The impact of exposing kids to the game through First Tee IDEA grants reaches all parts of the U.S. On the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, John Long’s hard work and dedication is driving golf forward.
For more about First Tee-South Dakota and our impact check out our website: Stories and Features
First Tee – South Dakota receives one of 25 USGA awards
Sioux Falls, SD (October 14th, 2022) – Commemorating a 25- year partnership with a focus on growing the game, the USGA has continued its investment in First Tee by awarding IDEA grants to 25 chapters across America.
The USGA’s IDEA Grant Program delivers direct funding to community-based programs that break down barriers to participation in golf and First Tee’s character building programs, improving pathways to inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility. In 2022, 25 chapters were awarded up to $25,000 each to provide transportation, hire diverse coaches, train volunteers and build programs in diverse communities, among other activities.
“This year’s IDEA grants are the latest milestone that reflect significant progress made to date in partnership with First Tee,” said Mike Whan, CEO of the USGA. “The best way to introduce youth to the game is by meeting them where they are in their communities, and we are going to continue to drive resources toward the local level to ensure a more accessible and inclusive game for generations to come.”
“The USGA’s support is a game changer for the communities that we serve,” said Greg McLaughlin, First Tee CEO. “With these grants, our chapters are opening the door to even more youth, especially in underserved and underrepresented communities, to explore the possibilities in golf and beyond as they build their character and life lessons through the game.”
First Tee – South Dakota is using this grant, along with local community support to create a Homework and Hitting program in 2 South Dakota communities, Sioux Falls and Brookings. The programs with be conducted at the Salvation Army, Sioux Falls and the Boys and Girls Club, Brookings, in their youth centers. The first 35 minutes are focused on providing caring coaches and mentors who engage the kids in reading and math exercises. The second 35 minutes will allow the kids an opportunity to enhance their life skills and golf skills. The remaining time will be used to address food insecurities by ensuring that every kid will go home with a full stomach and healthy snacks.
“First Tee – South Dakota has launched some incredible new partnerships that will enable all kids in South Dakota an opportunity to participate in our programs,” said Julie Jansa, Executive Director, First Tee – South Dakota. “With the USGA and our community corporate sponsors, we are confident that First Tee – South Dakota will significantly increase our contributions to the youth of our community by giving them opportunities to learn life-changing skills and values, through the game of golf. First Tee has delivered a positive impact on youth in South Dakota, and we see a significant opportunity to continue and enhance that impact.”
“I love so much about what First Tee does for the kids in our program” said Jansa. “Our purpose is to help kids build-inner strength, self- confidence, and resilience through the game of golf. Our communities in South Dakota have a need for the inherent life skills and values found in our programs. We will be focused on going to where the kids need us most, in their neighborhoods, introducing new kids to our curriculum. First Tee has always been about helping kids navigate challenges, and to grow stronger as they move through them. I believe the game of golf is the perfect platform for personal growth. Through our philanthropic efforts, no young person will be turned away, due to an inability to pay.”
Chantel Brende, an alumnus since 2017, got the opportunity to chaperone the second annual First Tee Leadership Summit in Partnership with PGA TOUR Superstore in Emigrant, Montana.
Two-week Summit empowers 40 teens to hone leadership skills and identify values while providing dynamic team activities such as whitewater rafting
Chantel was one of four alumnus to get chosen to chaperone this National Opportunity.
First Tee Leadership Summit is designed to strengthen leadership skills through dynamic outdoor and team-building activities with the intended purpose of personal growth, education and coming together to make a difference. Daily leadership themes include Building Authentic Relationships, Growing through Challenge, and Building Positive Self Identity. Set in the unforgettable backdrop of West Creek Ranch, the Summit gives teens the opportunity to participate in outdoor activities including golf, fly fishing, yoga, meditation, horseback riding, archery, whitewater rafting and hiking. The teens are encouraged to apply their learnings through these activities for hands-on professional and personal development.
“As we begin the second-annual summit this week, we can already see the transformative experience taking place for these remarkable teens,” said Dick Sullivan, President & CEO, PGA TOUR Superstore. “We are thankful to be a part of such a meaningful and impactful event for these motivated teenagers.”
“We honored to host this meaningful week for these participants who will learn skills to take with them for the rest of their lives,” added Greg McLaughlin, First Tee CEO. “PGA TOUR Superstore is supporting our mission and we thank Arthur Blank for his commitment to our country’s youth.”
“It was truly an honor to get the opportunity to chaperone 19 participants at West Creek Ranch. I was able to watch the participants grow as young leaders in just a few days. Their main topics for the week were to build authentic relationships, grow through challenges, and to build positive self identity. The participants were not the only ones to take something away from those three topics. It helped me think about all the authentic relationships I have built throughout the years with how open I have become about my life and the challenges I have and am current going through. With those challenges in my life, I learned how to overcome them even more by building a positive self identity for myself. It all comes down to who you are as a person. It takes time to becomes the person you want to be and I’m realizing that now. The three topics really went together with each other and it allowed me to be open and share my story with the 19 participants. I wanted to show them that it is okay to be open about things in your life and I saw them open up with their closing statements at the end of the week. They were all very vulnerable with who they were and who they now want to be. If I got to opportunity to go back to West Creek Ranch, I would in a heart beat.”
Chantel Brende
A few pictures of the week while Chantel was there:
First Tee — South Dakota Teen Selected for PGA TOUR Champions’ PURE Insurance Championship Impacting First Tee at Pebble Beach
First Tee — South Dakota Teen Selected for PGA TOUR Champions’ PURE Insurance Championship Impacting First Tee at Pebble Beach
Mattie Weidenbach heads to Pebble Beach this September
Sioux Falls, SD (July 11, 2022) – First Tee and PGA TOUR Champions announced today Mattie Weidenbach will represent First Tee — South Dakota when she competes in the 2022 PURE Insurance Championship Impacting First Tee. The event, in its 19th year, will bring teens from First Tee chapters to Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill Golf Course for the PGA TOUR Champions tournament, Sept. 20-25. The annual event, hosted by the Monterey Peninsula Foundation, is televised nationally on Golf Channel.
Mattie, a high school senior at Harrisburg HS, is very excited for this opportunity to represent South Dakota on this national stage. Mattie helped her high school girls golf team to an AA State Championship this past June, with a 6th place individual finish. Mattie plays in several SDGA events throughout the summer and will also be playing in the AJGA this weekend at Bakker Crossing. Mattie also attended the First Tee National Participant Opportunity called the Innovators Forum in San Jose last October.
Mattie has been involved with First Tee – South Dakota for 12 years. Mattie will be entering her senior year at Harrisburg HS. Mattie enjoys spending time with her large extended family, cheering on her classmates at their sporting events, active in youth group at Central Church, and volunteering at the First Tee. When not golfing, she enjoys working at the Country Club of Sioux Falls as a bag room attendant
Throughout the week, the teens apply their character strengths and life skills learned from First Tee programs during the one-of-a-kind event where they are paired with a PGA TOUR Champions player and amateurs from the business world. Mattie will compete for the Pro-Junior Team title. She will join 77 other teens from First Tee chapters across the country and – for the second year in a row – a participant from First Tee — Morocco. Participants were selected by a national panel of judges based on their personal growth and development through First Tee’s programs, as well as their playing ability.
The full junior field was revealed live on Golf Channel’s “Golf Today.” Several players and legends of the game helped surprise select participants with the news of their selection, including World Golf Hall of Fame Member Jack Nicklaus; PGA TOUR players Stewart Cink, Cameron Champ, and Austin Smotherman; PGA TOUR Champions player Ken Duke; and No. 1 APGA Collegiate Player and Duke University stand-out Quinn Riley.
“Congratulations to Mattie who has been selected to play and represent First Tee — South Dakota on a national stage,” said Greg McLaughlin, First Tee CEO. “ Her hard work and commitment to academic and personal growth through our program has secured this opportunity. Thank you to our partners − PURE Insurance, PGA TOUR Champions, Pebble Beach Resorts, Monterey Peninsula Foundation and Golf Channel − for their commitment to young people and helping us provide this opportunity to these deserving teens.”
This year’s field of PGA TOUR Champions players will feature World Golf Hall of Fame Members Bernhard Langer, Mark O’Meara, Vijay Singh, as well as three-time PURE Insurance Championship winner Kirk Triplett. Clint Eastwood serves as chairman of the PURE Insurance Championship.
Play will be conducted on Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill Golf Course on Friday and Saturday. The final round will be contested solely at Pebble Beach Golf Links on Sunday, where 23 First Tee juniors will compete based on their 36-hole performance. The tournament will crown one male and one female First Tee Junior Champion on Sunday.
More than 1,000 teens from First Tee have played in the PURE Insurance Championship, experiencing the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet, play and be mentored by PGA TOUR Champions players and amateurs in the field.
“Supporting these incredible young men and women along with the great work of First Tee through this sponsorship is tremendously rewarding for our entire team,” said Katie Krum, Chief Marketing Officer at PURE Insurance. “I know firsthand the impact and value that participating in youth sports can have on one’s development, personally and professionally, so I am particularly proud to be part of an organization that lends support to such a worthy cause.”
First Tee is a youth development organization that teaches life skills and helps kids and teens build their strength of character through golf. The PURE Insurance Championship is one of several national opportunities provided by First Tee Headquarters to encourage and motivate participants as they progress through the program and toward higher education opportunities.
Our league day was on July 6th at Elmwood Golf Course (2604 W. Russell St).
Please arrive 15 minutes prior to your tee time to allow for check in. We will have the check-in registration outside by the putting green for you to check in and pay your $10 entry fee. Please bring either the exact cash amount or you may write a check to Elmwood GC, no credit cards will be accepted. As your tee time approaches we will be announcing who is up so you know when it is your turn.
This is a fun event for our First Tee participants! Prizes will be awarded at the end of their round for the different age division. Once everyone in their age group is done we will do awards for each group, so you don’t have to wait until everyone is done at the end. The prizes will be broken up into age/gender divisions. Remember the rounds of golf should take about an hour to an hour and fifteen (1-1.25) for the Junior Holes and about two to two and a half hours (2-2.5) to play the East 9, so be prepared with sunscreen, hats, sunglasses, bring a water bottle, and your golf clubs. Participants will be walking for their rounds of golf. Some have asked if push carts (carts that your bag sits on and you walk and push it) are available? They are available to rent at the clubhouse if you wish to do so, or if you have your own push cart you may certainly bring it to use. Otherwise participants can carry their bag or if a parent wants to help carry a bag that is ok too. Also, parents have asked about caddying or watching. As this is a fun event, we encourage parents to walk along if they would like to and if you wish to help keep score or assist in carrying clubs, great! We will gladly accept the help. We will have coaches on hand checking on groups every few holes and helping with some of the younger groups to make sure they are keeping up with the group in front of them!
We will utilize the 5-2-3, system with a max of 10 on every hole. This is to make sure the pace of play keeps going and no one gets frustrated. 5-2-3, is 5 hits to get to the green, if not to the green, pick the ball up, go and place it next to the green. 2 chips, try to chip on the green in 2 hits, if you are not on the green, pick up and place on the green. Then 3 putts to get it in the hole.
Our Online Auction was a huge success! Our goal was $25,000 and we got over $33,000!
Thank you to our amazing donors for supporting our organization by donating your wonderful products, services, and crafts to help support our mission and youth! We wouldn’t be able to do what we do without your support, we appreciate each and every one of you!!
Also, thank you to our bidders that participated in the auction! We would have not been able to raise over $33,000 without each and every one of you!
