Niagara College’s Business Administration – Professional Golf Management (PGM) students look forward to seeing the sport of golf introduced to six Ontario schools as a result of their annual fundraiser.
On Oct. 19, NC students raised $2,850 at the eighth annual PGM Invitational Charity Golf Tournament held at the Grand Niagara Golf Club in Thorold. All funds are donated to the National Golf in Schools program, which introduces the game of golf to thousands of students in the country by integrating golf into school physical education programs.
Six schools have been confirmed to participate in the Golf in School program including, Quaker Road School and St. Andrews Elementary School in Welland, and Lockview Public School in St. Catharines.
“Golf Canada can’t thank NC and their Professional Golf Management students enough for their continued support of our Future Links driven by Acura Golf in Schools program,” said Kelly Dawdy, manager of in-school programs with Golf Canada. “We are proud of the dedication of the NC students to supporting junior golf in their community.”
The PGM students and professor Zach Hallborg saw 81 participants in total, which included NC faculty, PGM program alumni and fellow golf professionals and members of the golf industry.
“Many elementary school physical education programs feature soccer, football, basketball, etc. but never introduce golf at a young age to kids,” said Halborg. “Golf as a sport can sometimes be stigmatized as expensive, exclusive and only for older people but that is so far from the truth.”
Since the launch of this fundraising initiative in 2011, NC’s PGM students have raised over $15,000 for the Golf in Schools program, which has resulted in Golf in Schools being introduced to 20 schools in Ontario.
“It became a great exercise in self-directed learning, as each group was responsible for all aspects of the event including venue selection, food and beverage, prizes, finance and budget preparation, marketing and promotion, on site contests and logistics, and registration,” said Michael Santoro, PGM program coordinator.
“The Canadian education system is the single most concentrated opportunity to introduce golf to youth across the country. Developing a link between education, community and junior golfers is the future of our sport,” said Dawdy. “We thank NC and their students for their support in helping us grow the Golf in Schools program, introducing new children to the sport every year.”
