Can you remember the last time you played a round of golf for just $5? Yeah, neither can I.
Thanks to a new program called Youth On Course, being operated in partnership with the Washington State Golf Association, however, there are millions of kids nationwide who are able to answer that question with an affirmative, “Yes!”
Here’s how it works — kids aged 6-18 pay $20 to the WSGA to become a Youth On Course member and receive an official YOC card. After completing a brief online curriculum covering the rules of golf and common golf etiquette, golfers receive their card in the mail and are then eligible to play at any WSGA YOC Participating Course for just $5.
The program was started in 2006 by the Northern California Golf Association, which recognized that in order to create the next generation of golfers, the game needed to be more affordable and accessible. In the decade-plus since, Youth On Course has expanded to 22 states and subsidized more than 600,000 rounds.
Launched in Washington in the summer of 2016 with just 14 courses, Youth On Course now includes more than 50 Washington tracks — including Chambers Bay, Suncadia Resort, Gold Mountain’s Cascade Course, McCormick Woods, Desert Canyon, Indian Canyon, Bear Mountain Ranch and dozens of smaller local tracks — and more than 750 nationwide, each one of which will accept a YOC card from any state.
“How can you beat a program that allows you to take your kid to a quality course for five bucks?” asked CG contributor and 710 ESPN Radio host Jim Moore, in a 2017 interview with fellow CG writer Tony Dear for the WSGA News (read the full story). “It’s terrific that Youth on Course gives me the chance to play with him so cheaply. And I love the variety of participating courses.”
It’s a great deal for the courses, too, which are able to fill largely unused, dedicated tee times with paying golfers, while also helping to grow the game. In addition, the national Youth On Course foundation will reimburse courses for each round played, though many choose not to take advantage of that feature as part of their support for the initiative.
“Youth on Course drives competition and makes kids play more,” says executive director Adam Heieck. “We’re trying to provide access to opportunities and that’s what [the program] is all about.”
To learn more, visit www.YouthOnCourse.org/join.
