Opportunities abound for junior golfers

Golfing discounts and opportunities have never been more
available to local junior golfers- providing you know where to
look.
Most kids are eligible to play over a hundred different golf
courses around Sonoma County and the Bay Area for just a dollar or
two, and even get buckets of balls for a dollar at some
courses. 
Unfortunately, many aspiring junior golfers aren’t aware of
these great deals. 
To be eligible for these opportunities, kids need to fill out
the Youth On Course on-line curriculum on the Northern California
Golf Association (NCGA) foundation website
(www.ncgafoundation.org). 
To qualify, young golfers must take a series of tests about golf
rules and etiquette, in addition to life skills such as maintaining
good social skills and academics.  
Once the junior golfer passes these tests, the NCGA sends out a
confirmation by e-mail. The player then has a form signed by a PGA
pro at their local course and the NCGA membership card and a Tom’s
Kids sticker is delivered by mail. Once they qualify, junior
golfers are eligible for this program until they complete high
school, although every year the player writes an essay to renew his
or her card.
 Sonoma County courses that offer the Tom’s Kid’s discount are:
Healdsburg Golf Club, Windsor Golf Course, Adobe Creek Golf Club,
Bennett Valley Golf Course, Fairgrounds Golf Course, Foxtail Golf
Club, and Rooster Run Golf Course.
 Another great opportunity in local junior golf is playing in
the Sonoma County junior golf league.   Each of six local golf
courses participate, including Windsor, Bennett Valley, and Adobe
Creek. 
Other North Bay clubs that have a junior team are Kennedy Park
in Napa (which also has a girls team), and Paradise Valley and
Rancho Solano, both in Fairfield. The teams play each other in
tournaments most every week throughout the summer.  
Each tournament uses a different format, such as best ball,
four-man scramble, and individual stroke play. The kids get to play
great courses for free, and the program includes free lunch and
range balls at each tournament. Each week there is either a
tournament at one of the league courses, or the teams have a
practice round at their home course.
 So the opportunities are there for junior golfers in Sonoma
County. All that’s left is to go out there and have fun.
Nick Clementi is an avid junior golfer and incoming freshman
at Alameda High School.