Matrix Youth Golf and Sports Program

 Matrix Youth Golf & Sports, seeks to address the barriers that the majority of inner-city, low-income youth experience when looking to join or consider the prospect of
taking up a sport like golf: transportation barriers, financial barriers, lack
of coaches, or available mentors, and lack of safe environments or adequate
facilities to support play. Our program provides a safe, accessible golf
program facilitated by experienced golfers and community mentors with goals of
engaging youth long-term to help increase academic achievement, foster positive
relationship-building skills, have a healthy perspective of opportunity,
inclusivity, and breaking barriers while deterring at-risk behavior while
learning a sport and building athletic technique. Additionally, our program
goes one step further seeking to address equity issues that exist within the
communities we serve, attempting to level the playing field by providing
equitable golf programming to youth from disparate households.  

Within the program’s model, Matrix Youth Golf tackles the hard objectives stated above by engaging local volunteers who are experienced and avid golfers through our partnership with Golf. My Future. My Game. as program coaches and mentors. This method provides a positive lens to the sport, as well as working with men and women from the community that golf invites, while also helping to forge and foster
positive relationships within the youth community we serve. These relationships
are instrumental in helping youth navigate life obstacles while also exposing
them to future career and recreation options. 

This evening and after-school youth service provide young people in Osborn with positive alternative activities in their community. The target age group is 14-17; however, the program will work with youth up to the age of 21 to provide early teens with golf and mentoring opportunities, while older teens and young adults can
continue their golf activities but also be exposed to Matrix’s other college
readiness and youth employment programs.