Yardage or no yardage

[wildcatden]

Had a discussion on the range the other day about giving yardages to the green/front edge/pin to juniors age 10 and under when those yardages are 30 yards or less.

 

Do you give your junior those shorter yardages (perhaps via range finder) or do you just let them “feel” the shot knowing they have a wedge of some type in their hands?

[Kcct82]

I used to give exact distances from the range finder, but now I just tell him “about 10 (20, 30) yards” to serve as a guide in the big picture. I think he makes better shots without a preconceived distance. I also figured the sooner he can play without me the better. He’s 6 YO.

[hangontight]

8 Year old Boy. He doesn't have a specific club/shot for anything less than a full stock SW (68-70 Carry), just eyeball & feel for anything less and different clubs depending on what shot calls for and comfort. Anything that looks 50 or more I will shoot to verify, but wont tell him yardage unless its a full SW or more. My logic was to develop his feel and intuition. However, his approach wedges lately have suffered so I have considered trying to peg some stock yardages on less than full swings (i.e. - half SW ,3/4 LW, etc.). Not sure the right combo, but I can tell you its super annoying (and slow) when we get paired with someone who needs to verify their 13 yard chip shot from off the front of the green with a rangefinder.....same with having a steps/putt speed formula on the green. Just feel like these things hinder feel & creativity.

[wildcatden]

> @hangontight said:

> 8 Year old Boy. He doesn't have a specific club/shot for anything less than a full stock SW (68-70 Carry), just eyeball & feel for anything less and different clubs depending on what shot calls for and comfort. Anything that looks 50 or more I will shoot to verify, but wont tell him yardage unless its a full SW or more. My logic was to develop his feel and intuition. However, his approach wedges lately have suffered so I have considered trying to peg some stock yardages on less than full swings (i.e. - half SW ,3/4 LW, etc.). Not sure the right combo, but I can tell you its super annoying (and slow) when we get paired with someone who needs to verify their 13 yard chip shot from off the front of the green with a rangefinder.....same with having a steps/putt speed formula on the green. Just feel like these things hinder feel & creativity.

 

 

 

SW with 68-70 yard carry? Dang, my 8YO (8.5 years old) is far, far behind. He's probably more like 45 yards carry maximum with that club (USKG TS-51 SW).

[Kcct82]

Yeah, that’s huge for 56 degrees, 40 yards only for my 6 YO.

[wkuo3]

> @wildcatden said:

> Had a discussion on the range the other day about giving yardages to the green/front edge/pin to juniors age 10 and under when those yardages are 30 yards or less.

>

> Do you give your junior those shorter yardages (perhaps via range finder) or do you just let them “feel” the shot knowing they have a wedge of some type in their hands?

 

This is the time where some of us are heavily depending on the technology.

Personally, I believe the young players should know to play the game without a garbage device.

To learn from their eys=es, senses to the surroundings ( yardage marker, elevation , weather....).

I feel sad when someone depending on GPS to navigate on the roadways. Bad weather or interference with the satellite signals cause all the last minute lane change where there are road signs miles away to the exchange junction.

We had a discussion of no kids knows how to read a nanlog clock for time, nor reading a map for direction.

I know, it's not "necessary" to learn the old ways. But what if one day there is service interruption ? It could come from changing weather, blockage caused by topography or tall sky scrapers, fallout ........... They don't even know the Sun rises from the East.

True story, a client of mine ( generation Y = millennial ) took his family to Southern California. Totally depending on the GPS guidance system. They missed a couple of exchanges on the Interstate near Los Angeles. Due to lost of GPS signal under the skyscrapers, cloudy weather and the 3-4 layers of freeway bridges on top of each other..........

Technology is there to assist us, to make our life easier but not totally depending on it.

 

I feel the the young golfers should start with using their eyes and their human computers between their ears and gradually introduced to the yardage device.

 

 

 

[hangontight]

Only put the yardage in my post as it related to the OP question. Certainly no intent to to boast- there is nothing to gain, haha. He is almost 9 (oct), and that is a FULL Lick at it with the SW. Wedges are TS-54. That yardage is about on par with what we’ve seen other kids in 8’s shoot at recent tmnts. Verifying wedge and low iron numbers on flightscope at next lesson, but that is the number we’ve played for his SW since spring. If that number is off- I will humbly return with correction. Haha. I will say is overall yardage has jumped considerably at the beginning of year- maybe a growth spurt , form, extremely high humidity in S. Carolina. who knows.

@Kcct82 , you will see some big jumps in next few years- big difference between 6 and 8 all around.

Anyway, I digress. Getting a little off topic.

[Belmont148]

Don't know about my kid, but all of my best scores have come when I left the range finder in the bag. I think you tend to be more conservative when guessing, and it helps out more times than hurts.

[leezer99]

Here's how it works for my son.

 

Son: "how far to the flag?"

Me: "65 yards"

Son: chunks it 20 yards.

[BloctonGolf11]

Below 50 I let him feel it out and do his thing. 9 years old.

[Moxley]

My son is too young for this to be relevant at the moment, but when it is I would err on the side of letting him build up the skill (i.e. no yardage)

[MikekiM]

On a straightforward chip/pitch shot I let him feel it out. If there's something he has to clear like a bunker of a hazard or something, or if there's a tier in a green he has to get onto I'll give him a specific number he has to hit past, or short of, just to help.

[leezer99]

Here's a pro tip. When you get to an approach shot let the kid take a guess at the yardage but then laser it and let them know what it really is. They're going to get it really wrong for a while but it will help them develop better eyes for distances.

[darter79]

I do shoot them bc we have practiced shots of those distances because we have them ALL the TIME. We have what we call waist shots, rib shots, L to L, you get the idea. On both there is a smooth and full. But I do agree with have them guess how far then give them the yardage really good for judging distances.

 

[mrshinsa]

> @hangontight said:

> Only put the yardage in my post as it related to the OP question. Certainly no intent to to boast- there is nothing to gain, haha. He is almost 9 (oct), and that is a FULL Lick at it with the SW. Wedges are TS-54. That yardage is about on par with what we’ve seen other kids in 8’s shoot at recent tmnts. Verifying wedge and low iron numbers on flightscope at next lesson, but that is the number we’ve played for his SW since spring. If that number is off- I will humbly return with correction. Haha. I will say is overall yardage has jumped considerably at the beginning of year- maybe a growth spurt , form, extremely high humidity in S. Carolina. who knows.

> @Kcct82 , you will see some big jumps in next few years- big difference between 6 and 8 all around.

> Anyway, I digress. Getting a little off topic.

 

SW at 70 means, 9 irons should be around 95 and 7 iron around 130. Hybrid should be around 150, and woods around 180, and Driver at 220+. He should be driving all the greens on par 4's at US Kids yardages. :o :o :o

 

 

 

 

[hangontight]

> @mrshinsa said:

> > @hangontight said:

> > Only put the yardage in my post as it related to the OP question. Certainly no intent to to boast- there is nothing to gain, haha. He is almost 9 (oct), and that is a FULL Lick at it with the SW. Wedges are TS-54. That yardage is about on par with what we’ve seen other kids in 8’s shoot at recent tmnts. Verifying wedge and low iron numbers on flightscope at next lesson, but that is the number we’ve played for his SW since spring. If that number is off- I will humbly return with correction. Haha. I will say is overall yardage has jumped considerably at the beginning of year- maybe a growth spurt , form, extremely high humidity in S. Carolina. who knows.

> > @Kcct82 , you will see some big jumps in next few years- big difference between 6 and 8 all around.

> > Anyway, I digress. Getting a little off topic.

>

> SW at 70 means, 9 irons should be around 95 and 7 iron around 130. Hybrid should be around 150, and woods around 180, and Driver at 220+. He should be driving all the greens on par 4's at US Kids yardages. :o :o :o

>

>

>

>

Haha, I knew this was coming! I guess deserve the scrutiny for posting any kind of number on WRX- fair game! Your numbers above put gaps between SW-G-P-9 at 12.5 yards and then 9 -8- 7 iron at 17.5 yards/club? No way- more like 7 yards in short irons and shrink some as you go up.....normal with kids slower swing speeds, right? Maybe your formula is for adults with full length clubs ? Not sure of the science or internet fact -checking methods behind it all. Your other number estimates are way high as well. Anyhow, said before- I only mentioned it because it was relevant to OP question. I sent you a PM - don’t want to carry this thread off topic. Hate that!

 

[Mtngolfer1]

I may be of the minority here, however I have always relied on my kids own eyes to determine yardage. When my son was young we didn't have electronic yardage devices so he learned to use the course markers. We have followed a similar approach with my daughters with the exception of having a range finer in the bag now . Our course has yardages on sprinkler heads and a marker at 100, 150, 200, but some courses that she plays have eliminated the markers, some have sprinkler yardages and some don't. What I have found with my older daughter is with or without yardages, she often plays by feel or what fits her eye. Example, I will ask her what she thinks, she will say this feels like a 8 iron with my 9 O-clock swing and more often than not she pulls it off. I use to question her or push her to possibly consider a 9 iron at a full swing for example and that never seemed to work out for either of us, so I now rely on her own decision making skills and it has been that way since she was about 9 or 10. Now my 8 year old she is pulling out the range finder on every shot. She will likely grow up to be a carpenter because she definitely measures twice and cuts once. but it works for her, so we go with it.