PGA Tour First Tee Foundation

Welcome to the Utah Golf Radio Podcast, presented by Fairwave Magazine.

From the first tee to the last green, getting you inside the ropes on all things golf in Utah.

You're next on the tee, so here's your host, Paul Pugmire.

Welcome to the pod.

And, you know, the kids maybe came out after scoring, which is fun.

So, yeah, a bunch of friends out, which is always nice, too.

And I heard the PA announcer, when he announced you on the first tee, said, St. George resident.

So you're officially a St. George resident now.

The Bank of Utah Championship at Black Desert, and we are here getting you inside the ropes.

[laughs] And doing it in partnership with Utah's leading golf organizations, the Utah Golf Association, the Utah Section PGA, Fairways Media, the Utah Golf Foundation, the Utah Golf Course Superintendents Association, the Utah Junior Golf Association, and First Tee Utah.

I'm Paul Pugmire, your host and president of First Tee Utah, and I'm sitting here today with my good friend, and friend o' the show, Jordan Blockson from Tee Box.

Jordan, good morning.

Good morning, Paul.

... that like this are playing and, you know, we'll talk about it a little bit later with some of our Utah guys that didn't help themselves this year.

No, that is very true.

But the thing about Austin Smotherman that I want y'all to know is that he is a First Tee kid.

It's called the Golf Party, but it does help out the Monterey Peninsula Foundation, which is a foundation I worked for as a kid.

It helps out First Tee, which is another company that I worked for and interned for in high school and in college.

And then also the Golf Diversity Program, helping young people get into this game that we love so much.

But I don't know how, Chad, we got here.

Wow.

Well, we just want to say thank you guys so much for having us out here at Monterey Peninsula Country Club for the golf party.

This is such a cool event that you guys are putting on for such good causes like Monterey Peninsula Foundation, First Tee, and the Relf

Diversity Program.

They spend a lot more time than I would've imagined on those aspects.

You know, back years ago, it was go, go to the range, peg it up, hit a few shots, and get to the first tee, right? Anymore, it's, it's true fitness, it's, it's working on their game, and there's a science to it.

The, the other thing I'm, I'm very impressed with them about is they're methodical about it, but it doesn't slow the game down either.

They take their time.

Uh, there's so much good going on right now in Utah golf and particularly junior golf.

Uh, I attended a function yesterday, uh, that was raising money for the First Tee, uh, group and organization headed by Paul Pugmire and his staff.

They raise money for kids, uh, junior program.

And I know your mind quickly goes to these kids getting golf lessons, but maybe more important than the golf lessons is what they're teaching these kids about life, about school, about being a good person, about being a good teammate, good family member, good brother, good sister.

But they're helping these kids that, uh, maybe wouldn't have an opportunity to play golf, to play football, to play baseball or soccer or whatever it is.

But there's just so much good.

And if you're listening to this thinking, "Man, how could I help?" Uh, go to First Tee.

Go to the First Tee website and check that out.

Yeah, I mean, that's a great part of California there.

And a beautiful part of California you're in right now is Pebble Beach for the Pure Insurance Championship impacting the first tee.

One of the really fulfilling events on this tour, the PGA Tour Champions.

I'm curious, like, what strikes you at that event? You know, whether it's this year or interactions with kids or players there on property in years past.

I played the California State amateur here when I was in high school.

Or actually, when I just finished high school, I got in my first one here.

Um, but to see, I was never really part of the first tee thing, but now to, to see, to be part of the first, come see these kids playing the first tee and how they act and how they present themselves and their demeanor and how polite it's just a world.

It's, it's like the Evans scholar and the, and the, and the first tee, this type of stuff is, um, Very special just because of being a young person, watching these young people grow up with the golf is very special to see them interchange and doing it with these pros.