Category: News

Chapter supporters that are members of Hobe Sound Golf Club joined us for a reception at their club.  They also invited many of their friends from the club to the reception to learn more about our Chapter and our impact thousands of children and veterans in the Treasure Coast.

Executive Director Carl Mistretta Jr. gave a brief overview of our work in the community.  The highlight of the evening was when Director and Coach John Sedwitz brought up the students from Banner Lake Community Center to introduce themselves and to tell the audience what they most liked about First Tee classes. Pizza is always a big hit each week!

Interested in having a reception at your golf club to learn more about First Tee? Please contact [email protected] for more information.

During the Sunday of the US Disabled Open, Chapter students and coaches conducted a special needs clinic at the driving range and putting green at PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie. Partnering with Els for Autism, we hosted a 4-station clinic for special needs participants. Coach Joe Grohman, PGA led the organization of the event, assigning 6 other coaches and a dozen volunteers to guide the participants. The event was concluded with an intense competition for “The World Putting Championship” where each participant had two chances in front of the crowd of volunteers and parents to putt the ball as close to the hole as possible. After each putt, the contestants were met with roaring applause. 

We recently hosted our inaugural Game Changers Golf Tournament at Fairwinds Golf Course! Thanks to our coach and the man behind the mission, Willie Scott for making his vision a very successful reality! Special thank you to Fairwinds Golf Course, The Rusty Putter, and the Bonner Bar for being our title sponsors. The tournament consisted of 132 players, 4 1/2 hours, perfect weather, great networking, and $40,000 dollars raised!  Proceeds will fund our trip for students to the PGA Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.

Friday afternoons are golf time with Martin County Parks and Rec After-School Group at the GAAP Center. Coach Ben Miller teaches 16 kids, ages 7-9, the importance of collaborating and working with their peers. Using SNAG (Starting New at Golf) equipment, Coach Ben divides the group into 4 teams. Each student gets two swings before switching with one of their teammates. After multiple rounds and a point tally, the winning team is declared. In the first few sessions, it was apparent that the other teams were not thrilled with their loss, and most were unwilling to congratulate the winning team. Coach Ben and the teachers with the group discussed that everyone should be happy for their peers when they do well. By the 3rd session, the group began to catch on to the importance of being supportive. Now that we are 5 sessions in, the winning team is always congratulated by their peers.

“What’s a slice? What’s a hook?” asked BGC teen student Malachi Davis. Even though he has been introduced to the game this year, Malachi is hooked. In his first few sessions, Malachi was too nervous to make a swing at the ball and not confident enough to ask questions. Now every session seems to start with multiple questions. After a brief demonstration on how to shape the ball a bit, Malachi was successful in learning to turn his natural fade or slice oriented shot into a slight draw. This is very impressive given how new he is to the game. In addition to the Boys and Girls Club sessions, Malachi has been frequenting Fairwinds. He even had the confidence to play 9-holes with complete strangers. Coach Ben Miller, PGA is very proud of how golf has allowed Malachi to come out of his shell. With high school enrollment just over a year from now, he has set the goal of making the golf team. 

Malachi’s development has resulted in other kids in the BGC group to become interested in trying out the game. Jah’Cory, an avid football player and track athlete, somehow found time outside of his busy schedule to join Malachi and Coach Ben Miller for 9-holes at Fairwinds Golf Course. This was a whole new experience for Jah’Cory. The highlight of the day was making a 3-putt bogey on the 4th hole. As much as Jah’Cory loves to hit his driver, he is quickly learning that putting is the way to score in golf. 

John Sedwitz first joined our Chapter as a volunteer. He continues to contribute to the success of our Chapter by coaching programs for the students at Banner Lake Community Center and serving as a Board Director.  The students are welcomed and learn how to play golf at Hobe Sound Golf Club.

The Banner Lake Club was established in 1939 with a mission of improving the quality of life for Hobe Sound residents, especially those requiring financial, social, and educational support. 

2022 was a great year! Please review our Annual Report to learn how we impact our community. 

Summer is almost here!  Enroll your children in our programs in Martin and St. Lucie Counties.  

We are back at Crane Watch Club! Coach Gabbie Budd, LPGA has begun after school programs and Saturday classes. 

For more information and to register at one of our 8 program locations, please visit our website.