Junior golf: the sequence that keeps a child playing
Buy by height and buy used, start on the putting green, use MyGolf clinics, and treat the heat as the real risk.
Children rarely give up because of the golf. They give up because they carried a bag that was too heavy, played eighteen holes too soon, or because a parent offered three tips per shot. The order that works.
Equipment that fits, bought used
A cut-down adult club does not become a junior club: the shaft stays too stiff and the head too heavy. Buy a junior set for the child’s height, second-hand, and change it when they grow. Ten centimetres of growth means a new set — that is the normal rhythm.
Three clubs are enough for a long time: a wood, a mid-iron, a putter. A light bag the child carries themselves.
Start on the putting green
Putting is the only shot where a seven-year-old is immediately as good as an adult, and the only place where an hour passes without fatigue or frustration. The first sessions happen there, then in the chipping area. The driver comes much later.
Group programs rather than individual lessons
MyGolf is Golf Australia’s national junior program for children aged roughly five to twelve, run as games-based clinics at clubs and public venues around the country; costs and times are set by each venue, so check the listing for the one near you. The group matters more than the quality of the coaching: a child comes back for their friends.
What the parent must not do
- Do not coach. The parent’s job is driving, paying and saying nothing about the swing.
- Do not keep score before the child asks for it.
- No eighteen holes. Three or six holes in the evening, and stop while it is still fun.
The format that sticks
Forward tees, reachable flags, nine holes as a scramble with an adult. Golf becomes a game in which you score rather than an exercise in which you fail. Plenty of clubs have short courses or academy loops: find them, they are what produces players.
The rhythm
One session a week is enough until ten. A child who wants two will ask; a child pushed into three stops at thirteen. Progress in golf is counted in years, and the variable that matters most is the number of years played.
Handicaps and membership
A GA Handicap normally comes with club membership, and most clubs price junior membership far below adult rates — ask the club directly, the range across the country is enormous. Providers also issue a recognised GA Handicap without traditional club membership; a comparison published by GolfWatch in 2026 puts those subscriptions in the region of A$60 to A$110 a year, so check the current fee with the provider before signing up.
Heat is the real risk
A child in 35-degree heat stops enjoying golf within an hour and can get into genuine trouble. Play early or late through summer, put the hat and the water bottle before everything else, and treat a hot afternoon as a reason to go to the putting green instead.
