By Matthew Large
My experience at The First Tee Life Skills and Leadership Academy was second to none. From the first day I arrived it was an action and fun packed day with activities ranging from time on the golf course to getting private tours of big companies. I was able to meet and make cheap jerseys friends with many kids in the academy. Everyone there had the same love for golf as I do and we were all dedicated to the game. Some players were above and below my skill level and everyone was pushed to perform at their best. I was able to meet many new coaches that were dedicated to helping us improve our golf and life skills.
Most of the coaches were either LPGA or PGA certified and were very skilled and knowledgeable in the game of golf. We were lucky to have a course as nice as Victory Links to be our home course while we were there. I have never seen greens so fast and pure as the Victory Links greens. The entire course was in amazing condition as it was home of the Champions Tour Qualifying rounds for TPC Twin Cities. Victory Link was also a very challenging course as it made all of us think on each shot, using STAR was a priority to shoot a good score. By far the most fun activity for me was ice skating. Ice skating was something that I had never experienced before and it was a blast! I was proud to say that I didn’t fall and seemed to be a natural at it. Unfortunately I can’t say the same for some of my friends that did more falling then skating, but we all agreed that we had a great time out wholesale nfl jerseys there. Ice skating was a great activity wholesale nfl jerseys as it was meant to be a fun night but it also taught us great team building skills. Helping others not to fall while supporting yourself was a great challenge but when it was done correctly we were all able to skate around the rink as one big group. Not only did I perfect my ice skating skills but I also became a much better putter and driver of the golf ball. The cheap jerseys coaches helped me in reading greens and hitting my driver more consistent. These two tips led me to finish in the top 10 in the Sunday tournament and still continue to help me today. I also gained a lot of skill in my course management and shot selection. Due to the windy conditions I was forced to use different shots that I normally don’t need back home in Florida. All of these new tips and tricks have led me to shoot rounds of 75 and 76 at Hunters Creek and in my round of 75 I shot -2 on the back nine! During my week in Minnesota I learned many new leadership skills and properties. Being a leader does not mean that you are above others in your group or that you have the authority to give orders. Being a leader is being able to gather a group of people and set tasks and goals as a team. Working as a team makes everyone leaders of their own work and there fore leads to higher productivity and a better work environment. Anyone can be a leader no matter your job or age. Being a leader in the classroom is not letting others fall behind and become discouraged. Being a leader can also mean picking up trash when it is left behind. Anything that is a effort to improve your environment for yourself and others is being a leader and that is the most important thing that I learned.
Besides the amazing golf we were lucky enough to tour General Mills and TORO. Both companies were very generous to us and went above and beyond in teaching and showing us what it takes to be a leader and run a successful Inicio company. During our trip we also were able to tour Target Field which is home of the Minnesota Twins. We were able to sit in the dugout and walk on the field and both of these were things I have never been able to experience before. Sunday morning was tournament day and we were all woken up at 5:30AM for showers and breakfast.
We hit the course at 7:00AM and it was an all out grind from there out. I took a Maassen rough start on a long par 5 but quickly rebounded. I had 10 pars and 1 birdie in my round and still managed to shoot a very poor 84. This just shows the difficulty of the course and the shots it called for. With my disappointing 84 it was still good enough to land me close to the top as the winning round was a 73. The next day we teed it up again at the most stunning and beautiful course I have ever seen. We were incredibly lucky to play Minneapolis Golf Club. This highly exclusive course was immaculate everywhere. Level tee boxes, plush fairways, thick rough and smooth greens lead to a great experience. Their signature hole was number 10, a long elevated par 3 that was over a flower bed surrounded by water. At just over 210 yards I hit a 6 iron and stuck it to 10 feet, it wasn’t the best shot I hit that day but it was defiantly the most demanding. Sadly I missed my birdie putt but was thankful to escape with par. It’s that shot that I replay over and over in my 2016 head that makes me wish I was Digital still there. I am more then happy that I was selected to attend this years Life Skills and Leadership Academy and I feel that I have greatly benefited from it. I also learned more life skills after the academy was over as well. Unfortunately I missed my flight coming home and was stuck in the airport for a extra 5 hours. Luckily there was a PGA golf store in the airport and I was able to kill time and explore the airport until it was time for my next flight. I have made so many new friends that live all over cheap jerseys the world. We all still keep in touch everyday and enjoy talking about or experiences and daily lives. We all came together as one big family on the trip and pushed each other to play to the best of our abilities. It was almost as if we were one big family reunion. Overall I am very happy and fortunate that The First Tee has sent me on this trip as I feel that I am a better person and golfer.
“Being a leader is being able to gather a group of people and set tasks and goals as a team.” ~ Matthew Large