Like golf? Like kids? The Short Game follows eight grade school-aged golfers from across the globe as they prepare for and compete in the U.S. Kids Golf World Championship.
It is a documentary that entertains and emphasizes two points that are applicable to most areas of childhood competition:
- No matter how driven a child may be, he or she is still a kid; and
- A child’s support system – including parents, coaches, mentors, and friends – shapes her or his capacity for dealing with life’s successes and inevitable failures.
These kids train hard – harder than many high school athletes – and the film offers glimpses into how their decisions to compete affect them and their families. Some of the revelations will make you wince (just a little), but in other instances, you’ll smile because it’s highly likely you will recognize their instincts and genuine reactions – even if you’ve never picked up a driver or a putter.
The film only lightly touches upon the issues of socioeconomic class and race. Also, in some ways, it would have been a more in-depth piece – and had more room to address those issues – had its focus been narrowed to fewer competitors.
However, editing out one or more of the golf prodigies would have removed the diversity of circumstances and the range of honest child-parent interactions that ended up on screen. It also may have undermined what I suspect was ultimately the doc’s dual agenda: to capture the pure passion these remarkable, youthful competitors have for the game and to position golf as an accessible sport that is kid- and family-friendly. On both counts, The Short Game scores a hole in one.
More Info:
Official site; tournament results. (When you’re finished, you’ll want to see how the kids fared in the next years’ events!)
Availability: Now streaming on Netflix (subscription).
Notes: Suitable for most ages, as long as you can deal with some relatively mild language.