I was just searching randomly through videos on YouTube, and discovered something that worries me: Apparently, Golf Dads are running rampant on the Internet, just like Soccer Moms are on the field.

I’m not crazy about the idea of pushing child athletes to excel in sports — or anything, really, for that matter.  Supporting your kid’s interests and getting him some golf training is one thing; and if you want to take video footage of your kid golfing, more power to you!  He’s your kid, after all, and these are memories you will cherish.

But what I don’t understand is why parents push their kids into things.  When I was a kid, it was that way with my sister, my mom, and gymnastics.  My sister was the star gymnast, quite motivated on her own, but that didn’t stop my mom into making it almost a personal affront to her if my sister didn’t do well at a meet.

YouTube is almost scary, how it attracts parents living vicariously through their child.  For every cute video of a little kid golfing, like the one below, you can find several from parents bragging that their kid is better than Tiger Woods.  Oh, and if you really want a good laugh, read some of the comments to these videos — and the parents’ responses.  It’s amazing how uptight some of them are!

Find a happy medium with your kids and their hobbies.  I mean, encourage your kids to pursue their hobbies, and help them stick with it, but don’t push them too hard or you may actually create an aversion to the sport.  Let them enjoy learning and playing now, and maybe later on they’ll choose to become really competitive, maybe even start looking at golf careers — but let that be their choice, not yours.

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