Q Golf - Official online magazine for Golf Queensland Autumn 2014 | Page 15

signing on at North Queensland’s 26
affiliated golf clubs.

girls start thinking of boys and the
boys start thinking of girls and cars.”

“At the moment the numbers seem
to be growing, especially among
the younger kids,” he said. “If we
can get them young there’s a good
chance we’ll keep them in the game.

Still, Bob remains positive about
growing the game at the grassroots
through organised golf clinics and
competitions.

“The problem is when they are 18
they leave the junior ranks and
a parent who has been a strong
supporter goes as well.”
North Queensland has produced a
number of good players down the
years, but these days elite players
are thin on the ground.
“There are a few good players
around, but they have to develop
further,” Bob said. “Up here (North
Queensland) the better golfers are
a big fish in a small pond, but when
they go to Brisbane they become a
small fish in a very big pond.
“Of course, there are plenty of other
distractions including other sports
to contend with,” Bob added. “And
when they become teenagers, the

“We have three, six and nine-hole
junior competitions and most of
the clubs in North Queensland run
open days,” Bob said. “We also have
junior pennants once a year for the
nine and 18-hole kids.”
Occasionally, Bob has had to fill in
to make up the numbers, but he has
yet to win a match. “I always lose
and all the parents ask, ‘why do you
always get beaten’?
“I say, ‘well, I can’t beat one of the
kids – it wouldn’t be right’.”
A number of years ago, Golf
Queensland quizzed Bob on junior
development methods in North
Queensland, which unsurprisingly
are slightly more relaxed compared
to southeast Queensland.

www.golfqueensland.org.au

“I said, ‘well, last Sunday I was
walking down the seventh hole with
four girls looking for a spot to tee
off’,” Bob told the Golf Queensland
official.
“I said to the girls, ‘here’s a nice
grassy spot, we’ll tee off from here’.
“One of the girls said, ‘No Mr Bob,
we haven’t finished talking yet’.
“So, I sat down on the grass and
talked to them for a while and then
they were happy to tee off. You can’t
force them to play – you just have to
go with the flow.”
Bob says the secret to keeping
youngsters interested in the game is
“patience and understanding’.
“We had a junior forum in January
and asked one young player what he
wanted to get out of the game,”
he said.
“He said, ‘I want golf to be fun, I
want to play with my mates, I want
to make new friends and I want to
enjoy it’. If that’s what kids want
then that’s what we have to do.”

Q Golf Online Autumn 2014 15

‘Platty’ says patience and understanding is the key to keep youngsters interest in golf