A Nice Round of Golf … With Great Life Lessons Thrown In

By Beth Brown, PhD

Why golf? Here are my Top Ten reasons why kids should play golf.

Golf is a great way to:

1.Enjoy the outdoors: Golf gives young people an opportunity to spend a few hours in fresh air, experiencing all types of flora and fauna.

2. Develop lifelong friendships: You never know who you will meet on a golf course, and interaction with others allow young people to develop social skills.

3. Practice personal responsibility: Sometimes the ball doesn’t always bounce your way, but regardless of the outcome, there is no blaming your teammates for what happens.

4. Have a safe place to play: The golf course is a safe place and facilitates mentoring relationships in a safe environment.

5. Learn to manage your emotions: Golf closely parallels real life as one experiences the highs and lows of the game. The range of experience, from birdies to triple bogeys, rewards a young person’s ability to keep each shot in perspective, manage one’s emotions, maintain a positive outlook and focus on the shot at hand.

6. Appreciate diversity: Golf is a game that can be played for a lifetime by anyone regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, size or skill level.

7.Prepare for business: Golf is a sport that helps prepare kids and teens for careers in business and other professional arenas.

8.Learn etiquette: Young people should play golf because it is based on characteristics that are too often missing in today’s win-at-all-costs society. Golf places an emphasis on etiquette. In golf there is no judge or referee; instead, players govern themselves and fellow competitors.

9.Spend time with family: Golf is a game that encourages family participation.

10.Develop healthy habits for life:With the youth obesity epidemic in our country, golf is a sport that helps young people get off the couch. When you play golf, walking the golf course and carrying your bag, a 150-pound person burns 350 calories and walks more than 10,000 steps.