Kids improve golf game and life skills

Thirteen-year-old Chris Booker signed up with The First Tee of St. Louis to improve his golf game. But, he said the overall program has improved him "emotionally and mentally."

That's because The First Tee program combines instruction in golf skills with a conscious effort to improve kids' "life skills."

The First Tee is an international organization supported by such golf "heavyweights" as The Augusta National Golf Club, host of the Masters; the United States Golf Assn., and the PGA and LPGA pro golf organizations.

One of the things that golf enthusiasts like to say is that playing golf helps you learn principles that help you live a better life. One of the reasons is that golf depends on self-policing much more than other sports.

There aren't many sports where you see a skilled athlete call a penalty on him or herself in the middle of a tense match. But, that happens quite often in golf tournaments.

When designing The First Tee program, sponsors decided to mix lessons on golf with instruction in nine "core value" areas of honesty, integrity, respect, sportsmanship, confidence, responsibility, perseverance, courtesy and judgment.

Booker, who lives in the city of St. Louis, signed up for First Tee lessons the first year the program came to St. Louis in 2006.

He said, "The First Tee program has helped me to improve my golf game immensely. And it has helped mold me into a better person."

The 8th grader at Saint Rock School in St. Louis said he now takes "much more responsibility" for his schooling.

Brothers Ethan and Aaron Michalicek of Vinita Park joined The First Tee program this year. They both said they are getting a lot out of the program both from a golfing standpoint and for the emphasis on life skills.

Twelve-year-old Ethan said, "We get a lot of advice and I'm taken it all in."

Nine-year-old Aaron said he's learned to respect the game of golf and that has carried over with respect for other parts of his life.

The First Tee of St. Louis chapter is headquartered at the Triple A Golf Course in Forest Park. But, it also has affiliated programs at a number of other courses in the St. Louis area.

Affiliated programs are at Eagle Springs Golf Course in North County, Ruth Park Course in University City, Spencer T. Olin Course in Alton, IL, and Cardinal Creek course at Scott AFB in Illinois.

In all, the First Tee program has 207 chapters in 49 of the states and five international locations. The affiliated programs now number 692 locations.

(To learn more about The First Tee, go to the national website at www.thefirsttee.org or the local website at www.thefirstteeofstlouis.org. The local website also gives schedules of classes and tournaments.

(Or you could call The First Tee of St. Louis at (314) 533-6400.)

The First Tee has a scholars program, where they honor kids for both their golfing skills and their accomplishments in the classroom.

The local 2008 First Tee Scholar Class honor went to Nathan Holliday of Belleville, IL.

In an essay he wrote for the scholar program last year, Nathan said, "It is better to be a good golfer rather than a person who golfs well."

He added, "Prior to enrolling in The First Tee program, I erroneously expected only to become a better physical golfer. My involvement over the past three years gave me insight to what kind of person I want to become."

Another of the first-year First Tee golfers is seven-year-old Danny Oexeman of Kirkwood. He said, "I joined after my dad heard of the program."

He said his golf lessons have helped with his swing. But, he said he's also learned about courtesy and responsibility when playing golf with others.

The 1st grader at St. Peter Catholic School in Kirkwood said those virtues are especially valuable when playing with others on courses away from home. He said he's played on courses French Lick, IN, and Nashville, IL.

He counts his play at French Lick as his best golfing experience so far. "I not only played but I got to drive the golf cart," he said.

Chris Booker said his best golf experience so far was when he got a golf lesson from pro Jay Delsing of St. Louis at the BMW pro tournament. That tournament was played on the Bellerive Country Club here last year.

He also played the 18th hole with Delsing when the two hit alternating shots to earn a par 5. He said he sunk the final putt after Delsing had gotten him close to the hole.

Chris said he'd like to play golf in high school and, if he was good enough, in college.

He said he competes in a lot of golf tournaments. He earned 4th place in the 13-and-under flight of a tournament in California.

Ethan Michalicek said his best golfing experience so far was on the driving range at Ruth Park in University City. "I didn't do well in the beginning but I finally hit some long ones."

His brother, Aaron, said he had the most fun during the kickoff of the First Tee season at the course in Forest Park. He said it was his first time on a golf course.