Turning Pro

I am looking for advice and possible a plan to help my son achieve his goal of becoming a golf tour professional. He is 17 and currently playing of 2. He is keen to follow a full time practice and playing plan for 4-5 years while remaining an amateur  before  going to Q School in an attempt to get his tour card. He is currently practicing and playing 5-6 days per week but it has no real structure to it.

He will join the PGA and do the 3 year course if he is not succesfull in getting his card and go onto some other aspect of being a professional golfer.

I would suggest that he tries to get down to 1 handicap, as this is the requirement that is needed to be able to enter the top class Amateur tournaments. Once into this level of competition he will soon find out if he has the other qualities/abilities that are required to win. If he canot win as an amateur then I am afraid he will never win as a professional and then of course he will be like many others who end up just coaching and playing local and regional PGA events.

I am sure that David Lythgoe will be able to offer all the advice direct from the horses mouth as he has been through all of this.

You and your son have some very big decisions ahead.

One massive hurdle is money.

The Europro Tour (or 3rd tier) costs £275 per Tournament and you need top 15's to earn money, about 3 or 4 under over 54 holes. Each Tournament carries a Min Prize Fund of £40,000 (£10,000 to winner)

Your son can enter the 2010 Q-School off 2, 2009 cost £395 to enter (played in April).

If he was successful then he could move up to The Challenge Tour and then The European Tour.

I think he would also have to do his PGA Studies too.

He could also stay Amateur and try to make The County Team and get National Honours. Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry were both off +5 when they turned Pro so had Sponsors after them from Day One. They also signed with Management Companies too, a must for todays Tour Players.

The HARD FACTS are that, for every Rory McIlroy there are 100's of lads who end up selling Mars Bars to Golf Club Members on a week-end and 1000,s who have turned their backs on Tour Play. Realistically to be looking at The European Tour as a 17yr old he should be at least be playing County Golf or even be in the "Elite National Squads".

My advise would be to get a job as a Trainee Assistant and have a go at The Europro Tour for now and see where that takes him.

He is obviously a very good striker so I assume his long game does not need that much work. I used to only practice from 100 yards in and I still do.

S T,

Which is your "Home Club".

John is correct that about 50% of any practice should be from 100yds in.

Here is an Structure

MONDAY - Half hour warm up - 9 holes - 2hr practice on points from 9 holes - Lunch - Half hour warm up - 9 holes - 1hr chipping & putting - warm down.

TUESDAY - Gym work - 9 holes - 1hr practice on points from 9 holes - Lunch - 2hr practice - 1hr chipping & putting - warm down.

WEDNESDAY - Friends get together Comp Day - Play all sorts of competitive games with your friends - discuss what you are thinking and most of all listen to different ideas.

THURSDAY & FRIDAY = same as MONDAY & TUESDAY

SATURDAY & SUNDAY = Play Club Comps and be a Teenager (Chill out)

David, I can see where I went wrong now!!!!

I do the Saturday/Sunday part for the entire seven days, what a wasted time I've had!

Agree with what you have said.

Russ