Junior Golf Foundation to host fund-raiser

Mandated to search, nurture and develop golf talent from children aged five to 21, the Junior Golf Foundation (JGF) plans to host a major fund raising golf tournament on February 28 at the Royal Nairobi Golf Club.

The JGF, which was set up by both the Kenya Golf Union (KGU) and the Kenya Ladies Golf Union (KLGU) in October 2, 1995, with a view of promoting junior golf development in Kenya, has over the years depended on contributions from corporates and charitable organisations, such as the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews in Scotland.

This is in addition to the annual subscription of Sh1,000 from its registered members. But with an increasing number of children playing golf across the country, mostly from non-golfing families, the amount contributed annually is no longer enough to support the programmes of the JGF which include buying of golf equipment as well as training of trainers who have been coaching the children in the various regions.

During its board meeting late last year, the JGF decided to host at least one fund raising tournament every year to try and raise funds for its programme.
Acting JGF chairman Betty Mutua has, therefore, appealed to individual golfers as well as corporates to support the February 28 fund-raiser at Royal Nairobi where entry fee per player will be Sh2,500.

“The foundation works very closely with KGU, KLGU and the affiliated golf clubs in the regions in growing the game amongst the juniors by not only organising junior tournaments and events but also sponsoring and overseeing structured training/coaching programs across the country, therefore the fund raising event is very important for us’’ said Mutua.

Last year, the foundation introduced the training for golf teachers programme to bridge in the gap of having limited resources and capacity to train the young players.