Junior Golf Championship comes to Las Vegas

The Western State Golf Association’s 31st annual Alan Bennett Junior Golf Championship will be held Aug. 2-5 in Las Vegas.
Granville Brown, president of the Western State Golf Association, and also a member of the First Tee of Southern Nevada, said the organization “was started in the 1950s with 13 golf clubs located throughout the Western part of the United States. It was started primarily to get black golfers together and just participate for the love of golf. Also, part of the … constitution was [a commitment] to sponsor junior golf programs in each of the established clubs. There is an annual junior golf tournament held each year, and this year Las Vegas was selected.”
A number of golf clubs — such as Valley View Golf Club and First Tee of Southern Nevada — are a part of the association, targeting youth and educating them on the game of golf. “Our golf club will have 33 junior golfers from Valley View Golf Club participating in the annual championship game,” said Brown. “The children range from 12 to 17 years of age, and some will participate in the tournament that will be held at various golf courses in the city.”
With the Embassy Suites Hotel serving as a host site, an estimated 134 junior golfers — boys and girls — will come to Las Vegas for the August tournament. According to Brown, “What it does is not just teach you about the game of golf, because everybody has different athletic abilities. It teaches our youth about life. For example, there are nine core values in the First Tee of golf — and one of those is honesty, because golf is a game of honor.”
There are a number of golf activities led by the Valley View Golf Club and First Tee of Southern Nevada. Those who are interested can be taught two or five days a week by coaches who pride themselves on working with all children who want to learn a game that could result in college scholarships or even professional careers.
“Last year, one of our junior golfers won a $10,000 scholarship to college and another received a $2,000 scholarship every year for four years of college,” said Brown. “If someone wants to get their child involved they can visit our websites at valleyviewgolfclub.com or firstteesouthernnevada.com for all the information. No one is turned away because of lack of money.”