I've had 3 Golden Retrievers over the years. All were great hunters. I come from a family of bird hunters and between my dad and 4 brothers we have had an assortment of pointers and retrievers. Two of the Goldens could out-retrieve all the others...would run a mile to find a wounded, yet flying, pheasant and not give up. All the dogs were quite intelligent and took to training well. In all cases I began my training at 7 weeks, daily, until several mos. old. Not all goldens are from show breeders. Make sure you buy your dog from a reputable hunting breeder.
Now, all that said. my 3d Golden is 11 years old. My big decision is whether to get a Lab or another Golden. I love both breeds. You couldn't invent breeds better than Labs and Goldens for personality, friendliness, for having around the kids, etc.
For those that let the dog sleep in the house the down side for Goldens is the hair. Lab hairs drop to the floor and Golden hairs float all over the house. Though my last Golden was an awesome duck hunter, my first and third didn't like the taste of a wet duck. They all were excellent upland bird hunters and all love jumping in 45 degree water but those 2 didn't like to pick up a duck. Go figure! If I didn't hunt ducks I would buy the Golden, but I hunt a lot of ducks and will pick the lab for that reason. Otherwise wonderful these dogs are a draw.