I would play about once a year or so with my baseball buddies but didn't know what I was doing at all. Seven years ago, I got married and was fortunate to be able to take up golf with some advantages (access to course and pros as well as a new father-in-law that put some time into my game. I started out as a bogey golfer and here I sit with an index of 5.5. Not scratch, but i do enjoy the game a lot more as I get better. I think if you can put in the time on the range and get quality instruction, your game can excel no matter your age.

I started the game at the age of 50, I am 62 now. My current HI is 8.3, and trending downwards. My last five rounds were in the 70s, with a 72 on my latest round (17 pars, and a double, lol).

There were times when I wanted to give up the game. I put so much effort into it and was seeing little results. But I stuck with it. I practice my short game incessantly, and as a result it is pretty decent. My full swing is what was holding me back, but all that short game practice helped, in that a half/three-quarter swing is similar to a full swing.

This game requires a tremendous amount of patience, and I was simply too stupid to give up on it.

Having the right equipment helped too. For example, I was given some "real" wedges, and with a ball like the ProV1x, I can get the ball to hop and stop on chips/pitches, and even get it to spin back on full shots. This now allows me to be more aggressive, as I know the ball won't roll 10-20 feet past the hole.

I don't agree that those of us who pick up the game late can't become accomplished golfers. Though I will admit that, at least in my case, I have to work twice as hard as anyone else, which I do.

Good luck, and stick with it! :-)

Noel. No way am I an scratch golfer. I just consider myself lucky. I decided to take up golf when we moved to S. Carolina in 1984, which was a little late in life for me. Became a weekend golfer hacking it around with a bunch of new friends I met. That was at the age of 38. While playing at that club I did hold a handicap of 8 within about ten years. After retiring at the age of 65 in 2011 my handicap creeped up to an 11 but I did manage to shoot 69 once from the age appropriate tees in 2013. More time to play, I guess. Also have been blessed to have had three holes in one. Wish I had started earlier in life, but guess I was too busy in my career and in my spare time playing league softball and traveling a little on the weekends doing the same. Finally gave that up to play golf. Guess it is the choices we make in life. Am happy now playing with my senior buddies, playing in a few tournaments a year, still working on my alignment and grip, attending the annual TT invitationals and trying to keep my handicap under a 13 as I approach 71. Hoping to shoot my age now. That is my goal.

Setting aside athletic ability for a moment, when you take up the game at 40, 50, or 60, you don't get into a program where you can get coaching, even if with 20 other students for the summer. Or play and/or practice most every day. Even worse if you start out trying to teach yourself on course with friends. I work with many college grads that were scratch to low singles while in school but are now drifting up to 10. Work really does interfere with fun. At 40, if you can commit to training physically for golf (see your local TPI instructor) and take 2-4 lessons a month (see your local PGA) for a couple of years, spend hours a week with your short game and putting beyond a bucket of balls at a driving range, then you have a shot. Pro golfers look like they play the same game as me, but their effort is more like a NASCAR driver while I can negotiate a freeway. You can take your game to the next level, but you need to take your effort to the next level as well. That said, be sure to get back to us when you do get there!

I never really considered golf until I was 68. At 69 I started taking lessons. Nowhere near scratch, but in 2 years have my index down to 26. Don't know it will ever be zero, but my target is to get below double digit some time.

With the exception of a few rounds in my early 20's, I didn't pick up the game until I was 42. I took a couple of lessons, and then proceeded to hit a ton of balls over the course of 5 years. I never reached scratch, but gradually, my handicap dropped from mid-teens to as low as 4. What worked for me was hitting those "almost golf" balls in my yard each night. I probably hit 100 or so balls each night, and the length of my yard allowed me to hit primarily 9 irons or shorter. The benefit of that limitation was that when I was on the course, I felt that anytime I was within 150 yards, I was going to be on the green. If I were a better putter, I'm sure I could have shaved another point off that index.

The past few years, obligations and other competing interests have really cut into my golf and practice time, and I'm a few rounds away from being a 10. But, I'm for those occasions I do get out, I'm having more fun than ever. No matter where your scores fall, it's a grand game!

anyone can do it...but takes time and commitment....lessons, practice, more practice....only like 1.25% of golfers are scratch....i think like any sport....you have to put in the time to be good...