I've been taking my nephew, who is 12, to the course pretty frequently lately. Over the past few days, I've even been able to take one of his friends. And in his summer junior-league that he plays on Mondays, I caddied for him yesterday.

Now on Sunday the course was pretty slow, so we all had a great time for the first 14 hole or so just goofing off. It was a blast. But over the last four holes, the mid-day rush caught up to us. Now, fortunately, our round was almost done.

I try to cement into these kids' heads that they are allowed to take their time when they are shooting. But in between shots, they need to hurry up.

Now the interesting thing was on the round I caddied on Monday, I was still trying to instill this aspect of the game into my nephew and his friend, and it was pretty obvious that the other parent that was accompanying the group was getting annoyed by my constant insistence that they abide by the rules and keep up the pace of play even though it was a junior league with only kids playing. An example is that I don't let them trade clubs because, even though they aren't keeping score at this point, the inevitable end result is that one of the kids is on one side of the fairway without the club he needs because it is in his friends bag.

Now I'm always throwing compliments their way even when they have sub-par shots. I'm not coaching during the league becuase I figure that is their chance to have some fun. I don't coach my nephew when his friends are with for the same reason. I coach him when we are playing as a twosome or when we are on the driving range. But when it comes to pace of play, I think that's ALWAYS important even when it is only kids being held up behind us.

So what are the thoughts here? Am I being too hard on them? SHould I let them share clubs (for instance) when they aren't keeping score? I guess I keep on going back to when I was 12. Perhaps I wasn't the most considerate golfer at age 12, but I knew that there were some things (like sharing clubs) that simply weren't allowed.

Thoughts?

Let them trade clubs. I have no problems with my 10 year old on the course, we play pretty fast. That`s why i`m pissed when no one lets us plauy through.

player wrote:

I have no problems with my 10 year old on the course, we play pretty fast.

Wow, you started your family early.

Bryan K wrote:

Now the interesting thing was on the round I caddied on Monday, I was still trying to instill this aspect of the game into my nephew and his friend, and it was pretty obvious that the other parent that was accompanying the group was getting annoyed by my constant insistence that they abide by the rules and keep up the pace of play even though it was a junior league with only kids playing.

If someone was getting visibly irritated I might have backed off a bit. Still, you are right to start your nephew off on the right foot with regard to pace of play.

the problem with them sharing clubs is that they always end up on opposite ends of the fairway when they find that one of their friends has one of the clubs they need. Plus, the exact reason why courses have rules against sharing clubs is because it slows down the pace. I mean, I'm one of those guys who actually likes to wait a minute or two on each tee box. I don't like waiting any longer, and I don't like rushing on every hole. But when I finish a hole with a group waiting behind me and no one ahead of me, it drives me crazy.

bkuehn1952 wrote:

If someone was getting visibly irritated I might have backed off a bit. Still, you are right to start your nephew off on the right foot with regard to pace of play.

The interesting dynamic here is that this particular parent is a guy who I do not think I'd want to golf with, and there aren't many people like that. I was annoyed by him by the time the kids were done teeing off on the first hole, and my nephew and his friend were actually talking about how much they were hoping he wouldn't be there before we even got to the course. But at the same time, I think I gave his kid more compliments than he did.

I think you are right to let them know about pace of play and not sharing clubs. If they are playing in front of adults and acting up goofing off they could get in some hot water and be turned off by the game. I wouldnt want the other parent there either. Also with trading clubs, they should play there own sets so they can learn to play with their clubs.

Why can`t the kids just use a DIFFERENT club if they have thier own bag?

player wrote:

Why can`t the kids just use a DIFFERENT club if they have thier own bag?

The spirit of the rule is to speed up play. Some of the courses I play have the rule that states that each player must have their own set of clubs. Other courses have a rule that states that no sharing of clubs is allowed.

And, as I've stated, I let them share clubs for a few holes, but the end result was aways that one kid would be one side of the fairway needing his club that a kid on the other side of the fairway had. I gotta be honest here and say that the hardest part about teaching my nephew to golf has been getting him to understand that pace of play is a huge part of the game.

Next time, try playing in the LAST tee time of the day so you don`t hold anyone up.

The only time I've seen clubs traded/loaned is on the tee. If people are running back and forth between bags, you might as well be in a cart.

I would say that they should play with what is in their bag. If you don't have the right club, learn to make the shot with the wrong club. They'll be better players for it in the long run.

player wrote:

Next time, try playing in the LAST tee time of the day so you don`t hold anyone up.

lol...I prefer to play the first tee time of the day:)

My sister's kids always have things going on in the evening. My nephew plays in a highly competitive traveling soccer league. He's either got a game or practice six nights a week over most of the summer.

mjaber wrote:

The only time I've seen clubs traded/loaned is on the tee. If people are running back and forth between bags, you might as well be in a cart. I would say that they should play with what is in their bag. If you don't have the right club, learn to make the shot with the wrong club. They'll be better players for it in the long run.

I totally agree, but I don't think it's about whether or not they can make the right shot. It's about wanting to try a different club to see how they hit it.