The La Paloma Junior Golf Team is back at it for another semester of fun! The Spring 2017 Season teed off in late January, and we’ve already nearly doubled our numbers from last semester (9 to 17). Demand has been so high that we’ve even had to add another coach to our staff just to keep the teacher student ratio at an acceptable 6:1.
Monday’s Junior Golf Team practices run from 3:30p to 5:00p and are specifically reserved for skills development. At the U.S. Kids Golf Certified Coaching Seminar I attended back in November, I learned the value of game-based learning.
The putting, short game, and full swing games we play at practice on Mondays simulate playing golf, and the kids are constantly learning golf fundamentals without ever realizing it. That’s the genius of it.
Wednesdays are our play days, and practice runs from 3:30p to 5:30p or 6:00p. All of the kids wear their team uniforms (La Paloma Junior Golf Team logo hats, shirts, and shorts/skorts this semester), and we’re exposing them to the different formats they’re likely to face either in competition this summer or hopefully, their high school golf teams down the road.
And that reminds me! We’re also in the process of forming a 10-12 person, invitation only PGA Junior League team to represent La Paloma later this year against other Junior League teams around Tucson. The two-person scramble, nine hole matches usually take place on Fridays, and the team meets for practice one other day during the week. It’s the first year we’ve fielded a team, and we’re pretty excited!