Tennis vs Golf: Producing World Class Talent in the UK (and Ireland!!)

First topic message reminder :

It's the time of year where I have to listen to my mother rant and rave about the terrible state of British tennis and how the LTA should be ashamed of itself for the lack of genuine talent produced in the UK with all the money they have. Andy Murray (who didn't actually come through the LTA) is the only player in the mens top 100 and I believe there are 2 ladies in the ladies top 100.

By stark contrast the top 2 in the world of golf are English, McDowell and Mcilroy are both in the top ten and (without being too pedantic about birthplace, for all you 'Justin Rose isn't English' haters) there are currently 13 UK & I players in the world's top 100.

I'm very curious why golf seems to have such relative success in producing genuine talent. Admittedly we're in the middle of a pretty golden period but it doesn't really explain the huge difference. The LTA often use the excuse of tennis being too costly and middle class but these criticisms could easily be levelled at golf. I know that the US college system often adds the final touches to UK&I golfers but this same college system is available to UK&I tennis players too but none seem to pop out the other end as world class performers.

I was pretty shocked to discover that the top british tennis pros are subsidised to the tune of around 18k per year by the LTA, they also often receive a wild card to wimbledon where 1st round losers receive 15k! that's a total of 32k without winning a match. Golf doesn't seem to have this comfort blanket for underacheivment at the professional level and I wonder if this is the key factor. There must be hundreds of aspiring young golf pros playing on the Jamega Tour and Europro Tour that would snatch your hand off for 15k a year and a starting spot at the Open but they don't get it without earning it and therein seems to lie the difference.

This may have been better posted on the tennis board but i've had a look and it can get pretty brutal over there so I'll let the golfers have their say first....

There was a 20 stone goalie in the early 1900's.
Can't remember who he played for, Arsenal I think.

Definately not SR Rovers.

S-R, no I understand the point you are making very well. And I know what the L stands for. My point is that the LTA is training the trainers to train the kids to play on grass courts when nobody plays on grass courts.

My golf club has tennis too, including grass courts. We've employed tennis pros for years who persist in teaching kids to serve and volley to the detriment of ground strokes.