Video: Year End Roundtable On The Youth Movement

I continue to be confounded by the number of pro golfers who are so good at what they do at such a young age. Male or female, players are blossoming earlier in life than ever before, and in this digital-only segment taped after the year-end roundtable, Tim Rosaforte, Matt Adams and I discuss the kids.

The actual shows air Saturday and Sunday at 6, 6:30, 11 and 11:30 p.m. ET. 

Comments

[meefer]

"I continue to be confounded by the number of pro golfers who are so good at what they do at such a young age."

Respectfully, Geoff, I continue to be amazed at the hype young golfers receive. Yes, Speith has had a great couple of years, but it hasn't been sustained over the course of 5-10 years. Rory might be the closest to having achieved the title of being a great young golfer, but he too has yet to sustain for years. Lydia may be the exception :-) but for every Inbee, there are far more who hit the scene with a splash and then sink quickly. Patrick Reed was a young buck who was bound for greatness a few years back, would you argue it now? Looking back at the Rookie of the Year awards since 1990, there are but three players on the PGA tour I'd call great: Woods, Els and VJ. I may be quibbling about the use of the word 'great' but quibble away I will. These youngins can hit it a mile, but they've proved diddly to me when it comes to being called great golfers. Time will out.

[No Internet Connection]

Combine good fundamentals (grip, posture, alignment) with the modern driver, and it easy to see how young golfers can excel so quickly. I would argue that the quality of drivers from manufacturer to manufacturer is very good, and the consistency of the modern driver shaft is also exceptionally good. As a matter of fact, today's young aspiring golfer can pick a driver head and try it with many different shafts. Given good fundamentals, there is no trick to hitting the driver long and straight.

Back when drivers were difficult to hit, it took some talent, and experience, to learn to play them. First, you had to find one that worked for you (adjustable face angles and lofts have made driver fitting relatively easy). Then, you had to learn when you could let the shaft out, and when you had to change strategy to get the ball into play. That talent and experience separated Nicklaus, Trevino, etc from lots of the rest.

As golf has evolved to a game where putting separates the best from the rest, it is no wonder that youth is served. Ask any major champion, and they will tell you that their best putting years were before they turned 30.

We should ask ourselves this question: do we want a game where the equipment makes it easy to excel at an early age, or do we want the task of getting the ball from tee to green to be harder, and reward the experienced?

[Geoff]

meefer,
I agree there is too much hype going on. Just look at 2013 when Keegan Bradley and Webb Simpson were the future of the game. That was two years ago. And many of these next Nicklaus' will flame out sooner than ever because they can cash in and lose interest faster, free to enjoy their millions at a young age. There is also the schedule, commitment and strain of constant exposure that figures to send a few to early retirement.

Clearly much of the hype is money related. Selling a wave of youngsters is easier to Madison Avenue than a wave of 43 year olds. That said, there is something almost shocking about how much confidence and ability players have a younger ages. Much, as we discussed in the show, is equipment and technology related. Which isn't all a bad thing when you have people smarter than ever as instructors, life coaches, managers, caddies, etc... feeding more refined information to talented golfers. (My views as to how the technology impacts courses are well known and I still think we can enjoy the benefits without sacrificing our courses.)

Also, in the defense of those who keep making it a topic, remember that golf is just happy to have a nice story to tell after the Woods scandal years. And I certainly get that.

[meefer]

Geoff,
Keagan and Webb were two who I chose not to mention, and yet truly exemplify the concern I have with respect to the qualifier 'great'. "That said, there is something almost shocking about how much confidence and ability players have a younger ages.", to me is the basis of discussion. I don't argue that these young player have technical abilities, but technical abilities do not translate to 'greatness'. I suppose, I'm falling into the trap of comparing today's youth much the same way as we've argued whether Tiger's greatness is akin to to Jack's because of result vs competition - perhaps poorly said, but those interested can check my prior posts to to determine - yet I view these young golfers in the same way I view Tiger's competitors. For the most part, they are technically sound, but they fail the 'win' test, which to my eye is the most important test of all. Cheers.