“What the JGA has meant to me”
I started playing golf in 2014, after my second-grade teacher told my parents that the sport of golf would force me to calm down. I was very hyper and over the years, golf through the four steps has forced me to slow down. I remember in 2014, when my coach suggested that I play in a JGA tournament. I had only been playing for a few months, but he thought it would be good exposure for me. I was so excited when my parents said yes. That first tournament, like so many others to come, was a wake-up call. I realized that Gold was going to be a challenge, and I was always up to the challenge.
What has JGA meant for me? Everything. JGA is where I go to at the end of the school year to show my parents and my coaches from Forelife, Inc., that I have put in the work. It is also the place where I am humbled week after week.
There were summers where I was unable to compete in JGA, because of family engagements. I want to say I remember those vacations, but what I remember are the tournaments I played at JGA. I remember the people I have met, and the friendships I have developed over the years.
JGA is one of the highlights of the summer for me. Every Monday, if my parents are available, my brothers and I travel through the many courses to play a sport that we have all come to love. All the courses we play on Mondays, we are aware that they would otherwise not be available to us as they are membership only. I will forever be grateful to JGA for the opportunities that it has afforded me over the years.
JGA is not about winning trophies. It is also not about winning. It has been about developing a level of disciple and learning how to accept wins as well as disappointments. It is where I have learnt to be happy for others when they surpass me and to allow myself to be happy, when I am victorious.
As I travel through the courses this summer with each tournament, I realize that this will be my last round of tournaments, that every week I get nearer to my last week, my last championship, my last day.
JGA has meant a lot to not just me, but to my brother whom I watch compete every week. I watch them and know that soon, I will be watching them play their tournaments and cheer for them from the sideline.
There have been times when I have wanted to give up, especially this tournament season. Days when I question my choice to come out and play, but JGA has taught me to never give up, to keep pushing forward.
I will take what I have learnt from my time playing in the JGA tournaments with me through my adult life. I know it will serve as a guide as I move through life. I have played as though the whole world is watching. Played with honesty and integrity as the game of sports requires. I will let this guide me through life and its many challenges, as I know there will be wins and there will be losses. I would like to thank the many volunteers at JGA, who continue to make this tournament a success every year.
Thank You JGA.
Floyd
