Aboriginal Golf Championship Celebrates First Nations In Canada Growing Involvement In The Game
The 2016 BC Aboriginal Provincial Golf Championships Were Hosted In Partnership With Talking Rock Golf Course And The Little Shuswap Band From August 7th-9th, 2016 in Chase, BC - Image Courtesy Aboriginal Sport BC
by Gino Cutri/British Columbia Golf
For a child’s overall development, participation in sports goes a long way. It introduces them to certain disciplines, rules, sportsmanship, and social encounters. Golf checks off all those boxes, in this article we look into where the participation levels are with respect to Aboriginal youth.
The current level of participation seems to be stable at this time. Lara Mussell, the sports director for Aboriginal Sport, Recreation, and Physical Activity Partner’s Council says it’s a very exciting time of year with the Aboriginal Golf Championships taking place.
“We usually see every year at our annual provincial golf event 12 or 13 kids but we usually see a lot of new faces, and the ones that return get better every year. Its not like soccer where you see hundreds of kids but the quality of kids that come, and the leaders too, both are really great.”
The championships run every second year in conjunction with a developmental year. Mussell says they saw a great turnout last year when the focus was on development. She attributes this to the fact anyone can come to learn the game, and that there are no prerequisites.
“Last year, when it was more of a developmental focus, it was much less intimidating for a newer golfer to know that it was ok to be a beginner to come. I think when it’s just a championship-type format one infers they need to have experience, and know what they’re doing.”
The underlying goal is to introduce as many Aboriginal kids to the game of golf as possible. In British Columbia we are fortunate to have a number of Aboriginally owned golf courses where youth can go and play. The trouble sometimes is for the kids to make the leap of faith and go.
One of the course pros at Musqueam Golf Course mentioned how he would always see the kids around, he knew they were from the community, but they wouldn’t come and golf. He then decided to offer some free lessons and they all began to have fun, which in turn made them want to continue on with the sport.
British Columbia Golf president Patrick Kelly is a member of the Leq'á:mel First Nation and he believes the active participation is there, but not on a consistent level across the province. “It's spotty from area to area, that I’ve seen. In some cases there’s good participation and in others not so much. An example is Gorge Vale in Victoria where there’s quite an active participation from the junior’s program but that’s been the result of some focused effort to bring out Aboriginal youth," says Kelly.
"If more junior programs make a conscious effort to attract Aboriginal youth, our province will definitely benefit from an increase in its overall participation. Golf is unique in the fact that a person can go on their own to practice and play. If a child has the itch to play the game all it takes is for his or her parent to drive them to the course and supervise while the child puts in the work.”
Rachelle Nielsen, a First Nations woman, was an assistant coach at the 2016 Aboriginal Golf Championships and is also a member of the Texas A&M Kingsville golf team. She says golf always kept her on the right path to reach her full potential.
“I always played, I always practiced, it really helped me have a drive. I wasn’t too worried about doing other things, I had something to do in my spare time. I wouldn’t be bored after dinner just watching TV or hanging out. I had something to do with my time too, so it wasn’t like ‘oh what am I going to do with the rest of the afternoon after school? Oh, I’ll go to the course and play 9 holes.”
image courtesy flikr.com/gov.bc.ca
Summerland's Rachelle Nielsen, Seated To Premier Christy Clark's Left, Was A Recipient Of A Premier's Award For Aboriginal Youth Excellence in Sport In 2015
She hopes to see more Aboriginal youth get into the game because she knows first hand the opportunities out there if they put in the time and strive to be the best. Having said that, there are still barriers restricting Aboriginal youth from participating in the game of golf. It’s no secret golf can be a very expensive sport, and most families simply cannot afford to enroll their kids in junior programs or private lessons.
As people tend to get caught up in the cost of lessons, Mussell explains that’s only half the problem, “They don’t know how to play for one, so starting out is intimidating, and they don’t have equipment, the barrier is they don’t have the equipment.”
That’s not the only reason participation numbers haven’t grown when referring to Aboriginal youth, Nielsen makes a point as to why she believes youth participation in golf in all backgrounds is declining. “My dad calls it the ‘Tiger’ effect, that’s why he thinks junior golf is on the decline, because they don’t have that person that’s always winning and striving for excellence. There needs to be more local people, because you can’t really connect with the guys on the PGA TOUR.”
It’s not all gloom though, there are efforts being made across the province to introduce as many Aboriginal youths to the game as possible. Again using Musqueam Golf Course as an example, they are really trying to erase the stigma that has been associated with golf for so many years. They know golf has traditionally been stereotypically viewed as a sport played by 'wealthy, white people' and are wanting to make it more inclusive for their Aboriginal neighbours.
Mussell echoes this point, “There are some lesson opportunities being offered for free to keep their participation going, and those opportunities can help. If they are introduced and get the chance to see how much fun it is, that’s the first step. Especially for those kids that have that opportunity for a low price or free golf on courses that are on their traditionally territories. So helping address some of those barriers for sure is making the sport seem more within their reach, and something that is welcoming and wants to be inclusive for them should really help.”
Furthermore, realizing the barriers, Kelly and many of his fellow members at Gorge Vale Golf Club came together to give all the juniors complete sets of clubs that they had patched together from old clubs sitting in their basements. They were able to provide all the Aboriginal youth with sets, while at the same time sponsoring some of the lessons as members.
In addition, the club professionals got on board and reached out to the young people and offered them skill development programs. From the very basics of how to hold a club properly, to the etiquette of the sport, to how to properly keep score, all go into helping them enjoy the game. “Its so great, the kids just love it and they often will spend a whole summer on the golf course. The parents love it too because they know where the kids are, they know they’re safe, they know they’re doing healthy things.”
Similarly, Nielsen pointed out Summerland Golf Course has junior’s night every Monday allowing junior golfers the ability to take lessons and play 9 holes. The program is designed to let the kids experience the game of golf by having fun and not having to worry about being good at it. It’s also designed to be relatively inexpensive so more families have the opportunity to send their kids.
Lastly, an increase in role models would benefit aboriginal youth participation in a big way. At the Aboriginal Golf Championship, Nielsen played a practice round with the only girl competing. She says they really connected during their time on the course together. Nielsen told the younster that if she works really hard and puts in the effort, in a few years she could be going off to college too.
Recently Bear Mountain Resort held a media day for the upcoming Pacific Links International PGA TOUR Champions event. Champions member Paul Goydos and Web.com Tour player Roger Sloan of Merritt, BC were on hand to help promote the event and hit some shots for those playing in the media golf day.
Kelly attended the event on behalf of British Columbia Golf and in doing so brought along a young Aboriginal boy who had just been introduced to the game of golf. Kelly says the experience could not have gone better. “He was so intrigued by the whole thing, he got quite enthused by it, he was so hyped by it, he just loved it. So I think access to tour professionals and role models and icons like that does go a long way to help young people see really interesting elements in the game of golf.”
If these efforts to introduce Aboriginal youth to the game of golf result in even just a few more participants a year, it still has to be seen as a success. The hope is that one day there will be no barriers, perceived or otherwise, standing in the way of these young people getting involved, enjoying, and staying with a game that has so much to offer, both on and off the golf course.