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45 Years In Golf, Now Mentoring The Young
Meet Larry Ngala, who has been playing golf for the past 45 years which makes him an expert in the game to mentor the young. Larry joined Junior Golf Foundation in 2019 and became the Foundations’ president in 2020.
45 Years In Golf, Now Mentoring The Young.
Embarking in the 1960s, Larry says when he started playing golf, there was no junior program.
Speaking at Muthaiga Golf Club during the Safaricom Golf Tour, Larry says “Every club had its own arrangements and more so, the children who were playing golf then were children of golfers. We didn’t have an organization specifically to deal with junior programs and I have always criticized the union on how they were running the program because we didn’t look as if we are heading anywhere”
Adding on how the Junior Golf Foundation came to be, he says “Some clubs may want to introduce the game to juniors and some may not. So I fought until 1995 when the union decided to start the Junior Golf Foundation whose mandate is to nurture the talent of children aged between 5 and 21 years.”
45 Years In Golf, Now Mentoring The Young
Larry says his main agenda is to nurture talent and produce golfers for life, children who will take golfing as a career just like rugby, football, and more. Currently, the foundation has 45 trained golfers who are training children across the country.
Although the JGF has been trying to kill two birds with one stone, they have had a rough time training more juniors due to inadequate resources as they have been depending on the Ksh1000 that juniors pay for registration for the annual subscription and a little donation they get.
However, Larry has been religiously working on getting more partners to raise junior golfing to a higher level. “When you look at golfers who have made it, they are just self-made people who have had no one to coach them.”
Thanks to partners like NCBA and Safaricom who have chipped in and supported them financially.
“There are 14 tournaments that are fully sponsored by Safaricom and seven that are under the US Kids Golf.” He explains
When asked about his family and his influence in golf, Larry smiles saying “My kids are big. One of them is a basketballer and another plays tennis. I am waiting for my grandson who is two years old, maybe in the next 2 years I will subscribe him to the game”
In the next three years, with the help of partners and well-wishers like Safaricom and NCBA, it is my prayer that we will produce more Noroge Kibugus’ in the country and have at least 6,000 kids playing golf by 2022.
#EveryShotIsAnOpportunity
#SafaricomGolfTour
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