As part of an exclusive new series focusing on the next generation of young talent in the south-east, Golf News introduces James Herne, a three-year-old from West Sussex who is already attracting national attention for both his precocious talent and his sheer love of the game
While golf has seen its fair share of prodigies – Tiger Woods shot 48 on a 9-hole course aged three, and Rory McIlroy was filmed chipping balls into his mum’s washing machine on a TV show as a nine-year-old schoolboy – it is still pretty rare to find someone who has only just learned to walk demonstrating a preternatural talent for a sport as technically demanding as golf.
That is what makes James Herne’s story so compelling. The youngster from Worthing in West Sussex has only just celebrated his third birthday, but he is not only already able to swing a golf club with impressive consistency, but he’s already driving balls 40 yards down the fairway and registering ball speeds of more than 45mph on a simulator.
INSPIRED BY WATCHING THE PROS ON TV
The spark that ignited James’s love of the game was first lit watching golf on television while visiting his grandparents. James’s dad, who is also called James, remembers the moment clearly. “One day we were round my in-laws and they had the golf on the telly,” explains James Snr. “He was immediately drawn to the TV and started to mirror the swing of the golfers.”
From there, his interest only deepened. James’s grandfather, John Black, a keen golfer himself, first took him down to the putting green at the local club shortly after his first birthday and bought the youngster his first set of clubs.
“He was hitting the ball properly, even at that young age,” Black recalls. “Every time we ask him what he wants to do, he says he wants to play golf.”
Now a junior member at Worthing Golf Club in West Sussex – where he could well be the youngest member in the country – James practices three or four times a week on the range and out on the club’s par-3 course, where he regularly plays alongside kids two or three times his age.
KEEPING IT FUN
To help guide this early promise, James is being coached by former tour player, and Worthing Golf Club’s resident PGA Head Professional, Peter Tarver-Jones, who has introduced many young players to the game, but has never taught anyone quite so young.
Tarver-Jones, who joined Worthing when he was just 12, is unequivocal in his praise for his youngest ever pupil. “James’s enthusiasm and his understanding of the game are great,” he says. “Difficult things like his putting pace control – he’s got it. For such a young age, his co-ordination is exceptional. I’ve never heard of anyone as young as James doing this well. It’s really impressive.”
Despite the attention, both coach and family are determined to keep things in perspective. Tarver-Jones emphasises that the priority is enjoyment: “You just want to make sure he has fun and enjoys it at the moment. It’s not all about golf, we also working on his balance, jumping, agility, even throwing and catching. It all helps develop the physical skills and the co-ordination required to swing a club.”
James’s father echoes that sentiment. “There is no ‘Project Tiger Woods’ at work here – we’re just supporting a child doing what he loves. Initially, my wife and I thought his ability was normal, but then every time someone would see him, they would say ‘wow’.
“With kids these days everything now is with a mobile phone or a games console – but I’d like to keep him away from that for as long as possible. The main thing is that he enjoys it, it keeps him outside, and it keeps him loving golf.”
Whether James becomes a household name to rank alongside Tiger or Rory, or even matches the talents of home-grown Worthing Golf Club stars such as Marco Penge and Gary Evans, remains to be seen, but for now, his story encapsulates exactly what the Next Generation series hopes to celebrate: a genuine passion for the game, fostered in the right environment, and grounded in fun, family and fresh air.