Category: Treasure Coast

Treasure Coast Chapter Director and singer/songwriter Wes Hightower visited with GT Nicklaus and his father and professional golfer, Gary Nicklaus (pictured above left). They listened to GT’s music and talked about GT’s singing and writing career and trends in the music industry. 

GT is a rising singer and songwriter with incredible talent. He is also a great golfer.
Check out some of GT’s music here: 
https://www.instagram.com/gt.nicklaus/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0ov6s4PBQ8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUEwfFDDgxs

Our Chapter has enjoyed a long and successful partnership with BGC SLC including summer camps. LPGA Coach Gabbie Budd explaining the golf swing and how to be respectful to others to summer camp participants of the Boys and Girls Club St. Lucie County. 

Pictured above: LPGA Coach Gabbie Budd explaining the golf swing and how to be respectful to others to summer camp participants of the Boys and Girls Club St. Lucie County.

Summer camps and programs are in full swing. Register now!

Our program locations include: 
• Crane Watch Club
• The Saints at Port St. Lucie Golf Course
• The Champions Club
• Trident Golf Club
• Jensen Beach Golf Club
• Fairwinds Golf Course
• Sailfish Sands Golf Course
• First Tee League
 
For more information and to register, please visit our website.

Our Chapter has enjoyed a long and successful partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Lucie County in their many clubs across the county. 

“The pinnacle of our partnership is the funding and installation of our new golf complex at their Westside Club,” said Anthony Coletta, Chapter Director of Operations. “We expect to enroll hundreds of students in First Tee programs each year at Westside. It is a game changer for these students and our chapter.”

Pictured above: Coach Willie Scott with a great group of BGC SLC teenagers that are fully engaged in his programs.

Want to play 6 free rounds of golf? It is time again to play 100 holes in one day to support the thousands of children and veterans in our programs. Clubs that have participated to support our chapter include Harbour Ridge, Hobe Sound Golf Club, Willoughby, Piper’s Landing, The Yacht & Country Club. Who else is in this year? Last year we raised over $20,000.

Country Clubs can play and so can individual golfers. For more information please visit our website or contact Anthony Coletta at [email protected] or 603-969-5477.

They did it once again! In 2022, The Honda Classic raised and distributed over $6.4 million to 100 local charities including $2 million to the Nicklaus Children Healthcare Foundation.  Their charitable giving broke their previous record and impacted the lives of 100,000 children in 2022.

Honda Classic Executive Director Emeritus Ken Kennerly and new Honda Classic Executive Director Andrew George presented the BIG check to summer camp students and Chapter Executive Carl Mistretta, Director of Program Development Emily Valentine and Coach Gail Galin.  

The Honda Classic is a Founding Partner of our chapter and Kennerly serves as Vice Chairman of our Board of Directors.  The tournament’s financial support to our organization each year represents one of the largest PGA TOUR event donations to a First Tee chapter.  Through our many events, engagements and awarded grants in partnership with the tournament, the total amount donated to our chapter in 2022 was $170,890.00.

What is the 2%+ Club?
Our Chapter launched the 2%+ Club with the goal of golf enthusiasts donating 2% or more of their annual golf expenses to our children and veterans. For the typical golf enthusiast this equates to between $10 and $50 per month.

All funds raised support the mission of the First Tee – Treasure Coast, which is to impact the lives of young people, including those with special needs, and veterans, by providing educational programs that build character, instill life-enhancing values and promote healthy choices through the game of golf.

How do you contribute?
First, do the math! What are your total golf expenses each year? Next, multiply that amount by 2%. Then, divide that amount by 12 months. This amount becomes your monthly donation, and your pledge is processed securely online on our website.

Questions?
Contact Chapter Director, Chris Burr, at [email protected] or call at (561) 400-5970.

Originally from the Mississippi Gulf Coast, Coach Ben Miller, PGA started playing golf at the age of 12 where on the golf course by his grandmother’s home. He played high school golf for 4 years before moving to Saint Augustine, FL to attend Flagler College where he graduated in 2016. While in college, he worked at Marsh Creek Country Club. After graduating, he was hired by the club as a golf professional where he was assigned the responsibility to establish a junior golf program. He left Marsh Creek with a successful junior golf program in early 2022 to move to south Florida to be closer to family. 

Coach Ben has completed First Tee Level I training and is already very active at Sailfish Sands, Westside Golf Complex and many other program locations in the Treasure Coast. He is conducting a summer camp with Martin County Parks & Rec. He is teaching the program at their campus, but our goal is to bring the students to Sailfish Sands once all phases of their renovations are complete. Coach Ben had a big turnout with 19 participants! 

Pictured above: Coach Ben with the students learning about Respect and Honesty.

Sailfish Point has completed an extensive renovation and re-design of their golf course with Nicklaus Design. “The new golf course is simply spectacular,” said Chapter Executive Director Carl Mistretta. We are so thankful to the members and very excited they are hosting our tournament on their new course.”

Our annual golf tournament will be held on Tuesday, September 20th at Sailfish Point. Sponsorships are now available for the event. Our day at this Jack Nicklaus Signature Course includes lunch, gift bag, golf, prizes, dinner and drinks. All players compete in both gross and net divisions. 

12noon lunch and warm-up, 1:00pm shotgun. Play your own ball, no scramble, limited field. One best ball of the foursome. This is your chance to join our current sponsors of Amazon Web Services, PGA TOUR Superstore and Comcast. We are offering a variety of sponsor opportunities. 

For more information contact [email protected] or 603-969-5477.

Champion’s Club students recently played a 3-hole tournament to end their 6-week session program under Coach Steven. 

“The Champions Club has been a fantastic partner,” said Chapter President Andrew Hunt. “David Ladd, their General Manager, was one of our first chapter coaches and their ownership has been very supportive of First Tee for many years. They have also invested to upgrade their driving range and added a new short game area, which our students really enjoy.”

Our Saturday morning programs are a great way to introduce kids and teens to the game of golf along with the life skills curriculum of First Tee. To sign up for programs at Champions Club please visit our website.

Our Chapter welcomes John Sedwitz as the newest member of our Treasure Coast Board. John first joined our chapter as a volunteer and has contributed by coaching the Boys & Girls Club of Martin County and at Banner Lake Community Center. 

John is a year-round resident of Hobe Sound where he and his wife, Ginny, enjoy living in such a wonderful community. With his role as a Director, John will contribute to the success and growth of our organization and strives to ensure that our students learn to love the game of golf, but also learn to be responsible, accountable, and productive individuals.

John has 37 years of business experience and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Hobe Sound Golf Club Property Owners Association. John is excited to continue to coach, but also serve as a Director for our Chapter.

Summer camps and programs are in full swing. Register now!

Our program locations include: 
• Crane Watch Club
• The Saints at Port St. Lucie Golf Course
• The Champions Club
• Trident Golf Club
• Jensen Beach Golf Club
• Fairwinds Golf Course
• Sailfish Sands Golf Course
• First Tee League
 
For more information and to register, please visit our website.