The Anguillian visited the beautiful Temenos Golf Club on Tuesday, July 31 to speak with its directors about the junior golf programme that is coming to a close. All three golf instructors, PGA Professional Hale Kelly, PGA Apprentice Josh Shepard and Bernie Morgan were wearing their Anguilla Junior Golf shirts and were very much enthused about the final day as it was a chance to recognize the children for their hard work as well as see them compete. The Troon Golf Staff, under the direction and leadership of PGA Professional Dana Schmid, implemented a structured player development program for the duration of the month long camp.

Rajeem Webster receives his award from Hale, Josh and Bernie

This past Tuesday was the final day of the camp and all the children were asked to wear their junior golf shirts as well so that everyone could be unified in recognition of the team work and dedication to learning a new challenging sport. All the children received certificates and special recognition was given to some of the more advanced players. On this final day, the 23 children that were enrolled would also be engaged in three competitions; chipping, short putting, and long putting.

All the children receive a certificate from their coaches

On the beautiful grass of the soon to be finished practice facility, the children competed in a chipping competition in which they showcased their newly found short game skills. On the pristine putting green they would engage in short and long putting exercises which require a great deal of skill, perception, and concentration. With all the children wearing their nice shirts, it gave the Troon Golf Staff a chance to emphasize the importance of self-image and grooming. In life, taking care of ones own self image is a sign of self-respect and confidence and is an important life lesson that can be learned through not only golf, but sport in general.

Jose Pablo Estrada receives the most improved award from Hale Josh and Bernie

Mr. Morgan spoke in great detail about the camp which lasted five weeks. He mentioned that a lot of the camp was actually conducted on the golf course itself. There were many skills taught and learned that focused around the basics such as grip, stance, putting, distance control, chipping, pitching, and driving. One of the obstacles that the golf staff had to overcome was the fact that the majority of the children have already developed habits from skills they have learned in cricket which have initially impeded their understanding of golf related skills. Of course, accuracy in golf is indeed paramount, and to this end, there was much emphasis placed on accuracy instead of sheer power. This was done also on the temporary golf range in which many balls were hit at various targets in a man-made lake. Also, the fairway on hole number four was used to teach hitting the ball straight. Throughout the camp, there were competitions for prizes in which the children would aim for the targets in the water or would attempt to hit the ball as straight as possible down the fairway in which a white line would be the marker for establishing who was the most accurate.

Head Professional Hale Kelly teaches a child to chip

There were many prizes given away such as new golf clubs as this is essential to continuing with the sport. As Bernie mentioned, there really is no way for children to obtain golf clubs in Anguilla, therefore, in order to promote the sport it was important to distribute as many as possible to engender more participation. The children were between the ages of 8 and 13 and had to pay $65 to participate in the camp. With the t-shirts, golf clubs, and other prizes earned, the children certainly got their money’s worth. There were strict guidelines that the children had to adhere too as golf requires a great deal of discipline. For any infraction of the rules, they would first receive a warning, then a 15 minute time out, and if a third consequence was necessary, the parent would be informed. Bernie reported that there were no discipline problems throughout the camp however. The children were constantly excited about the new sport and even more so about the acres of beautiful green grass that they had never seen before. Twenty-five percent of the students for this year’s camp were returning students from the previous year which shows commitment. One of the students, Rajeem Brooks, played last year and has shown a tremendous amount of improvement not only in his attitude but playing ability as well. Another student, José Pablo Estrada, is making great strides and received the most improved player award.

Josh Shepard teaches a stiudent the basics

The staff of Troon Golf are indeed doing an excellent job of giving back to the community and promoting this new sport in Anguilla. It is their hope that more children will want to play golf and one day boast of an Anguillan champion. In closing, Bernie Morgan said, “it has been a very successful summer camp. With newcomers and existing children, they have really taken to it. It is great to be part of something new and see the children enjoying it as we all know sport has so much to offer. Not every child’s calling in life is as an academic; it could be music, it could be art or sport and we are looking to nurture any kind of talent a child shows here in Anguilla.”

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