04maturation of young golfers
were any young american players listening to ireland’s padraig harrington
last week? harrington believes the fact that the pga tour increasingly is the
preferred circuit for the world’s best golfers is making it even more difficult
for young u.s. talent to learn to win or, more specifically, to get in a position to
learn how to win. “in a good season over here for a young player,” harrington
said, “he might get in contention three or four times, might win once. where-
as in a good season for a young player in europe, he gets in contention 12
times and wins twice, maybe three times. and the 12 times he’s in contention,
he’s going to learn a lot from those.” (for a case in point look no further than
the last two major champions, european tour players graeme mcdowell and
louis oosthuizen.) years ago, before the nationwide tour was around, young
americans often went abroad to compete. if they want to become seasoned
golfers who don’t feel as if they’re beating their heads against the wall trying
to learn how to win against the world’s best on the pga tour, it might not be
a bad idea to get that passport in order. winning begets winning, and stiff
competition makes it harder than ever for newcomers.
Louis Oosthuizen
Graeme McDowell
J.d. cuban; andy lyons/getty images
contents // 10 things // wgc-bridgestone //pga tour //champions tour // equipment //tim rosaforte
