Young Jamaicans Introduced to Golf Through INSPORTS Summer Camp

Young Jamaicans are being introduced to the sport of golf through the Institute of Sports (INSPORTS) Youth Summer Golf Camp.

Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange, says the initiative is helping to develop the next generation of golfers.

Speaking with the media during the recent camp at the Caymanas Golf and Country Club in St. Catherine, Minister Grange said she is pleased to see the participants benefiting from the programme, which is now in its eighth year.

“I’m so happy that I was able to come today to see first-hand the youngsters in this summer camp for young golfers. In fact, this is the eighth year, and it’s part of the summer programme that government sponsors,” she said.

The Minister explained that the camp is a collaboration among the Caymanas Golf and Country Club, the Institute of Sports (INSPORTS) and the Sports Development Foundation (SDF).

She added that the participants are primarily drawn from communities surrounding the golf club, with some also coming from Spanish Town.

She noted that exposing children to a variety of sporting disciplines is important, as it creates opportunities for them to pursue sports beyond the more traditional games.

“It is important to expose our youngsters to the various sporting disciplines. Not everybody can be a runner. Not everybody can be a footballer or a cricketer. There are other disciplines because as a Government, through the Sports Development Foundation, we provide subvention to over 40 sporting organisations that represent the various disciplines in sports, and one such discipline is golfing,” Minister Grange said.

The camp caters to children between the ages of seven and 18, with many participants returning each year as they continue to develop their skills.

“We are, in fact, grooming youngsters to take up golfing as a career path. They are able to be exposed to being a caddie, from being a caddie to being a golfer, and we may just have a future star in this group,” she said.

Minister Grange also expressed appreciation to the Sports Development Foundation for funding the camp, INSPORTS for providing the coaches, the parents for supporting the participants, and the Caymanas Golf and Country Club for making its facilities available.

“I just want to thank everyone, because we are building youngsters, we’re building the future generation to excel. We’re not just about kicking a ball, we’re not just about playing cricket, we’re not just about running fast. We do all those things very well, but we also want to have outstanding golfers,” she said.

The Minister said participants who demonstrate potential are being monitored and given additional training outside of the summer camp.

“These youngsters, particularly those who have been part of this camp over the years, we’re actually monitoring their progress, and we have now involved them in weekend golf, so they come to Caymanas on the weekend, and continue to be trained, to be coached in playing golf, because we are looking at placing some of these who show promise on the Jamaica team, to represent Jamaica,” Minister Grange said.