If I have to point out to one thing in 2015 that impressed me most in the world of golf, it has to be the march of the youth.
I clearly remember the time when I was planning to turn professional. I was 20 and toying with the idea while playing college golf in the United States, and there were so many people who told me it was too early to make that decision.
The most common refrain was that golf was a sport where experience played a huge role and that the golden years for a golfer was in the late 30s. A majority of people I spoke to then, advised me to continue playing amateur golf for a few more years so that I am matured and better prepared for the rigours of professional golf.
Cut to the present day and it is just mind-boggling how good these 20-somethings have become. Starting from the decision to turn professional, almost everything seems to happen to them at a much younger age. We have seen the demography shift for the last few years, a trend kick-started by Tiger Woods, but 2015 was possibly the starkest reminder of how young the sport has become.
At the end of the year, we have a men’s No. 1 in the form of a 22-year-old, and a ladies’ No. 1 who is just 18. Jordan Spieth and Lydia Ko are not some freak phenomenon… they are actually becoming the norm.
Spieth, along with Jason Day and Rory McIlroy — the top three players in the world — and ladies like Ko, Lexi Thompson and Charley Hull are absolutely brilliant for golf. What I admire about each one of them is not only are they brilliant players, but they are all fantastic ambassadors for the sport. They are all thorough professionals and great role models for kids.
I am also often asked how low can we go with this age thing? I do think there are physical limitations. While you can have wonderful performances like teenagers winning Tour titles or 14-years-old making the cut at The Masters, it is difficult for teenage boys to compete on a regular basis with players on the Tour given the length of the golf courses.
It is slightly easier in the women’s game, where the emphasis is more on finesse than brute strength. And that is the reason why we see a lot more teenage girls winning titles.
On the same topic, I am not surprised to see so many of these young talents coming from the Asian countries. As the facilities become better and popularity of golf increases, more and more young children are taking up the game. I have seen it in my hometown of Chandigarh, and in the various Asian cities that I travel to, the number of young kids at the practice range is increasing exponentially. Once you have that kind of numbers as your base, the possibility of getting a few world-class players increases significantly.
— Jeev Milkha Singh is a four-time champion on the European Tour