Junior Golf: Relive Some Good Memories

In today’s Wednesday Waggle we want to relive some of those good memories from your junior golfer’s 2016 experiences.

It’s a common thing. Businesses do it, newscasters do it, so why shouldn’t you and your daughter do it as well. The difference is that you and your girl want to focus on the positives, not the negatives as is common, particularly with the news. (Dufner photo golfdigest.com)

The brain is powerful and so are memories. As parents we want to encourage our kids to fill their sponge-like brains with as much positivity as possible. By reliving the good times we stimulate smiles, laughter, a sense of enjoyment and wanting to have more fun times in the future.

And those good times on the golf course imprint a feeling of achievement, a can do attitude. I’ve done it once and I can do it again. Success feeds off success!

So talk about that great shot she made! Or mention an amazing up-and-down she completed to save par! Or bring up that long snaking putt that went right into the center of the cup! Stay positive. Her brain needs to be filled with positive thoughts!

And a quick reminder that some of the golf stores, both brick and mortar and online are having some ridiculous prices right now. Some are advertising various products for up to 75% off. I know we still need a couple of new golf bags. I’d better take a look!

See you on #1 tee thinking about those good shots… Sam

Junior Golf: No Artificial Sweeteners

In this Friday Flop Shot we will continue our look at the world of sweets. Congratulations on wanting to take control of your family’s health. This process is a marathon, not a sprint. It requires constant vigilance and a desire for more education. A critical step is controlling everyone’s sweet tooth and in our family part of that process is avoiding artificial sweeteners. No artificial sweeteners. (photo offcoursegolf.com)

The 3 most common are saccharin, aspartame and sucralose (Splenda). These are found in 1,000’s of food items, even in some canned vegetables and can be very difficult to find on the label because a number of different names are used to confuse us, the consumers. To help with the confusion factor, consider buying only products that have ingredients that you can pronounce or at least have some idea what they are and are fewer in number. When you see sugar or cane sugar on the label, it’s pretty clear where the “sweet” comes from. In the USA beet sugar is mostly made from genetically modified beets, GMO’s, so we never knowingly consume sugar from USA sugar beets.

Saccharin has been around forever, perhaps even 100 years. There was a time it received little negative press, but as research has become more sophisticated and our understanding of our body’s functions has increased, it has led our family to avoid it and other artificial items, especially artificial sweeteners.

Aspartame is everywhere, or at least it can seem like it! The 1st time I heard something negative about it was in the late 1980’s when an article in a Pilot’s magazine talked about an increasing number of pilots having headaches and other head issues. What they all had in common was they each drank 4 or more diet sodas per day. There are now 100’s of studies pointing out the potential harmful effects of consuming aspartame, including the possibility of pregnant women giving birth to an autistic child because of drinking diet sodas loaded with aspartame. (photo rawforbeauty.com)

Splenda-sucralose is in 4,500 products so read labels carefully. While the clever advertising makes it sound relatively healthy, we do not consume it!

Mom and Dad please remember that we do not necessarily believe FDA guidelines. In fact, this agency may have changed classifications on these 3 items from safe to cancer causing, back to safe or even to another category. The best way we have found to deal with all this is to just avoid the products completely and read some informative articles as we are led.

It is all controversial! As you grow in your steps of taking control of your family’s health, you will begin to feel more confident and more at peace with your decisions and your family’s health will improve!

See you on #1 tee looking genuine… Sam

Junior Golf Parents – Gary Player on Why Golf for Kids!

Parenting Junior Golfers is an exciting time of life!

During an interview prior to the start of the 2012 British Open Championship, World Golf Hall of Fame Member and golfing legend Gary Player was asked why there were so many talented younger professional golfers?  His response was that the United States and South Africa have by far the best Junior Golf Programs in the world today -so many of these exceptional younger pros are from those two countries.

To paraphrase Player, The people in America should kiss the ground of that country every day.  When asked why golf is such a great sport for kids, the always optimistic, energetic and enthusiastic Player continued:  “Golf is a friend-making factory!  In one four-hour round of golf you can make a friend for a lifetime.  Golf is an ageless sport-you can easily play into your 80’s or longer.”

I concur with Player wholeheartedly. Here are few more reasons why your child would benefit from playing golf:

As a rule, golf people are good people and golf courses are good places for kids to spend time.  And most JG’s are polite, well-spoken and well-mannered-the kind of kids you want your child to be around.

Golf will help get your Junior Golfer in shape and keep them in shape.  It is a sport of flexibility and balance and strength-all important for a lifetime of good health.  And the Vitamin D they get from sun exposure is super healthy!

Honesty, integrity, confidence and perseverance are just some of the life skills your Junior Golfer will be able to experience.   Golf is very healthy as a character-building environment.

The risk of injury in golf is minimal when compared to other sports.  A sprain, bruise, some sunburn or tendonitis covers the great majority of golf injuries.  You just don’t need to worry about your child’s sport being a threat to their health.  Golf is a benefit to their health!

Junior Golf in the U. S. is more popular than ever!  Top quality coaches, courses, clinics, inexpensive/beginner’s equipment and proper attire are readily available.  And there are so many Junior Golf Tournaments, for players of every level, you can barely keep up with them.

Junior Golf promotes life skills combined with competition.  And along with competition comes pressure-a lot like life.  After you introduce your kiddo to golf and if they “take to” it, you are in for years of quality time together.  You will watch your Junior Golfer grow up and become more mature right before your eyes.

I love promoting the game of golf, especially to young people as they are the future of the sport… now, get out there and play! – Sam