KUALA LUMPUR: Parents should not force their kids to play golf, says European Tour’s Gavin Green.
Instead, he said children should be given the chance to make their own choices.
The 24-year-old conducted a golf clinic at the inaugural Gavin Green-SportExcel Junior Amateur competition at the TPC Kuala Lumpur in Bukit Kiara yesterday.
Many parents and children bombarded Green with questions on golf during the event.
“Many (the children) were asking about the things I did to become better. I needed to explain to them in detail as I felt some were too young to understand certain aspects.
“A parent came up to me and asked if my parents (Gary and Vivienne) had pushed me to play golf. I replied they never did. It gets hard on the kids if you push them.
“Children need to enjoy golf first. If they don’t then stop. The last thing you want to do is to force them,” said Gavin.
The 2017 Taiwan Masters champion said some parents need to have a better understanding on how to help their children to become a successful professional player.
“They need to have a good coach, one who will guide and help them. Make sure the coaches are certified.
“There are good coaches (in Malaysia) but the ones overseas are slightly better in terms of experience,” he added.
Gavin, who secured his 2019 European Tour card after finishing in the top 110, said it is great to have his parents and brother Galven helping him in tournaments.