The Point One Can Tell if They are Good Enough to Play Golf Professionally

The Point One Can Tell if They are Good Enough to Play Golf Professionally

The Point One Can Tell if They are Good Enough
to Play Golf Professionally
By David Wixson, PGA Master Professional
Keiser University College of Golf Instructor

When I’m posed with the question ‘At what point can one tell if they are good enough to play professionally for a living,’ I tell students that they are not ‘good enough’ until they are ‘great.’

How to Become a Professional Golfer

This is a perfect question as we have many students at the Keiser University College of Golf who aspire to play golf professionally. The simple answer is that anyone can declare themselves a professional, and there are many so-called mini-tours where professional golfers compete against each other for their livelihood. As to how much of a “living” these players are making, this is very debatable and relative. For example, the leading money winner on the Emerald Coast Golf Tour in 2018 made $17K. This amount would not account for expenses such as entry fees and travel (lodging, transportation, food). The Emerald Coast Tour has helped produce some well-known players such as Bubba Watson and Joe Durant. I personally competed in some Emerald Coast Tour events while working as an Assistant Professional in Alabama early in my career. It is a great starting tour for aspiring playing professionals, but difficult to make a living and many of the players are very, very good.

The best way to think about how good you need to be to play golf professionally is to compare it to other sports. Take football, for instance… how good would a football player have to be to play professionally in the NFL? Prior to being drafted into the NFL, the player would have had to be one of the best players at their position at (most likely) one of the top Division 1 colleges. Prior to college, the player would have likely been the best player on their high school team.

Switching back to golf… to play professionally and make a decent living, a golfer would have to begin as the best player in their local community (perhaps the best player on a local high school team). The player would then test their game against other players at the state level and be competitive at the State Open playing against many professionals (while in high school and still an amateur). The player might then play Division 1 college golf and win several events in college. 

Now, this is just a starting point, and not every successful professional golfer has followed this path. Many were simply decent college golfers but continued to improve by working hard and playing on mini-tours. Others have simply been late bloomers whose game took longer to fully develop.

“Am I Good at Golf?”

For those looking for strict numbers, players on the PGA Tour would play to an average handicap of approximately +4 – +8 if posting scores regularly on a fairly difficult course from the back tees. In other words, the Tour players would give the scratch golfers at the club 4 – 8 shots per round. Think of the best non-Tour golfer you know and consider if you would consistently beat the player if you spotted them 6 shots over 18 holes? If the answer is “no,” you’re not good enough to play golf professionally. By the way, if your answer is “yes,” you might be really good, but perhaps still not good enough to make a “living” playing golf professionally.

This is the most honest answer I can give for this question, but don’t be discouraged… keep getting better and who knows what might happen. Just remember, the motto on the PGA Tour, “These guys are good” is a bit of an understatement. The men and women who make a living playing golf are GREAT! 

If you’d like to study with David Wixson and other PGA Master Professionals, contact The College of Golf today.