Preparation in a practice round

Sean has an AJGA event scheduled for later this month at a nearby course, where we played a practice round yesterday. We brought a couple of his buddies from the club along.

One thing I noticed out of the gate was how much the three boys enjoy playing with each other. I hadn't really been in the mix like this since they were much younger. There was ton's of good natured ribbing and laughs, they are so familiar with each other. They have become best friends, bound by their passion for golf, though I don't think they know it yet.

In a post-mortem after last season, one of the things Sean's coach Bobby suggested he try to do this season is to prepare for tournaments better. He suggested Sean get a practice round in well before an event, if possible, and to go back home to work on any special shots it might take to get around the course.

After a few holes I noticed Sean was sort of lagging behind, before I realized he was taking measurements and jotting down notes. Using his rangefinder to sight targets from landmarks.

In watching him, my dominant thought was how cool it was not to have to tell him to do any of this. He just did it all on his own, quietly and without any fanfare.

The kid's head is definitely in the game. And while there was a sense of purpose to the round, he was also having a blast just goofing around with his buddies.

I felt very fortunate to be a part of this light-hearted day. If more Dad's knew how much fun a day like this could be with their sons, there would probably be a lot fewer kids going into soccer and baseball and football.