Juniors
Junior Membership of the Club
Children are able to join the Club and play on the Course from the age of 12 years. The Club has a very deliberate program of low cost membership for Juniors.
Please contact the Club office on (03) 9840 1881 to enquire about our Junior Membership Fees.
Junior Progams
For juniors we offer ongoing development clinics as well as school holiday programs. See our Juniors webpage for information about our approach to junior development.
We are please to participate in the Stuart Appleby Junior Golf Program
Regular kid's clinics are held on Saturday afternoons with our Trainee Golf Professional. Bookings are essential and can be made 1 week in advance through the Pro-Shop, however these clinics do not run through out the school holiday periods. Age is restricted to children between the ages of 6 to 12 years old.
Session times are available at 1pm, 2pm and 3pm. Each session time is restricted to 6 kids only so be prompt with bookings. Lessons run for 1 hour including 1/2 hour of putting and a further 1/2 hour on the driving range.
Cost per Session - $7
Includes Equipment Hire
Kids Programme Philosophy
When we conduct clinics for the kids at Eastern Golf Club we are employing a broad range of techniques to aid their golfing development.
Social Responsibility
The first thing children and parents should understand is even though golf is an individual sport it is conducted within a group. Therefore, safety and etiquette are important aspects of their learning.
Getting hit by a golf club or a golf ball has serious consequences, much more than the bruise you might get from a soccer ball or tennis racquet. We make it clear to children that there are specific areas to play from and areas not to play from.
Golf is played in groups and allowing others to play without distraction is part of the game. The children will often be placed in pairs or groups in order for them to learn basic courtesy to others wanting to learn.
Individual Responsibility
It is also important within the group dynamic for a child to be responsible for his or her own actions.
We are always monitoring the way they interpret the rules, the philosophy and the expectations we have of them.
Often they will be praised and rewarded for good teamwork or awareness of the rules and safety. We will also give penalties to those kids who are unable to work within the team environment we want or who act in an unsafe manner.
Doing everything for a child detracts from their ability to grow. Being responsible instils pride and so we have them carry their own clubs, collect their own golf balls and encourage them to make their own decisions.
Enjoyment
Next to safety, having an enjoyable experience is the most important experience for the kids. As humans we avoid things that make us feel bad and we are attracted to that which makes us feel good. Likewise we enjoy the feeling of success and the confidence we extract from that is very important to keep moving forward. So we always start with the easiest of targets and move up to the harder targets. Experiencing success is paramount for the children to continue to want to play and for their development of target focus.
As a parent you will notice the absence of traditional teaching techniques such as grip and stance. Starting with such techniques is likely to distract them from the true objective of golf.
As the children focus on the objective , that is to hit their target, issues with grip, stance, posture and alignment of clubface will be solved through the childrens own instincts and evolve as they grow in confidence.
