JGA stages innovative ‘Grow The Game’ initiative at Constant Spring

The Jamaica Golf Association (JGA) has introduced an innovative initiative dubbed ‘Grow The Game’ with the intention of taking the game to the masses across the island. The initiative is part of the association’s celebration of its 100th year as an organised sport in Jamaica.

Jamaica has the distinction of having the oldest golf club in the Western Hemisphere. That honour goes to the Manchester Golf Club in Mandeville, which was founded in 1865.

The first Grow The Game initiative, which was held recently at the Constant Spring Golf Club in Kingston, was over-subscribed. Several persons who could not be accommodated were invited to try for the next instalment of the event, which will be held today at the same venue. Again, more persons than can be accommodated in the two-group session have applied to learn the sport from the experienced, qualified coaches, who take the participants through the rudiments of the sport, such as putting, chipping, teeing-off, the rules, and even warm-up exercises.

“I just came with an open mind, and so I said, ‘let me see what I could learn and see how I feel about it and, if golf likes me, and if I like golf and it turns out that I’m really into it and I like to see my balls fly’. I like to learn the grip and the technique and try to be competitive with myself, so I’m learning. It’s my first time and I’m really into it, so let’s see if I really take it seriously and maybe do it for a couple of weeks or a couple of months,” said Ingrid Riley who participated in the first initiative.

Jason Lopez, who has served at various levels, including being a national coach, endorsed the initiative.

“I think it’s a really good initiative on behalf of the Jamaica Golf Association to help grow the game. You know, here at Constant Spring Golf Club and at the JL School of Golf, we have this driving range facility that’s really here for the development of the game, and that’s why we continue to push the message that there are no barriers to entry into the game. No memberships needed, no clubs needed, no experience needed. We have coaches, we have all the equipment, we have lights. We’re open seven days a week, and we’re here to attract really anybody who has any interest.So these types of initiatives kind of further open the eyes of the public at large, and with the hopes of bringing them here and realising that golf is accessible to everyone.

“The hour and a half is broken into three 30-minute sessions where we expose you to the three most basic parts of the game, which is obviously the full swing, which is hitting the ball, the putting, and the chipping. So, we spend 30 minutes on each session, or each section, and try to give people a little bit of exposure, so that, by the time they leave here, they have a nice, rounded view of what this golfing might be about” said Lopez.

Alison Reid, who spearheaded the JGA’s junior programme for several years, was happy to see the high number of females who attended the session.

“We actually had more females than males. We had 35 females and five males, which is awesome. So, that’s also very encouraging because, you know, we’ve always struggled in the ladies’ divisions. We don’t have enough women that participate, and so it’s great to see them showing an interest.”

According to Rowen Coe of the JGA, “this is all part of the 100th anniversary of the Jamaica Golf Association. So, we’re going to have a couple more clinics like this. We’re going to spread it a little more widely. We didn’t have a lot of marketing time for this one. So, we had a great turnout, it was actually over-subscribed. So we know that the interest is there and we just want to keep having a few of these and then encourage people to come and get lessons. There’s a special membership for the summer at Constant Spring Golf Club.”