SGU PERFORMANCE COACH PAULDING LAYS IT ON THE LINE

GETTING TO TOP IN AMATEUR GOLF IS 

NOT JUST ABOUT PLAYING, PRACTISING
 
FROM TODAY'S SCOTTISH DAILY EXPRESS
By JOCK MacVICAR
Steve Paulding believes Scotland's young amateurs are beginning to "get it."
Just 18 months ago, the Scottish Golf Union's performance manager said he was embarrassed to wear a Scotland top when their three-man team finished 40 shots behind USA in the Eisenhower Trophy in Turkey.
In a desperately depressing time for the amateur game in this country, Scotland finished behind Guatemala, Puerto Rico and Russia, and, as a consequence, not one Scot was selected for the Walker Cup match in New York.
Paulding promised a period of "tough love" and now is confident such an awful two years will not be repeated.
He said this week: "I'm optimistic. Getting nobody into the Walker Cup team and the performance in the Eisenhower were really low points.
"But we've vot a big group of young players who are showing a great deal of petential and there's a big shift with them now realising you've really got to commit to everything.
"It's not just playing and practising golf: it's your fitness, how your nutrition helps, working on all aspects of your plan and organisation. Everyone's starting to realise how important that is.
"Year on year they get better and they're making good decisions now, especially around turning professional."
On the tough decision of switching from amateur to pro, Paulding and the SGU have two former European Tour winners, Dean Robertson and Andrew Coltart, on hand to offer assistance.
 Paulding said: "Many of the guys will turn pro but they'll do it at the right time for them with the right kind of advice from Dean and Andrew. We're very happy to have their support. There's a massive difference from where we are  now to where we were when I first came in, so I'm optimistic.
"But it's still quite a big leap going from being among the best boys' golfers to being a top men's player."
Although more upbeat, Paulding concedes that it doesn't mean Scottish players are guaranteed good results in the coming months and years. 
He said: "Golf is one of the toughest sports to predict performance in. One day someone's winning, the next day they're missing the cut. It's a brutally tough gam.e
"But if we create the right level of perparation and expectation, these guys will have every opportunity to be as good as they can be."
At the same time, Paulind , perhaps surprisingly, believes amateur golf in the UK as a whole is on the slide.
He said: "We're seeing the basic level going down. That's because the guys who stayed career amateurs - and kept the quality high - are either having to go and work, or turn pro and don't make it.
"Very few professionals who don't make the grade come back and play at the very top level of amateur golf.
"I think the strength in depth in GB and Ireland amateur golf has actually gone down because of all these mini-pro tours are there for the young pros to play in. 
"At the same time, the world level is going up.
Emerging nations such as China and the Asian nations use different training regimes.
"A lot of these guys are in the American college system, so its going to get harder for a small nation like oureselves to keep producing top players."