for both the
player and the parent to know how to work
together. However, when you see a team like the
Moores, Ed, Susan, and Jonathan, or Paul,
Karen and Paula Creamer, talking to each other
and sharing information, you soon realize what
an advantage they have.
Even when a parent doesn't play golf, there are
ways that the team can still succeed. The first
is to sit down and work out a "contract". It
starts with the parent asking, "What can I do
to help you play better during and after a
tournament?" Open a discussion together that
reaches an understanding about issues like,
keeping stats for the player, supplying snacks
and drinks during a round, how to be
encouraging, what kind of feedback do I want as
a player, and how to be attentive for four or
five hours to understand what a player went
through. An example is being sure you, as a
parent, know your child's final score was for
the day. Being off a shot or two says you were
not paying attention. A big issue for both
player and parent is knowing what and when to
say something after a bad round and how to
critque the round positively.
The key to good golf is preparation and that
includes the parent/golfer team. Mom & Dad, you
have to be prepared to hear your golfer say "I
like it when or it bothers me when...." and
players you have to accept the same information.
Most of all talk. Talk this winter and spring
before the summer about how to work together.
It's all part of building for success.
Play well !!
The best junior players in the
sport often have a distinct advantage over
their fellow competitors; their parents.
Many times we have gotten to know some of the
best players and their families and the one
trait they all have in common is that the
players are working with their parents as a
team.
Teens can be very tough to communicate with and
when you combine that with a "head" game like
golf it's often a delicate balance for both the
player and the parent to know how to work
together. However, when you see a team like the
Moores, Ed, Susan, and Jonathan, or Paul,
Karen and Paula Creamer, talking to each other
and sharing information, you soon realize what
an advantage they have.
Even when a parent doesn't play golf, there are
ways that the team can still succeed. The first
is to sit down and work out a "contract". It
starts with the parent asking, "What can I do
to help you play better during and after a
tournament?" Open a discussion together that
reaches an understanding about issues like,
keeping stats for the player, supplying snacks
and drinks during a round, how to be
encouraging, what kind of feedback do I want as
a player, and how to be attentive for four or
five hours to understand what a player went
through. An example is being sure you, as a
parent, know your child's final score was for
the day. Being off a shot or two says you were
not paying attention. A big issue for both
player and parent is knowing what and when to
say something after a bad round and how to
critque the round positively.
The key to good golf is preparation and that
includes the parent/golfer team. Mom & Dad, you
have to be prepared to hear your golfer say "I
like it when or it bothers me when...." and
players you have to accept the same information.
Most of all talk. Talk this winter and spring
before the summer about how to work together.
It's all part of building for success.
Play well !!