My two boys (9 yrs old) started playing golf last summer, but we never took it too serious. We have been going to the range a lot more this year along with a weekly 1 hr jr golf camp, but both struggle with distance. When they play against other kids mine are the shortest hitters out there even though they are usually taller or bigger. I understand accuracy is more important at this age, but any tips for longer distance? I’ve watched a lot of YouTube videos but not sure what drills the kids can do.

My wife and I both played in high school, but neither of us were long ball hitters.

Flexibility.
Core strength.
Gluteus and leg strength.
Dynamic balance.

get a professional golf instructor to look at them

In highscbool, our coach made us use a 9 every day for months. He said the short game is where it’s won. Any gorilla can hit the [censored] outta a ball with a driver.

Jack Nicklaus said learn to hit the ball a long way, then work on accuracy from there. His long-time coach, Jack Grout, taught him to reach for the sky in the backswing, to get his hands high.

Teach them to hit it as far as they can when they are starting. The accuracy part can be taught later.

Are their clubs properly fitted? Are they using current club technology? Make sure they get many lessons and then practice, practice, practice, practice, practice, practice, practice, practice. When you think they have practiced enough, practice more.

Generate club head speed with the right shaft and driver head.
Short lesson,

Backswing.
Keep you back knee flexed and solid on the backswing.
Pull your right shoulder back (push down on your right heel while keeping you head fairly still) which ever swing thought gets you in the right position on the backswing.

Forward swing.
Keeping your head fairly still slide your sternum laterally even with the ball on the downswing while turning your hips and straighten your lead leg.

This will put your weight on your left side and create a lot of club head speed.

Try it, it works.

My grandson is 10 and has been playing competitive for years. Very small for his age and hits it at least 200 yards.

Using this method 9yr olds will burn out and eventually hate golf. You should let them enjoy the game. 80% practice on chipping and putting

This

This, if you are interested in them getting better and going forward it's really only way to go. Find one that teaches lots of kids. Some are just pros at selling clubs.

Yeah, I'm gonna go the other direction. Most fun I ever had with golf was when dad and I had chipping and putting competitions to see who could put it closest to the hole or who could 2-putt from the farthest or whatever it was. We started doing a lot of this when I was 9-10 and did it really for the rest of my life...that's how to make short game fun.

Anybody shooting over 85 is losing a significant number of shots around the green and the absolute fastest way to improve the score is to get better at short game. At it's core, golf is a game of getting the ball in the hole the quickest, and if you look at guys like Tiger in his prime or Spieth in his prime, it was their ability to never waste shots from inside 100 yards that sets them apart. I mean Tiger won an entire British Open without hitting driver after the first hole on Thursday. Brian Harman just won the same tournament being 114th in driving distance. I'm not saying it isn't an advantage to hit long, but you CAN'T score low without short game.

For distance, lots of amateurs start too far forward and spend too much time too far forward on their driver swing. They could work on keeping weight back and launching the driver higher with low spin. At age 9-10, just work on fundamentals and distance will come.

Above all, don't force practice. Make it fun. Golf is a game for fun for 99.999999% of us...don't take the best game on earth and turn it into something that's a chore. I can't imagine how much I'd resent my dad if he ruined golf for me like that. It's also a game you can play with them forever (unlike football/baseball/etc.), and it's something dad and I did a ton when I was an adult and some of my best memories with him are on the golf course playing together later in life. Don't take that away so he can drive the ball a few yards further or shoot a few shots lower at age 9.

This is good advice also - most pros are good at teaching kids and keeping it fun at the same time.

this proper swing in and of itself will and can produce power. Power comes from club speed and that is from recoil of your back and club speed. The right teacher can teach proper stance and swing for distance and being accurate at the same time with the same swing.

good distance off the tee gives you less distance to flag. That in and of itself makes the short game easier and more accurate