If you think you’re good at golf, you might want to see Gavin Richardson on the links.
He may only be 8 years old, but don’t let his young age and short stature fool you. With the ability to hit it 170 yards off the tee, a strong set of iron skills and the short game to match, Richardson is a tough opponent for golfers of any age – just ask his dad, Pat.
“He’s got a pretty much solid all-around game,” Pat said. “He knows how he wants to play. I give him the exact yardage and he’ll pick his shot.”
Not only does Pat carry his son’s bag on the U.S. Kids Golf Boston Local Tour, but he’s been on the wrong end of a few match-ups lately. The two play as much as they can together, and the last three times they’ve squared off at Duston Country Club in Hopkinton, the younger Richardson has pulled out a one-shot victory. But if you ask Gavin, it’s more like the last 10 times they’ve played.
Now we know what you’re thinking – dear old dad probably let his little guy tee off closer to each hole and gave him a few mulligans along the way. But nope, that’s not the case. Richardson played from the same men’s tees on the 9-hole, par 32 course as his dad. He just flat out beat him.
And all you have to do is take a look at his domination of the Boston Local Tour to see that Richardson is for real. This spring, playing in the boys 7-year-old pision, he won five of six tournaments before taking third in the end of season Tour Championship event, but it didn’t matter since he already racked up enough points to take the tour title.
“Patrick says golf found him,” said Richardson’s mom, Lara.
Over the summer, Richardson captured six wins and a second-place finish before tying for first with a 2-over 38 in the Tour Championship. He lost in a chip off, but like in the spring, Richardson was so good throughout the season that he had more than enough points to win the overall summer title.
With each of those first-place finishes, Richardson earned Player of the Year for the tour’s age 7 pision. And with a player of the year distinction comes an invitation to the World Championships at Mid Pines Inn and Golf Club in Southern Pines, N.C. Over three days of golf, July 31 to Aug. 2, Richardson posted a +14, good enough for a tie for 23rd out of 102 players from 30 countries. But Richardson knows he can do better and is out to prove so.
“My real goal is, what I’m working really hard at, is to win the world championships,” Richardson said. “I didn’t play that well. If I played well, I’d been in the top five easily.”
Talk about confidence. And he has every right to it. This fall, despite making the jump to the boys 8 pision after celebrating a birthday, Richardson has been on a tear. He has won all five tour events and, outside of a tough opening tournament, he has been within four shots of par (36) each time. This Sunday, Richardson will be going for the Tour Championship – and not even an alien invasion will keep him from taking home another Player of the Year honor.
Richardson first picked up a club at the age of 4 when his grandmother asked if he wanted to try it. Like any little kid he said yeah, but he had no idea what it was. But it’s like the game came naturally to him. It didn’t take long before he was hooked.
“Before we knew it, he was in our backyard with those fake golf balls for hours,” Pat said.
And things have not changed.
“I hit balls at least every day, and I play like three or four times a week,” Richardson said.
He has a membership to Beaver Meadow and isn’t shy about his abilities, especially when it comes to his work on the greens.
“I’m probably the best in my tour in putting,” Richardson said. “I’m great from 40 feet. I lag within one foot almost every time.”
The tour is setup to help the young players score. In the boys 8 pision, Richardson and his competitors will play about a 2,000-yard course for nine holes. The par threes will be anywhere from 75 to 135 yards, while the par fours range from 200 to 260. The par fives go all the way up to 350.
“They play lengths that are manageable,” Pat said.
He’s even come close to a hole-in-one.
“I hit the pin and it ended up like four inches (away),” Richardson said.
But right now it’s just about having fun. Richardson had no interest in a golf coach, and he doesn’t even like to take advice from his dad on the course. Sure, he would play professionally one day if he could, but what kid at this age doesn’t want to be a professional athlete?
“He’s at a point now we just let him go out and play,” Pat said. “You don’t want to mess with anything. You have to remember he’s only 8 years old.”
One thing is for sure, Richardson is quite good, and if you don’t want to take our word for it, we’re sure he’d be happy to prove it on the course.
