Category: News

Congratulations to chapter student Nathan Vertes from Coach Glen’s program for becoming our first student to be named a First Tee Scholar!

The First Tee College Scholarship Program supports selected alumni throughout their college career. The need and merit-based program provides scholarships up to $5,000 per year, renewable for up to four years of college admission. The program also provides professional development workshops, access to internships and full-time employment placement post-graduation. One of the key factors of the program is pairing Scholars with a dedicated adult mentor who will help encourage and guide them throughout the four years.

Fantastic showing for two of our alumni at the Palm Beach County Golf Association’s County Amateur Championship at The Park West Palm.  Chapter alumni Nashawn Tyson finished 2nd at 11 under par and Tyler Mistretta shot a final round 66 to finish tied for 5th at 8 under par. 

Sponsored by the Palm Beach Kennel Club, the Annual Palm Beach County Amateur Championship sets the stage for South Florida amateur golfers to battle for the title as the best amateur golfer in the County.

Also, Sebastian Nachilly posted a final round of 2 under par 68 to finish tied for 7th in the FSGA Public Links Championship at Dubsdread GC in Orlando.

Volunteers from the Breakers maintenance teams have been assisting us all summer with our turf programs including aeration, verticutting, bunker repairs, topdressing and landscaping.  The Breakers Palm Beach strives to make a difference in the world. Through Volunteer Time Off (VTO), they empower their staff to use work time to volunteer, and to further inspiring their employees to inject energy and enthusiasm into the local community. Chapter Director Mark Reid inspires the golf course and hotel maintenance teams to assist our Chapter by providing agronomic and landscape assistance at our Finnegan Learning Center in Dyer Park.

And to top it all off, the Breakers donated a Toro spray rig to our maintenance team.  (Pictured: Chapter Superintendent Ryan Kelly with Mack Gennette from the Breakers delivering the spray rig.)

Chapter Coaches, Tami Blanks, Danni Rocco, and Devin Shaw attended First Tee Level 2 Coach Training in Clearwater, FL. The First Tee Coach Training Program is focused on coaches having the opportunity to expand their knowledge of our curriculum and implement what they have learned within a live class setting, then receive feedback from the trainers. This is an important step of many for coaches to adopt and implement our coaching strategies. In-person coach training allows coaches to:

• Share best practices about age-based programs
• Deepen their coaching skills; and
• Interact with the refreshed curriculum.

In May, The Little Club in Gulfstream hosted an LPGA Amateur Golf Association event. The Pink Ball Tournament featured 18 foursomes in a shotgun start. Chapter students Annika Collado, Cienna Collado, and Asha Farrelly were invited to attend and had a fantastic time. 

The Palm Beach County Sports Commission is again sponsoring our upcoming Chapter Championship at BallenIsles.

The Palm Beach County Sports Commission attracts sporting events and activities to Palm Beach County to enhance occupancy of hotel room nights; to maximize the positive economic impact of these events and activities on the Palm Beach County economy; to maximize the utilization of County facilities; to utilize events and activities to promote the image of Palm Beach County as a sports tourism destination on a national and international level.

Each year, the events they support are responsible for nearly one million sports visitors to Palm Beach County – sleeping in our hotels, utilizing our facilities, enjoying our attractions and eating in our restaurants.