Women’s Golf Day, June 4, is a day dedicated to engaging, empowering, and supporting women involved in golf.
Growing the game for young girls and women is something we are passionate about at Golf Town, and there are two great ambassadors for the game that are part of our Golf Town family, 8-Time LPGA Tour winner Brooke Henderson and 8-Time Canadian Long Drive Champion Lisa “Longball” Vlooswyk.
A few weeks ago Brooke Henderson said she caught the eye of a young girl who was wearing a pink visor, not unlike her own, and who followed her for two rounds at an LPGA Tour event in California.
At the end of the week, the girl handed Henderson a letter she had written and a bracelet she had bought her.
“It was the cutest thing you’ve ever read,” said Henderson. “Just knowing I have inspired her a little bit is an amazing feeling. It gives me inspiration to keep going and keep working hard.”
Henderson was the face of the LPGA Tour’s new #DriveOn brand campaign, an initiative meant to empower young girls that launched this spring. The Golf Town athlete appears at the beginning and the end of the video with a fierceness meant to inspire.
“This is for every girl who has been laughed at, or told she doesn’t belong,” says Henderson as the video begins. The video concludes with Henderson standing strong, and the voiceover saying: “This is us, crushing it for you, so you can crush it for the next girl.”
https://twitter.com/BrookeHenderson/status/1108430677421248514
It’s powerful and emotive. It helps to show that no matter a woman’s background, age, body shape or size, and more – there’s room for them in golf.
“When they asked me to be a part of it, I thought it was a great initiative for all women in golf and all sports and life, really,” said Henderson. “I didn’t realize I was going to be the face like that but that was really special to be in that position and have such a powerful message go out and involve me it was really cool.”
Women’s Golf Day itself is a worldwide initiative and 2019 marks its fourth year. It’s the largest single-day celebration of women’s golf. A four-hour global experience, nearly 1,000 venues in 52 countries have delivered this experience to more than 50,000 women and girls – two hours are for golf (lessons or nine-hole play) and two hours are for socializing.
Lisa ‘Longball’ Vlooswyk, another Golf Town athlete, has been co-hosting free clinics for women at Golf Town stores across Canada for the last three years. She’s looking forward to Women’s Golf Day, saying it’s going to be a great day to celebrate women in golf, but also encourage even more women to get involved with the sport.
“Most importantly we want to bring new women into the game so then we have so many women it’s 50-50,” she said. “We want current golfers to bring a friend, a sister, a mother, a daughter, or a colleague to a women’s golf day event across Canada to share the joy of the game and what it can offer.”
Vlooswyk says the LPGA’s new #DriveOn campaign has resonated with amateur golfers across Canada, she said, as its inspiring and motivating – just as Women’s Golf Day is set to be. Events are taking place in nearly every province. Golf has been the catalyst for relationships to be forged, friendships to be bolstered, and family togetherness to be promoted.
Still, she can’t help but think of getting ‘the look’ at a golf course if she and her husband are paired with two male golfers.
“‘The look’ is like, ‘oh great, I got paired with the chick.’ So many women I share that with all giggle and say they’ve felt that. Usually I’ll tee it up on the same set of tees as the men and I’ll hit it 40 yards past them,” said Vlooswyk with a big laugh.
But even if you don’t pound it as long as Lisa, she says there are so many reasons for women to feel positive about golf, and certainly less intimated. Facilities are on board. There are exciting role models for young girls. It’s a game for life, and a game that’s inclusive.
“I feel way more welcome at golf courses, and I definitely think women are less intimated,” Vlooswyk says, “thanks to campaigns like Women’s Golf Day.”
To learn more about Women’s Golf Day events in your community, visit womensgolfday.com.