Resources for Parent/Caregiver

Thank you for seeking out the best ways to support your athlete!  I applaud you for taking an active role in their physical development, a high percentage of caregivers just turn their athlete's physical development over to the coaches, and unfortunately, not all coaches are adequately educated on development.  That issue is on all of us, the world has changed rapidly and the youth of this world need responsible, educated leadership and guidance.

Let's start with the bad news and get it out of the way.  This generation of youth are projected to live shorter lives than their parents.  For the first time in the history of mankind, parents will have a longer life span than their children.  That's grave news, awful news, as parents and caregivers, The Golf Coaches have decided to champion our efforts to educate you and take this issue on.  This isn't a new issue, around 400 BC Plato said:

"Lack of activity destroys the good condition of every human being, while movement and methodical physical exercise save it and preserve it."

We have just gotten to that point in our society, thru technological advances, that children are slowing down, and that leads to a dim and unhealthy future.

That's a lot, I know.  I was blown away too.  Now on to the good news.

There are many organizations around the world that are championing efforts to support physical literacy, athletic development for life and coach education, so that this generation and future generations can live long healthy lives. 

Every child has the right to play sports and, when in the care of adults, the human rights they are born with need to be respected. This simple idea informs the Children's Bill of Rights in Sports, a new resource designed to create a shared cultural understanding that all youth should have the opportunity to develop as people through sports.

When delivered well, sports participation is one of society's best tools for addressing a range of larger challenges – from obesity prevention to cancer risk reduction, gender equity to the social inclusion of people with disabilities, racial bias to the restoration of civic trust across communities.

Recognizing the human rights of children is key to closing gaps in the availability and quality of sport programs.

Developed by the Aspen Institute through its Project Play initiative, with a working group of human rights and sports policy experts, the Children's Bill of Rights in Sports identifies eight rights:

1. To play sports.
   Organizations should make every effort to accommodate children’s interests to participate, and to help them play with peers from diverse backgrounds.
2. To safe and healthy environments.
   Children have the right to play in settings free from all forms of abuse (physical, emotional, sexual), hazing, violence, and neglect.
3. To qualified program leaders.
   Children have the right to play under the care of coaches and other adults who pass background checks and are trained in key competencies.
4. To developmentally appropriate play.
   Children have a right to play at a level commensurate with their physical, mental and emotional maturity, and their emerging athletic ability. They should be treated as young people first, athletes second.
5. To share in the planning and delivery of their activities.
   Children have the right to share their viewpoints with coaches and for their insights to be incorporated into activities.
6. To an equal opportunity for personal growth.
   Programs should invest equally in all child athletes, free of discrimination based on any personal or family characteristic.
7. To be treated with dignity.
   Children have the right to participate in environments that promote the values of sportsmanship, of respect for opponents, officials, and the game.
8. To enjoy themselves.
   Children have the right to participate in activities they consider fun, and which foster the development of friendships and social bonds.

We encourage leaders – from program operators to policymakers – to treat these rights as guardrails in the design of all sport activities involving youth. Now is the time to establish such minimum conditions.

For moderate & advanced players, we will be discussing junior athletes that have tournament scores low enough to make or are already on their school’s teams.

At this level, you are trying to create some stress, periodically, to your junior athlete’s game.  Remember we learn by failing.  We will create stress through training and through competition.  However, it is mandatory that we also allow for success and adequate recovery.

This is the level where most junior athletes quit.  There is a multitude of reasons for that: development plateaus, scoring barriers, social and parent/caregiver pressure, unable to learn from failure, etc.

The goal at this level of development is to not quit their sport.

How do you support your junior athlete during this period of development?  Understanding the different factors that are creating stress.  Unfortunately, you are the biggest influencer, followed by their peers and their coaches.  This is the time to investigate bringing a professional sports psychologist into the development of your junior athlete.  A sports psychologist is not just about helping your athlete win events, their focus is much broader.  The professional sports psychologist will help your athlete recover, un-pack thoughts, create clarity in decision making, create and organize planning and strategy and will help guide them thru the peaks and valleys they are facing.  Ultimately becoming a guide, alongside you and their coaches, to help navigate the athlete.

How do we Plan my junior athlete’s summer schedule?

You may already have experience with planning your junior athlete’s summer schedule, but here is some information that may aid you.  

Understanding that early success in steps 1 & 2 is very rare is crucial, but the purpose of getting into these events is to create the stress needed for development. It will allow your athlete the opportunity to see what level of play others are at and to develop relationships on a broader scale than just at your local events.

1.  Identify when the USGA Amateur qualifiers are in your location, or in a location easily accessible to you.

2.  Identify any AJGA qualifiers or events in your area.

Remember early on in development, these first two steps are about discovery, learning and creating a desire in your junior athlete to heighten their own skill levels.

3.  Every state has a PGA of America section that hosts Junior Golf Tournaments, plus there are other junior development tournaments. When creating the schedule be sure these State and local events make up most of the tournament calendar.

4.  Research and add a Collegiate summer camp to the schedule. This will involve a time commitment of several days, and 1 or 2 weeks of the summer.  There are factors involved with these camps, finances, and player ability. Consult your high school coach or Teaching Professional for advice on the camp to choose or if one is needed.

5.  After you have identified which of the USGA qualifiers, AJGA events, and PGA events you are going to commit to add some local, less stressful events to their summer. You can still allow for family vacations if desired.

6.  Build your schedule a weekly schedule that includes:

• Lessons
• Practice
• Physical Training
• Sports Psychology
• Tournaments
• Rest & Recovery

Remember this stage in their development is about supporting them.  They will be under more stress than they have ever faced in sports.  Every influencer that makes up the team for your junior athlete should be focused on supporting the athlete and developing them to handle the stresses they will face as they progress.