June 18, 2021
Mackenzie Mack, LPGA golf professional will be an Honorary Starter at graduation ceremonies for the 2021 Women In Golf Southern Area (WIG-SA) Golf Training Program of the Western States Golf Association (WSGA). Graduation ceremonies will begin with a 4- hole golf tournament at 12:30 pm on Saturday, June 26, 2021 at Maggie Hathaway Golf Course, located at 1921 W. 98th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90047.
Mack, a LPGA Professional member who was honored as the LPGA National Junior Golf Leader of the Year in 2018, is almost always cheerful, upbeat and positive, exactly the kind of the role model the youth who come through the First Tee need. She changes golf swings, to be sure. But she also changes lives.
The WIG-SA Golf Training Program, established in 2005, exploded into the only premier golf training program for women of color to affordably enter into playing the game of golf. After surviving the 2020 Pandemic, which limited many athletic and exercise opportunities for women of color, the WIG-SA Golf Training program was forced to go online to recruit participants, rather than the traditional recruitment from local golf courses in South LA. Our Golf Training Program now attracts women and men of all races from all over LA County.
Mackenzie Mack, the Associate Executive Director for the First Tee of Tennessee in Memphis and Co-Site Director for LPGA*USGA Girls Golf, imparts on her students the message of: Keep pressing ahead; keep getting better; keep advancing; keep moving the ball down the fairway.
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“Mack has accepted the invitation to address our golf graduates from the WIG-SA,” said Area Representative, Belinda McCullough. “We want Mack to bring her LPGA energy of encouragement and perseverance to the Women of Southern California.” According to McCullough, “many of our beginner golf participants don’t own golf clubs, but are determined to learn to play golf, even with borrowed golf clubs from our program. We hope Mack will inspire them to keep moving the ball down the fairway.”
Instead of the usual 20-30 total participants each year, the total participants in 2021 exponentially increased and on target to training over 100 women and men in two 8-week sessions. Our 1st session graduation will be on Saturday, June 26 at 12:30 pm. Our 2nd 8-week session will begin on July 10, 2021.
The WIG-SA Golf Training Program has been providing golf training opportunities for women of color to learn the game of golf for over 10 years. The training program is headquartered at Maggie Hathaway Golf Course, the only golf course in LA County named after an African American woman. Our training classes are every Saturday from 12:30-2:30 pm for 8 weeks.
WSGA is the oldest golf association west of the Mississippi. Originally organized in 1954 by African American golfers from Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington at a time when most African American golfers were denied access to playing in the LPGA & PGA due to race barriers. The WSGA organization has grown from 8 golf clubs to 27 golf clubs located in 7 states west of the Mississippi.
