SHELBY, N.C. — On an overcast Thursday afternoon, well after everyone else has left Turning Point Academy for the day, Jermetris Jackson, putter in hand, lines up a shot from the far end of a practice green. After taking a moment to line up his shot, he swings and watches as his ball just skims past the hole.
Behind him, Erik Smith a therapist at Turning Point Academy, which sits on the western edge of the Charlotte metropolis region, announces “That’s a G,” before stepping up to take a putt of his own.
Thursday’s game of GOLF — similar to the popular HORSE played on basketball courts — was the activity of the day at Turning Point’s new golf instruction program.
On days with better weather, Jackson, Smith and the other five teens in the program would be across the street, hitting golf balls on an unused baseball field.
“We just started in March. We had been talking for a while about something like this that we can do,” said Smith. “Basically we wanted just to provide an outlet for them to be involved with something. A lot of times when they come here they are not able to participate in team sports. We wanted to come up with something they could participate in. A lot of these kids have probably never played golf before, or held a club before.”
The theory behind the club is pretty simple. There are a lot of valuable life skills one can learn from the game of golf including patience, perseverance and discipline. Through teaching the game, Smith, along with Dwayne Friday, a support staff member at Turning Point and coach for the club, hope to impart those skills to students.
“We will go out and hit a bucket of balls and have fun. Then we have to go pick up all of the balls and that is the time you get to have some of those conversations and talk about goals on the course. And through the golf instruction, those other conversations happen about how this relates back to everything else,” said Smith. “So it is less of a sit-down and let’s talk about this, and then you get to go play.”
While their idea was supported by school administrators, Smith and Friday would need some help to get the club off the ground.
That is where Ryan French and his 96,000 followers came in.
French, who operates the Monday Q Twitter profile (@acaseofthegolf1) has made a living from covering professional golf. He also co-manages the Fire Pit Foundation, a nonprofit organization looking to support youth golfers and grow the game by supporting underprivileged schools looking to start golf teams.
“I think there are so many social skills and honesty and integrity skills that come with it. It’s the only game I can think of where a referee doesn’t follow you around. You call penalties on yourself, and you keep your own score. I think there are so many skills that transfer to the classroom or to business or to life in general,” said French.
After speaking with Smith and discussing the needs for Turning Point Academy, French took to Twitter to solicit donations to help get the program started, something he has done for schools and teams in the past.
Before long, Smith was receiving new and used golf clubs, balls, bags and practice equipment from golfers all over the country. With help from the Fire Pit Foundation, he’s working to secure full sets of clubs for members of the program, as well as sets of clubs students can access at the Royster Memorial Golf Course in Shelby.
“I have a large following, and they are awesome and passionate people. So I put out — hey this school needs some donations — and usually, 100 people or so will send something,” he said.
“They didn’t have to do that; they could have kept going on about their day. I appreciate that they are allowing us to do this now,” said Cooper Weaver, a freshman member of the club.
Cleveland County’s alternative school, Turning Point Academy is among the first schools Fire Pit Foundation aims to remain in contact with and continue to provide support for.
“The goal is to stay in touch with all of these schools, and we are creating relationships with club makers, ball makers, clothing companies so that schools aren’t in the same position in two or three years,” said French.
The efforts to get the club off the ground at Turning Point have so far been successful. Instructors at Shelby Parks and Recreation and Cleveland County Country Club have volunteered to provide lessons to students.
In just a few months, Friday said he’s seen noticeable improvements from the students who have joined the club.
“It is just awesome. We told them if you want to be here, you have to come to school. And we have seen changes in their attitude and in their attendance,” he said.
Jackson, who held his own in that game of GOLF on Thursday, said he never would have tried the game but for the club at Turning Point Academy.
“I thought it was a terrible sport because of how boring it was on TV. Now, I think it’s fun. It’s relaxing to me, therapeutic,” he said. “I guess its the fact that you don’t really have to rush everything. It feels like in every other sport there is always some kind of opponent or defender on you. In this game, it’s all on you. If you make a mistake, its all on you. If you get an L, you get an L.”
With the school year coming to a close, Smith is looking for ways to continue working with members of the golf club this summer. His hope is to take members to Royster Memorial Golf Course to walk nine holes this summer. For most, it will be their first trip to a real course.
“We hope to see this continue to grow. Maybe next year we can add some of our female students,” he said.
Dustin George can be reached at 704-669-3337 or Dustin.George@ShelbyStar.com.
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