hey, i'm coming from a similar situation. I'm a junior in high school now, and i started playing 2 years ago, freshman year. My 1st time out i dint keep score. My second time, i shot 128 on 8 holes plus a 40-something on the 9th on a par 35 course. I was terrible. But i started playing every week/every other week, and was offered a job at the course. I started getting into the mid 50's by the end of the year, and broke 100 once. Then last year i started playing seriously, as i was still working for the course. My first time out, i shot 91. It took me a long time to break 100 again, but i had that fire. I kept playing through the summer and got a handicap, started in June at a 26 handi. By the end of the year i was a 10.3 and had broken 80 a few times. Now, i'm just starting to get my swing to come together, but have dropped my handicap to a 7.1 and have fired 2 1-under-par 9 hole rounds, and i'm still getting better. I have never had a lesson in my life, pretty much figured out by trial and error. So it's up to you how much you're going to devote to the game, but if you put some effort into it, you can get good results