7 year old

obi604

Bringing 7 year old to the range tomorrow for first time. Just to get him used to things and how to hold and basic swing etc

he is right handed, so I guess basics should be left hand on top.

when this young, should it be started straight away with interlocking grip or keep it simple with baseball type grip?

any other tips?

ShivasIrons

Tip 1: 5 minute attention spans for 7 year olds so switch to something else every 5 minutes

Tip 2: Left hand on top, right underneath and hands touching for grip, no need for any more detail

Tip 3: Show a swinging action with weight transfer

Tip 4: That's it, don't give any more information other than hit the ball from here to there and do not under any circumstances give advice after every shot about what might have went wrong, let him swing away without dishing out constant advice. Let the kid learn.

obi604

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117847885#Comment_117847885

good tips, thanks !!

half of me is thinking, leave him go to the pro first (group lessons in club) before I give him bad habits.

Tip 2: yeah, he plays hurling and right handed hurlers usually have the right hand on top so this is confusing him a bit

so you reckon don’t even bother mentioning interlocking grip at all yet , I thought be good to get this instilled from beginning

spacecoyote

Yeah, try keep it fun and avoid criticism.

Also, let them swing fast. As Harrington etc... have said, he wishes he'd started off building as much speed as he could as early as possible. Its easier to build speed and power when young and then be able to rein it in, rather than learn to swing slow and try build speed later in life

phelimb

First time out for a 7yr old...I'd suggest just give him a club (wedge/9 iron) and a bunch of balls and let him swing away mad. If he plays hurling he's going to want to hit the ball as hard and far as possible from the start so let him have a few sessions of going mad before slowly introducing the proper stuff of feet positioning, grip, swing etc. Too much advice (criticism) early on will only put him off and take the fun out of it.

obi604

Thanks all. Will have all these tips in mind.

obi604

Brought the young lad out to driving range today and he liked it. Tips were very helpful.

I don’t want to dive in and start buying him gear and clubs yet, until I see if he actually has an interest

What is the best single club to get just for this initial phase - i.e. seeing if he is REALLY interested?

a 7 iron maybe?

gypsy79

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117850655#Comment_117850655

I would say PW

#7 iron might be best if he wanted go on course

start with P&P

obi604

Thanks.

To add to this, more silly q’s, just hypothetical right now.

had a look on Amazon about clubs. Seems you can get a bag and clubs for juniors, but the norm seems to be a wood/hybrid, 2 irons and a putter.

are these 4 clubs normal for kids starting off? Or is this just some Mickey Mouse setup

PARlance

That's standard for a junior set, got my guy a set in sports direct last year and it was a bag, 3 wood, 7, 9 and putter.

They don't seem to have the sets online but there were some in my local store last week. They also sell individual junior irons.

https://ie.sportsdirect.com/golf/golf-clubs#dcp=1&dppp=120&OrderBy=rank&Filter=AFLOR%5EUnisex%20Kids

obi604

Thanks. Price decent too ;) I have a sports direct shop near me. Do they also have clubs in store or are they delivery only, do you know?

PARlance

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117851537#Comment_117851537

Not 100% about them having individual junior clubs but they did have the junior sets. Worth going in and checking it out, they have ordered me stuff from online/other stores in the past so they should be able to get you sorted.

lawred2

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117850655#Comment_117850655

My young lad is the same age and definitely ready to get started.

You say you don't want to jump straight in buying clubs but you hardly gave him your full length wedge did you?

obi604

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117853432#Comment_117853432

nice one, thanks a million

pairofpears

Ask if your local club has a Juniors section and get him involved there. My local club has a Juniors section and they have clubs they hand out on an evenings training.

If you are buying clubs ask around your local club as someone may have a kid moving up to the next size or get them old adult clubs and have them cut down to size as all the kit can get expensive.

My 3 and 6 year old go to the juniors locally and while I dont play golf I always tell kids to just plant their feet and swing the smoothly club in a pendulum type motion to get that muscle memory going.

obi604

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117853467#Comment_117853467

Na, the driving range had junior clubs that he could use

obi604

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117851537#Comment_117851537

i can confirm sports direct have clubs in store (well my local one anyway)

They sell the junior sets and also individual clubs.

I just got a 9 iron for now to see how things go. 15 Euro.

Paulzx

You'll find plenty of second hand junior sets on Adverts as well. Between kids growing out of clubs and kids giving it up there's always plenty of second sets for sale. I bought all my kids clubs second hand on Adverts when they started off. It's an inexpensive way to test the waters

obi604

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117863104#Comment_117863104

my inexpensive way to test the waters is spending this 15 euro on this iron 😁

will give him a few weeks and if he likes it, will look at buying one of these sets on adverts etc

If you intend for them to get into the game long term I’d organise lessons. There are often group lessons for kids.

Irishder

Got these for my fella, seem decent enough. Only problem now is i have become a full time caddy for an 8 year. Cant leave the house without him

https://ie.sportsdirect.com/golf/golf-clubs#dcp=1&dppp=120&OrderBy=rank&Filter=AFLOR%5EUnisex%20Kids

obi604

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117871146#Comment_117871146

Nice one

as in you just purchased individual irons as opposed to a set?

Irishder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117871631#Comment_117871631

Sorry posted wrong link

https://www.decathlon.ie/junior-golf-kits-clubs/304440-63624-junior-golf-kit-8-10-years-right-handers.html#/demodelsize-254no_size/demodelcolor-8519908?queryID=36dc1b4976ae90407a8c8247b6ab01b6&objectID=2615300

obi604

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117871751#Comment_117871751

Thanks, fairly sketchy details on it.

One picture seems to indicate you get 2 woods and then another has just one wood

joebloggs32

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117851435#Comment_117851435

I started swinging a golf club when i could walk.

Started with a cut down 3 iron. Around about 8 came a cut down driver and 9 iron, so along with my putter had 4 clubs.

From that age until 12 thats what i played with. Cash was tight in the 80s.

However I learned how to hit the all the shots. Its the best way to start. I can punch any iron low, but my natural flight is high (maybe too high 🙈). I am always amused when i see a yong kid, 10 years old or so with a full set of clubs.

Everyone in my house had that same apprenticeship from my father....one of whom has been capped for Ireland.

Irishder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117872057#Comment_117872057

Come with Driver, Wood, Pitching Wedge, 7 iron and putter

the long lad

I use the inter-lock grip and I'm a scratch golfer (+1.7 WHS). If I could turn back time I'd never have used it and I know a lot of pros don't teach it any more, so be careful. Leave the grip and other technical teaching to a pro. But I agree with other posters, just let the kid enjoy hitting balls for now.

obi604

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117890741#Comment_117890741

Thank you. What is the general issue with the inter lock grip?

benny79

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117890741#Comment_117890741

Interesting. May I ask why not? As both Rory and Tiger use the inter-locking grip.

NotCarrotRidge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117853712#Comment_117853712

Bang on. I got my putter, 8i and 9i cut down for my two kids, tenner a club. They share the putter. All I've done so far is make sure left hand on top and where to put their feet. After that, they just swing away.

obi604

Seen the below options on Amazon

my lad is 8 on 1st December. he is not very big or overly strong for his age.

would I be better off getting the 5-8 versus the 9-11. Easier for small hands to manage etc

main question; are they better off with clubs on the smaller side rather than the big side?

I know the bigger clubs will last longer but may be hard for him to manage

or maybe the decathlon option is the best.

https://www.decathlon.ie/junior-golf-kits-clubs/304440-63624-junior-golf-kit-8-10-years-right-handers.html#/demodelsize-254no_size/demodelcolor-8519908?queryID=36dc1b4976ae90407a8c8247b6ab01b6&objectID=2615300