I am a firm believer that Golf is a great game for kids. The life and general skills gained by playing the game of golf are hugely valuable right through life. It is heart warming that our local golf club – the Waitemata Golf Club in Devonport – is placing a strong emphasis on bringing through our golfers of tomorrow.

Waitemata’s Head Coach Brad Shilton is the guy leading the programme to get youngsters playing the game. He and his team are coaching tomorrow’s golfers, the youngsters who are just taking up the game. Brad, a NZPGA professional since 2012, joined the Devonport-based club a little over a year ago after playing elite level golf for over 20 years. He represented New Zealand as an amateur before turning professional. For 13 years he played as a ‘pro’ on the Australasian and One Asia Tours, competing in events throughout the Asia-Pacific region. He won titles on the Australasian Tour, was third in a European Tour event, had two wins on the Charles Tour and numerous pro-am wins in both New Zealand and Australia.
Every Friday Brad Shilton leads two hours of fun for young budding golfers at the club from 3.30pm. The first hour is for the real beginners. This group is called the SNAGs – Starting New At Golf. The second hour is for youngsters that are a little more advanced. There is usually a total of around 30-40 young golfers across the two hours. They start from as young as five and six years old, with many in the eight to 12 year old bracket. The programme covers those aged five to 15 years old.
“These sessions are all about fun,” explained Brad Shilton when talking about the structure of the Friday afternoon sessions. “The first half an hour involves games and movement skills – running, skipping and rotations etc. The second half an hour we use plastic golf sets so we can get the kids learning the basics of the game. For the real beginners that is usually enough for the day. The slightly more advanced young golfers then stay or come in for the next hour. For the first half of the second part we use proper golf gear for drills on the putting green and to hits balls on the driving range. The final 30 minutes of the two hour Friday coaching clinic involves actually playing some holes on the course.”
“The youngsters can join in to what they want to do. Some do the whole two hours. Some skip the early parts and come later. It is very satisfying seeing the improvements being made and the enjoyment. Friends are made as well.
“My aim is to get a competition going for our young golfers on a Sunday when the weather improves. This will include a warm-up, then play a few holes, maybe starting with an Ambrose (teams) competition. We are keen to also have events that involve the parents as well as the kids, to make it a real family affair."
The club has around 60 junior members, with 30 to 40 of these attending coaching regularly.
In addition to these Friday sessions, Brad has also been conducting ‘Have A Go’ Golf Days at local schools as part of a New Zealand Golf initiative. These fun events have been conducted recently at Stanley Bay, Belmont Primary and Vauxhall Schools.
If you are keen to get your youngster off the screen/device for a few hours on a Friday afternoon and into the healthy game of golf, then Brad Shilton and the Waitemata Golf Club have got the answer. It’s called SNAGs, and it happens every week. Contact Brad Shilton or just bring your youngsters along from 3pm on a Friday to have a go.
Brad Shilton, Phone – 021 988 693 Email: bradshilton@gmail.com.

Waitemata Golf Club, 15 Derby Street, Devonport.

Phone 09 445 8716
email: admin@waitematagolf.co.nz
Visit: www.waitematagolf.co.nz