There are many sports you can choose for your children to perform, depending on their abilities and their preferences. You can either take them to learn football, basketball, tennis, or karate, or you can initiate them into the secrets of golf, an elegant and calm sport that requires etiquette and excellent behavior.
Golf has its benefits like learning about oneself or patience as it is not as easy a sport as some might think. Discover below some tips for teaching your children to play golf in a fun and attractive way.
Let the children play
It’s hard to teach a small child how to perform a perfect shot or how to hold onto the club the right way if you don’t let them explore and play their own way. Let your children walk along the course, analyze the holes, and explore the game as they desire. Follow them around and explain their curiosities and stir their interest in a fun way.
Give the child time
Since it will be hard to discipline your child from the beginning, some people take them to the course at times when it is not very crowded, otherwise, you will hold the group behind you. The child will want to run after the ball, rake every bunker and sink putts from two inches, which will mean extra training time that may annoy other groups of golfers.
My personal preference is to take my daughter to the driving. This gives us the necessary time to practice, rest between exercises and play without pressure. At that age, (6 years old) it is more important to maintain an interest in the sport, regularity, and consistency in practice than performance and pressure to perform.
Offer them the right equipment
More than in any other sport, the equipment is very important when it comes to teaching children how to play golf. If you will give your child a club that is too heavy or too stiff, they will have problems handling it and they will hardly achieve a good shot or even a shot.
Therefore, make sure the golf equipment is right for your junior, otherwise they will find this sport cumbersome. Special golf clubs have been designed for children, with a light head and a short shaft. Small golf bags for kids even exist to transport them. The clubs for kids really make a difference giving the child the motivation to play.
Speak their language
When you teach your children the rules of golf, try to speak their own language to make them understand easily. Even adults have problems with terminology, not to mention children and if you will fill their minds with difficult words, they will understand little of what you say or will misunderstand the rules. Never stand when you talk to them, but kneel to make eye contact and use simple words they can understand.
Don’t force the child
Children can lose interest in something if they consider it too difficult or too exhausting, so never force them to keep playing if they want to take a break. If your child has played three holes and wants to rest or drink a soda, (offer him water, just my two cents) let them do so, or you will make them think golf is a burden and will start hating it before starting to like it.
As said before, performance is not that important at an early age. It is better to maintain motivation and interest and forcing a child into a task is hardly the way to go.