This season will mark my 30th year playing the game, and I often think about what it might be life starting the game at 45 instead of starting at 15. My beginning in golf was an interesting one. Catholic High School JV basketball player ends up in an altercation with Varsity coach in a snowy parking lot; and let’s just say…playing for his varsity team the following year…yeah, that was going to be a problem.
The next Spring, Golf Course Owner Guy found golf. At that point I knew nothing about golf. Any shot in the air was good, birdies were the bomb, bogeys were expected. No one cared if I shot 70 or 100. There was always tomorrow, and I would simply try to improve. BUT…what if I had to learn the game at 45?
Fast forward to an imaginary 45 year old version of myself just finding golf:
I’m a businessman, I’m supposed to be good at things I put my mind to. I’m supposed to get results. I have pride, but more importantly, I probably have an ego that simply isn’t designed to learn golf. I don’t want to be bad at something. I don’t have time to be bad at something. What if the way I play affects my relationships, what if the fact that I don’t play affects my relationships? Who will I humble myself to when I need help? I hate asking for help…
Nick Just Finding Golf as a Middle Aged Man
Learning Game at 45…There’s Better Ways
I say all that, to say this…Simply expose your children or grandchildren to the game. They don’t have to have a good swing. They don’t have to accomplish any scoring bench mark. Just make it familiar for them. Even if they don’t play again until they are 45, something will happen….
Their first experience with the game will be ego-free. They will explore, they will aspire, and they probably won’t care too much about what is happening around them. That is the best way to begin in the game. Starting at 45 just brings mental baggage. For those who have started late…my advice is simple. Pretend you are a kid. Any thought you could generate about your standing in the game is nothing more than a made up thought of your ego. Let it go. Golf accepts everyone.
