Golf camps and tournaments provide the perfect opportunity to showcase your skills, refine different aspects of your game and elevate your performance on the course. Attending a golf camp can be a game-changer in your recruiting journey, helping you compete at the highest level.
If your goal is to play college golf, sharpening your skills beforehand is essential. How do you do that? The best place to start is attending golf camps near you. We’ve compiled a list of college golf camps, local camps and camps across the country to help you discover the right fit.
golf Training camps at IMG Academy
IMG Academy’s boys golf camps feature technical, customized training as well as match-play situations for golfers seeking to reach their full potential. With several program options to choose from, IMG golf camps stress a balance of training for driving, mid-range, and putting while also making sure that each camper understands how to properly prepare for competition. IMG camps also offer the opportunity to enhance aspects such as mental toughness and physical conditioning.
FAQs about men’s golf camps
- Types of golf camps
- Are golf camps worth it?
- Golf showcases and combines
- Golf clinics and advanced camps
- How do high school golf tournaments work?
- How do I choose which golf tournaments to attend?
- Tournaments that college golf coaches care about
- Best golf camps
Types of golf camps
Not all golf camps for high school students are created equal. You should choose a golf camp that fits your current skill level and a camp that focuses on the golf skills you’d like to develop.
- College golf camps typically include instruction time, such as drills and video analysis, as well as competition time on the school’s course. Often, you’ll be working directly with the college’s coach, which will give you the opportunity to experience how they instruct and possibly learn top techniques for your golf swing. This can be especially helpful if you’ve already been in contact with a coach at the school.
- Some niche golf camps specialize in particular techniques, such as short game camps where you can improve your putting and chipping.
- Third party camps are similar to college camps in that they offer breakout sessions for different parts of your game, as well as the opportunity to play on courses.
Coaches don’t really scout at golf camps, so make sure you have set your expectations accordingly; you’ll be focused on developing your skills so you can eventually connect with coaches through your performance and video.
Be sure to learn as much as you can about the coaching staff. Who will be coaching? What’s their level of experience? Although we hope this list will help you discover men’s golf camps, be sure to do your homework about the camp experience.
Are golf camps worth it?
The level of instruction from and exposure to college coaches that athletes receive at golf camps makes them well worth attending. Athletes will not only walk away with new and improved skills but will also have built a relationship with the coaches attending/hosting the camp.
Golf showcases and golf combines
Golf showcases are somewhat different events as compared to golf camps. These provide opportunities for golfers to showcase their talents in one or more events that are designed to give them greater access to NCAA golf coaches. There are often minimum standards that must be met before being entered into one of these.
Meanwhile, golf combines offer other ways for players to enjoy exposure to college coaches. At these events, golfers get tested on a variety of skills. For example, skills at putting from various distances, the accuracy of their shots from a bunker and how well they can hit with a variety of clubs tested and recorded.
Golf clinics and advanced camps
A golf clinic is essentially a more specialized golf camp as this type of experience generally involves one-on-one training after a player has had his or her game evaluated.
Although any golf camp experience will be a valuable one, receiving that specialized attention might be just what is needed to take that next step.
Note that the entire golf clinic experience might not be one-on-one, but it will be much more individualized in focus than a golf camp would be.
Advanced camps allow you to experience elite golf camps in settings such as world-class PGA facilities and the skill levels of the golfers participating in these elite junior golf camps tend to be higher.
How do high school golf tournaments work?
High school golf tournaments are both team and individual based. Typically, these competitions are 9 or 18-hole stroke play, and the best four or five golf scores from each team determine the winner.
Junior golf tournaments, on the other hand, are individual based and can be 36 or even 54-hole events.
While high school golf is an excellent way for recruits to develop their all-around game and mental toughness, college coaches often overlook high school scores when evaluating student-athletes.
Instead, they focus all their recruiting efforts on state and national tournaments that more closely reflect the difficulty level of college golf courses, which range from 6,600 and 7,300 yards. That’s why it’s important for athletes to participate in multiple-day tournaments as much as they can.
How do I choose which golf tournaments to attend?
Individual tournament play is the number one factor college coaches consider when making their roster and scholarship decisions. But with thousands of golf tournaments each year, picking the right ones to attend can be tough. Here are a few considerations to keep in mind:
- Length of the course. College courses range from 6,600 to 7,300 yards. Therefore, college coaches prioritize a recruit’s golf scores from 36-hole or 52-hole tournaments. When you’re searching for golf tournaments, try to register mostly for multiple-day events. This will factor into your national ranking, as well.
- Location. Traveling across the country isn’t an option for every family and may not make sense for underclassmen who are still improving their technical skill set. Visit Junior Golf Scoreboard to find competitions in your area or use your state’s golf association to identify quality golf tournaments at an affordable price.
- Cost. It’s no secret that golf can be an expensive sport. The best way for families to maximize their spending is to establish relationships with golf coaches before participating in a tournament. Many college coaches attend events with a list of recruits in mind. Emailing them an online profile that includes your basic information, golf scores, swing video and academic information ahead of time is the best way to secure an in-person evaluation at a golf tournament.
Golf Tournaments that college coaches care about
Most college coaches recruit from a certain level of golf tournaments each year. To be successful, student-athletes should research the schools on their target list to find out where coaches will be and what results they need to get noticed. As you establish your tournament schedule, here are a few things to keep in mind:
State Golf Association Championships
College coaches who recruit locally will attend state-wide championships to evaluate the highest ranked players in the state. Some golfers automatically gain entry, but there’s usually an open qualifying process option, as well.
Independent Junior Golf Tournaments
One of the easiest and most cost-effective ways for student-athletes to improve their national ranking is to attend a multiple-day, independent junior golf tournament. Visit Junior Golf Scoreboard to find competitions in your area.
National Golf Tours
Not only does national level competition attract college coaches, but it’s essential in determining how you measure up against highly competitive golfers across the country. All college coaches are familiar with the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA), Future Collegians World Tour (FCWT) and the International Junior Golf Tour (IJGT). The biggest downside here is the heavy price tag that comes with being a member and competing in these events.
United States Golf Association (USGA) Championships
USGA is home to the most elite amateur golf tournaments in the country. To participate in an event here, you must pass a rigorous qualifying process, which is based on golf scores and handicap requirements.
When evaluating a recruit’s ranking and performance at a tournament, coaches typically analyze what’s called a “tournament score differential.” Basically, they look at the difference between a recruit’s score each day. And by doing this, they gain insight into an athlete’s demeanor and mental toughness during the tournament.
For example, did the student-athlete shoot 72 the first day and take the lead, but crumble under the pressure and shoot 82 the second day? Or did they come back relaxed and focused to play even better the second day?
Best golf camps
Prospective college golfers should especially consider some of the top golf camps that are offered by universities. Being able to learn from college coaches who you might be playing for or competing against provides several benefits. Not only do you get to soak in their knowledge, but you also get to showcase your skills. Here are a few college golf camps that are particularly prestigious:
- Stanford Golf Camp
- Duke Golf Camp
- UCLA Golfers Camp
- NC State Golf Camps
Head to these links to view a list of the country’s top golf schools to see what other college camps are being offered:
Golf Recruiting assistance
Many who have college golf aspirations take advantage of resources to help them reach those goals. One is NCSA College Recruiting. NCSA has helped more than 330,000 student-athletes in a variety of sports achieve those dreams and earn spots on college rosters.
Sign up for your free NCSA Recruiting Profile today to start getting on college coaches’ radar!
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