Virginia Golfer Jan / Feb 2017 | Page 12

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So Much More Than Golf

First Tee graduates share why the program has been so important to their whole-person development
by ARTHUR UTLEY

What Brittany Woo has to say about The First Tee leaves no doubt about the impact the golf / life skills program that is celebrating its 20th year of operation has had on her life.

“ I could talk for hours on end about The First Tee program and the impact it had on me. There is so much to say. Yes, it’ s a step in the door to gain golf skills, but in my mind and through my experiences, The First Tee is so much more than just golf,” Woo, a junior and a First Tee Designated Scholar at the University of Richmond, said in an email response to a request from Virginia Golfer.
Her testimonial could easily be a standalone article.
Woo, a graduate of Monacan High School and the school’ s Richmond Times-Dispatch / SportsBackers female Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2014, began participating in The First Tee of Greater Richmond programs when she was 8 years old.
“ It’ s the place where my passion for golf came to be and evolved. At first, the sport seemed too challenging and boring, but the games and programs made golf into something that was enjoyable and something I
LEFT: Brittany Woo, a past USGA Boatwright intern with the VSGA, says her“ entire life has been built on a First Tee foundation.” RIGHT: Jordan Spieth chips during a clinic for The First Tee of Lake Erie at Inverness Club in Ohio in 2014.
10 V IRGINIA G OLFER | J ANUARY / F EBRUARY 2017 vsga. org