Take a Stand… and Hit Some Golf Balls!
Week one of the Connect: Golf Program
After weeks of hard work by the BigsNBC Program team, me along with 5 littles met up at Aberdeen Golf Course for the first session of Connect: Golf. It is very exciting to see this program come back again after a successful first run in 2021 and I am so pleased to be able to be a part of it. The day was perfect, one might even say a bit too hot. But, I am not complaining as will take the warm, sunny weather wherever I can get it. And who doesn’t want to get out of the office on a Tuesday afternoon and hit the golf course?
Most of the littles in the group were new to the program, with two returning from last year. Once introductions were done, the littles almost immediately started chatting about shared interests, what grades they are in, and who had golfed before. The group consists of seasoned golfers along with newbies (like me) who had never golfed before. Aberdeen golf instructor, Jesse measured us all quickly and we grabbed our clubs, ready and eager to learn. After filling our buckets will golf balls and ooing and awhing the one orange ball in a sea of white, we headed to the driving range.
Safety first, so we spent a bit of time going over personal space and where not to stand while someone is golfing. Jesse demonstrated and talked us through the proper golf stance – legs shoulder width apart, knees bent, leaning forward on our toes, and arms stretched out in front of us and we got to golfing. Off the balls went – some up, some down, some to one side – but we are all learning! We practiced with different clubs, while chatting about what each of the clubs are generally used for.
Next, Jesse taught us about the importance of the follow through and how a complete range of motion allows us to better steer the ball where we want it go. And what do you know, it worked! There was an almost immediate improvement is all of our swings.
At this point, one of the littles noticed a playground in the distance and asked Jesse if we could all go play. He said, “if you can hit the ball further than me, we can go to the playground”. As this was most of our first time golfing, Jesse hit the ball ~slightly~ further than the kids (okay, way further), but I think by the end of the group the kids will be ready for a rematch.
During the last 15 minutes, Jesse set up a bucket for us all to aim at. The goal was simple – get your ball into the bucket. After MANY near misses, Jesse once again showed us all up by sinking the shot. Can’t wait to see what happens next week!
June 27, 2022
Jane, BigsNBC Volunteer
