A few years ago our oldest child decided he wanted to play golf. He started by practicing with little plastic clubs in the basement of our old townhome in Conservatory Green, and his interest grew from there.
I think many parents might have similar experiences with kid activities and sports – where your child expresses interest and you get pulled into the “ecosystem” of that activity, even if it’s not something you know much about. I don’t play golf myself and wasn’t inclined to push our son, but the more he got into it the more I found myself doing late night research on how I could help him get on a real golf course, maybe take some lessons, and go from there!
I wrote a Scoop post in 2020 with all the summer kids’ and beginner golf options around the neighborhood. I wanted to update that post, since a few things have changed! Let’s dive in!
Where to start?
We’re lucky here in Central Park. We have two wonderful short/Par 3 courses within about 15 minutes of the neighborhood that are casual and convenient and welcoming to beginners.
CommonGround Golf Course is just a short drive south of Central Park. CommonGround is a public course that has a large grass driving range that is more friendly to beginners, especially during non-peak times.
Even better, if you look over Joe Phillips’ shoulder in the picture above, in the distance by the trees there’s a short, 9 hole beginner course. You normally don’t need to make a tee time – you just show up and pay $10. And children under 18 are free!
The CommonGround short course is kid-friendly. My husband wear flips flops and the kids can wear T-shirts without an issue. CommonGround also uses the short course for kids’ camps, so if you’re looking for a camp this might be a great option.
Here’s a link to the CommonGround junior programs. Also, some of the summer camps are sold out, but there’s still availability at different ages and skill levels.
Just a few minutes east of Central Park is the Green Valley Ranch Golf Club. Green Valley Ranch also has a 9 hole, par 3 course. Adults are $15, and kids are $10. Green Valley Ranch has several other interesting options, like unlimited daily play on the Par 3 course and unlimited range balls for $30 if you’d like to spend some time practicing.
In our experience the Green Valley Ranch par 3 course is slightly more formal than the CommonGround course (e.g., collared shirts are required, at least when we’ve stopped by) but is also a good step-up in terms of the challenge you’ll face. There are bunkers and several longer holes you can have fun on!
If you’re willing to drive a bit further, Springhill Golf Course in Aurora and Aurora Hills Golf Course in Aurora are great, casual options as well. Here’s the link to the Springhill junior golf camps and Aurora Hills golf camps. Springhill in particular is an interesting option, as it’s a shorter course (executive length) and friendly to beginners.
How do I sign my child up for lessons?
Almost every course in the Denver metro has a youth program, as well as instructors who are more than happy to teach beginner adults as well as children. I won’t list them all here since there are dozens upon dozens of options. That said, if you’re looking for a super casual, fun, never-picked-up-a-club-before option for a child, look no further than the First Tee Program.
The First Tee has a number of VERY short kids courses in Denver. For years we liked going to the Willis Case 3 hole course and City Park 4 hole “Chubb’s Course.”
The kids hit soccer balls, try to hit bubbles, and play around the greens. This is the best place for entry-level kid golf in our experience!
Looking for more of a challenge?
If your child has played a bit and is interested in testing their skills, there are several tournament options for kids around Denver starting as young as 5 (I know!).
The First Tee program runs a number of casual, fun tournaments throughout the summer. The Players’ Club Tournaments are a great way to segue from practice to a more competitive, yet fun and encouraging environment. Kids play on teams together so there’s less pressure and they can focus on learning how to play in a slightly more serious context.
The past few years an organization called the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado (JGAC) had local tournament options. Now, both the Colorado Golf Association (CGA) and Colorado Section of the PGA (CPGA) run local youth tournaments, and JGAC is no more. We haven’t tried these tournaments yet since this is all new, but hopefully this means more opportunities for kids at all skill levels to try out their games!
If you have younger children, US Kids Golf is the international leader in tournaments for children starting at age 5. Depending on your state/age level, these can be either very competitive or more slightly more casual. The Colorado US Kids events seem to vary by age. The youngest age groups are less competitive, while the older groups – and especially middle school and high school age groups – are serious tournaments.
So there’s some quick information on beginner and kids’ golf around Central Park and the Denver metro!
