With over 400,000 junior golfers and 700 program locations worldwide, The First Tee selected 29 students to spend a week at Hank Haney International Junior Golf Academy (Hank Haney IJGA), located on Hilton Head Island, SC.

The First Tee Training Camp at Hank Haney IJGA took place June 1-5, 2010 and included three and a half days of golf instruction in full swing, short game, course management, mental preparation, and physical training.

Arriving on Tuesday, June 1st, several of The First Tee students were able to play 9 holes before attending an opening dinner at Pinecrest Golf Club that evening. Hank Haney IJGA and The First Tee made introductions of their golf instruction and life skill team members followed by speeches from Joe Louis Barrow, Jr., CEO of The First Tee, and Hank Haney, Director of Instruction, IJGA.

Over the course of the next three days, each student received individualized golf training and instruction from Hank Haney certified instructors including Hank Haney, Director of Instruction, and Peter Krause, Hank Haney IJGA Director of Golf and 2005 PGA National Teacher of the Year.

“Hank Haney has improved my swing and I feel more confident with my irons than ever before. It was an awesome experience and I hope one day others will be able to get this type of opportunity,” said Emily Mathews, a participant from The First Tee of Fort Worth (Texas).

“Working with Hank Haney and his staff has been an incredible experience. They have taught me a lot on how to improve my short game and also how to hit different trajectory shots. More importantly, they have helped me to focus on the process and not the immediate result,” stated Tony Liu, a participant from The First Tee of Charlottesville (Virginia).

Of the 29 students, The First Tee Chapters from 12 different states were represented including California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.