Better Family Life has worked with youth in the St. Louis community in various sports – tennis, basketball and soccer. Last year, in the middle of the pandemic, they added golf. Now, 20 to 25 kids, ages 8 to 17, participate on a junior PGA team, which has seasons in the summer and the fall. Staff from the NeighborWorks network organization assist golf coaches with the training.
Erica Driver, vice president of Youth, Family, and Clinical Services for Better Family Life sees value in golf for a variety of reasons. "It educates the kids and teaches them discipline," she says. "They learn about velocity and force."
And there are networking opportunities that come through playing a round of golf – opportunities that excluded Black golfers, who weren't allowed to play on public courses or private ones.
"Children of color are often targeted for sports like basketball and football," Driver says.s "Not golf." Even as more diverse players joined the game, some scholarships and opportunities were left untouched by minority youth, especially Black youth She wants kids in her community to be able to take advantage of those opportunities.
Tee Masters Golf Club of St. Louis is a golfing club that began 39 years ago to empower the African
American community of underserved youth programs in golf and financial literacy. The group also provides coaching. Last year during COVID-19, when Tee Masters Golf Club of St. Louis asked Better Family Life if they were interested in supporting a Jr. PGA team, Better Family Life decided to use some of their "rainbow money" – the NeighborWorks nonprofit's equivalent of a rainy-day fund – to do it.
Better Family Life provides each youth player with size-appropriate clubs, uniforms, and caps. Students bring the athleticism and motivation.
Terrance Cauley, Director of 21st Century Afterschool for Better Family Life, works with students during practices. A golfer himself, he assists the Tee Masters coaches and offers tips on technique. "You can really see the development of the kids over the course of the year," says Cauley. "Most of them have developed good swings and a higher understanding of the mechanics."
Each year, students will participate in a tournament called The Bell Will Ring No More. It's named for a bell that rang to clear Black players off the golf course in times of segregation as white players teed up. Driver says 98% of the golf team is Black, though some players identify in multiple ethnicities.
Kamal Webb, 15, who developed an interest in golf from watching Tiger Woods, was eager to pick up the golf clubs last year. He plays football and basketball, but now that he's learning about golf, he hopes to play in college. In addition to weekly practices at Forest Park, he practices each day on a mat in his back yard, remembering the things his coaches have taught him: keep his head down; stay focused; position his shot. His practice is paying off, gaining him entrance, expenses paid, into an additional golf tournament this summer.
Erin Connor, 16, and her twin brother, Evan, played a little golf when they were younger. The two picked it up again when Better Family Life began offering it as part of their after-school programming. "I always like to participate in their activities," Erin Connor says. "I'm a competitive person. I thought I'd try a different sport and see how I do." Coaches say Erin, part of an increasing number of junior girls playing golf, has a knack for it. (https://www.thengfq.com/2019/04/ngf-releases-2019-golf-industry-report/)
"Hitting the golf ball is a very satisfying thing," she says. "Seeing and hearing the ball off the curve, especially a far hit, it's very calming."
Though she doesn't plan to play for a college golf team, she sees golf as one of those lifelong activities. "I know business deals are made on the golf course," she says.
07/09/2021
