Author: lross

First Tee-Indiana Alumni Zoe Brock was recently award the Louis E Ingelhart Excellence in Strategic Communication Award. It honors a student in Ball State’s School of Strategic Communication and Journalism who has demonstrated outstanding skill in advertising or public relations by effectively promoting brand awareness, understanding the target audience, and achieving specific goals of clients. Brock’s award stemmed from her work with the Richmond location this past summer. She served both as lead coach and social media manager. She submitted a portfolio of the social media promotional work she did for First Tee-Indiana in Richmond. Zoe was Indiana’s second participant to excel to ACE status in 2023. Congrats Zoe!

First Tee-Indiana welcomes Kiselya Salcedo to our team as the Director of Outreach & Women’s Golf. She will be focusing on the development of women’s golf initiatives as well as serving as the administrator for our School and Community Program partners.

Born and raised in Colorado, Kiselya has been an avid golfer for most of her life. She grew up playing any sport she could and ended up loving golf the most. She played college golf at Weber State University, where she met her husband Daniel. They have a dog named Monti and love all things sports and outdoors. Throughout her career she has worked running junior golf tournaments with the Utah Section PGA, organizing amateur events with Washington Golf, being a teaching professional and serving as an assistant college golf coach. She loves the game of golf and is excited to give back to it through the wonderful program at First Tee-Indiana. 

Congratulations to Blayze Chapman for his recent trip to West Creek Ranch in Montana last month for the Leadership Summit hosted by First Tee and PGA TOUR Superstore.

During this weeklong event, teens were encouraged to further develop their existing strengths and values in a close-knit environment that fosters community, inspiration and connection with their peers, adult mentors and the great outdoors.

Blayze recently recapped his week for us:

“My 2 biggest takeaways from the Leadership Summit in Montana were to lead firmly, but empathetically, and to give others the tool for success, but let them learn it on their own. Though I learned many things, what I thought was the most important is that leading is not always loud. Leading is often listening to others’ ideas and input and helping to guide them to make the right decision on their own. I will use what I have learned in many ways, but especially on my golf team given that I have more influence on the culture there than anywhere else in my life. I will do that by making sure that everybody’s ideas are heard and by not being too pushy in the way I lead. I will also help guide them to learn lessons on their own, on and off the course, as opposed to just giving them the answer. If I had to choose the top three things that made this experience so great, it would be the speakers, the ability to relax and reflect in nature, and the other participants. If I had to give a couple reasons to sway someone who may be on the fence for applying, I would tell them to go for the people that they will get to meet. Everybody from the speakers to the chaperones, the participants, the staff, and even the band are extremely kind and you will learn from all of them and create lasting friendships. I would also tell them about all the amazing activities we get to do. On one of the days, we get to learn how to lead, corral, and groom the horses. In doing so, we get to learn how to be confident, but gentle and we learn how to build authentic relationships based on trust. We also got to go white water rafting where we learned how to get out of our comfort zone and how to become more willing to try something new. One of the final things we got to do was a challenge course in which we learned to utilize others’ help. The challenge was to climb a giant rope latter in which the rungs get further as you go up. Most people could get up the first few rungs alone, however the earlier you learn to work with your partner, the easier it was as you went up. Overall, I am extremely grateful for the experience and I have learned so many important lessons I can take back to my community.”

First Tee-Indiana hosted its first Indiana Leadership Day on June 6th at Purdue University. Modeled after First Tee National opportunities, 12 Indiana participants were selected from applications to spend a day interacting with their peers through several leadership activities. Purdue Men’s Golf Coach Andrew Sapp talked with them about improving your mindset for practicing, Athletic Department staff members Paul Leaf and Peyton Stovall brought a team to play games teaching collaboration and how to be a great teammate.

After lunch at the Purdue Memorial Union, the Boilermaker Special mascot train took the group on a tour of campus, taking pictures along the way and stopping at a local favorite ice cream shop. The day ended with practice and nine holes of play on the Ackerman Allen Course at the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex.

Three longtime First Tee-Indiana participants were awarded scholarships to support them in their future endeavors. Funds for these scholarships are part of a grant from the PGA TOUR Superstore promoting teen retention in our programs. Congratulations Ben, Nick and Sam! Below are their reflections on their time with First Tee.

It was a beautiful afternoon at Eagle Creek Golf Club as First Tee middle school and high school participants teed up for the third annual State Championship, this year in honor of beloved First Tee Coach Roger Lundy. “His passion for golf and for kids was one that exceeded all expectations.   Everything he did he always put kids first.   He always wanted the best for all.   We know that continuing his ideas and his traditions would make him proud,” said Ali Beam, Senior Director of Programming. “He was cheering all of you on during your good shots and your not so great shots.  Keep your head held high. Each day on the golf course is a new day.  Just learn for each day and reflect on the positive.”

Fifty-six players hits the links on Eagle Creek’s Pine Course with the High Schoolers playing 18 holes and the middle schoolers 9 holes. Each player received a First Tee-Indiana umbrella, water bottle and bracelet. Indianapolis’ Demi Bolin led the way with a hot three-under par on her first nine and an 18 hole score of 73. Bolin, a soon to be high school senior, is a nine year participant of First Tee. She is committed to play golf at University of Mary in North Dakota.

Levi Simms from our Northwest location edged out Sullivan Mammolenti from Michiana and Brody Haaf from South Central by a stroke with a three-over 39. The low girls round for middle school competitors came from Laila Abriani from our East Central location with a 44.

See a list of full results below and enjoy an album of photos from the day. PHOTOS

Roger Lundy Memorial State Championship

High School Boys Results			High School Girls Results
Player Name	Location	Score	Player Name	Location	Score
Michael Broida	Indy	81	Demi Bolin	Indy	73
Jackson Payne	East Central	82	Celia Florkowski	Michiana	78
Blayze Chapman	Indy	83	Aleah Miller	East Central	90
Edison Armbrester	Indy	86	Lauren Lacey	Richmond	90
Levi Gustine	Michiana	86	Alivia Carlisle	Indy	91
Owen McNally	Michiana	94	Ashlynn Sessler	Michiana	98
Nicholas Gruber	Michiana	95	Izzy Kornmeyer	Indy	100
Dallas Byerly	South Central	97	Maureen Smith	Indy	106
Tatsu Gravender	Michiana	100	Zoe King	Indy	111
Dane Bolin	Indy	106	Alice Stockwell	Michiana	125
Ethan Reynolds	Columbus	121
Connor Jarrett	Indy	131
Liam Lawyer	Indy	133
Middle School Boys Results			Middle School Girls Results
Player Name	Location	Score	Player Name	Location	Score
Levi Simms	Northwest	39	Laila Abriani	East Central	44
Sullivan Mammolenti	Michiana	40*	Camley Whitfield	Orange County	48
Brody Haaff	South Central	40	London Smith	Indy	51
Gavin Acord	Terre Haute	41	Paige Lautenslager	Fort Wayne	55
Charles Bowman	Michiana	46	Carli Kaminskis	Michiana	63
Rowan Evrard	Richmond	46	Aubree Amback	Indy	65
Finn Massoth	East Central	46	Jaidyn Virvani	Indy	67
Gavyn Guthrie	Richmond	47	Camille Powell	Indy	68
Aiden Coates	Michiana	48
Evan Gann	Indy	51
Rockford Brovont	Indy	52
Aiden Chapin	Indy	53
Nolan Jahn	South Central	53
Hudson Brown	Richmond	55
Logan Hall	Indy	63
Lincoln Nesbit	Indy	64
Donevan Cunningham	Indy	65
Elmer Kelly	Indy	65
Jamison Linn	Indy	67
Charlie Webber	Indy	69
Emmett Weintraut	Indy	68
* Won in Scorecard Playoff
High School Team Results
Indy HS #2			East Central – Richmond – South Central – Columbus
Player Name	Total Team Score		Player Name	Total Team Score
Blayze Chapman	255		Jackson Payne	262
Dane Bolin			Aleah Miller
Alivia Carlisle			Lauren Lacey
Michael Broida			Dallas Byerly
			Ethan Reynolds
Indy HS #1			Michiana HS #1
Player Name	Total Team Score		Player Name	Total Team Score
Edison Armbrester	265		Levi Gustine	275
Maureen Smith			Owen McNally
Demi Bolin			Tatsu Gravender
			Nicholas Gruber
Michiana HS #2			Indy HS #3
Player Name	Total Team Score		Player Name	Total Team Score
Alice Stockwell	301		Izzy Kornmeyer	342
Ashlynn Sessler			Connor Jarrett
Celia Florkowski			Liam Lawyer
			Zoe King
Middle School Team Results
South Central – Orange County			Richmond – Northwest
Player Name	Total Team Score		Player Name	Total Team Score
Brody Haaff	132*		Rowan Evrard	132
Nolan Jahn			Gavyn Guthrie
Camley Whitfield			Hudson Brown
Laila Abriani			Levi Simms
*Won by 4th score
Michiana			Fort Wayne – Terre Haute – East Central
Player Name	Total Team Score		Player Name	Total Team Score
Aiden Coates	134		Paige Lautenslager	142
Sullivan Mammolenti			Finn Massoth
Carli Kaminskis			Gavin Acord
Charles Bowman
Indy MS #4			Indy MS #1
Player Name	Total Team Score		Player Name	Total Team Score
Emmett Weintraut	173		Evan Gann	183
Camille Powell			Aubree Amback
Rockford Brovont			Jamison Linn
Aiden Chapin
Indy MS #2			Indy MS #3
Player Name	Total Team Score		Player Name	Total Team Score
Donevan Cunningham	185		Logan Hall	192
London Smith			Jaidyn Virvani
Charlie Webber			Elmer Kelly
			Lincoln Nesbit

First Tee-Indiana alumni Sam Reising had the unique opportunity to return to the Game Changers Academy, a First Tee National Opportunity, recently held in Minneapolis, Minn. He joined current participant Jacob Tellez from our Michiana location. During this event teens will participate in important conversations embracing topics of self-awareness, inclusivity, and community building. Reising has the honor of attending this opportunity as a participant himself. Here are his reflections of returning in a new role:

Becoming a leader within the First Tee program has been the cornerstone of who I am as a leader, instilling values that transcend the golf course. As a participant, I learned the importance of inclusive leadership, which emphasizes promoting all voices and ensuring everyone has a seat at the table. This approach taught me that effective leadership isn’t about being the loudest in the room but about being the person who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way. Inclusive leadership involves listening actively, valuing diverse perspectives, and promoting an environment where everyone feels respected and heard.

Transitioning from a participant to a chaperone, I continued to apply these leadership skills. My role shifted from receiving guidance to providing it, ensuring the participants felt supported and valued. I strived to create an inclusive atmosphere where every participant, regardless of background or skill level, felt they belonged and could contribute meaningfully. I feel like being only one year removed as a participant I truly was able to connect and relate to what the participants needed to have the best and most meaningful experience.

Continuing in the First Tee program is crucial because it reinforces these leadership principles and allows for ongoing personal growth. The program’s focus on character development, resilience, and integrity is invaluable. It provides a platform for me to continuously practice and refine leadership skills, ensuring they are applied not only within the program but in everyday life. By staying involved, I aim to help support the next generation of leaders, giving my touch on some of the things I gained through the program. Showing them that true leadership is about empathy, inclusivity, and guiding others with integrity and compassion is the way to create a positive work, learning, and even social environment!

-Sam Reising, Richmond

First Tee-Indiana t-shirts, polos, sweatshirts and more are now available for purchase in our new on-line storefront. Our partnership with Athletic Solutions will allow coaches, volunteers, and participants and family members to add to their golfing wardrobe with First Tee-Indiana items. Our chapter will benefit by 25% of every sale being donated back to First Tee-Indiana.

You can access the storefront at https://firstteeindiana.athsolutions.shop/. Enjoy shopping!

First Tee-Indiana is honored to be one of six locations in the United States to introduce the Watson Links program to junior golfers. The mission of Watson Links is to provide opportunities for kids to play golf alongside a mentor, inspiring lifelong players who benefit from the positive experiences associated with the game

Eight-time Major Champion Tom Watson’s initiative provides a bridge from golf lessons on the driving range to playing on a real golf course for aspiring players ages 10 to 18. The model is simple: pair adult golf mentors with junior golfers for fun, relaxed rounds of golf to hone basic skills, introduce course etiquette and reinforce valuable life skills – all for free!

The first program in Indiana will begin this summer at The Legends of Indiana Golf Course. A kick off event for mentors and participants was held on Monday, June 17th. We are excited to see the development of youth players and their mentors.

For more information, contact Taylor Stockbridge, [email protected].

Our First Tee-Indiana  leaders developed a special program for our First Tee School Program partners.  This unique event gives students, many who have never been to a golf course, an opportunity to visit one of our green grass programming sites and experience golf on a real course using real golf clubs.  Ten attending students from each school are selected by their P.E. teachers. On challenge day, the students will compete in a 9-hole skills event. Students answer First Tee core value questions at each of the nine stations that include putting, chipping/pitching, irons and wood shots. T-shirts are provided to the students and teachers and are color coordinated with their respective school colors. Lunch is also provided before students and teachers board their buses and return to school with the winners carrying a traveling trophy to present to their principal.  

On May 19th, 11 Fort Wayne Community Schools gathered at Brookwood Golf Course and McMillan Park Golf Course  to participate in the first events in their area. “I had the privilege of spending a few hours at McMillen with our students and staff. There were six schools at McMillen and Brookwood hosted 5 schools. It was a wonderful opportunity for our students to be exposed to the game of golf, at a golf course, on a beautiful spring day. Laughter and excitement filled the air as our students enjoyed the day,” Jennifer Matthias, FWCS Board of Trustees.

In order to facilitate the School Skills Challenge days, First Tee-Indiana  provides funding for .5 day substitutes for the P.E. teachers and pays for the use of the school corporation buses and drivers. All participating students receive an invitation to attend a local green grass program free of charge via scholarship opportunities. 

All together, First Tee reached 260 kids this May through  five School Skills Challenge days. “It’s great to see kids utilizing the skills they worked on at school come alive on the golf course. Their excitement for trying something new is very encouraging.   We hope to see many of these students in our green grass programs this summer,” said Ali Beam, Senior Director of Programming.   

Along with the Fort Wayne Challenges, Klondike Elementary from the Tippecanoe School Corporation piloted a Challenge day at West Lafayette Golf & Country Club. With school administrators present, we are sure to expand the program in the greater Lafayette area next year. Our longest running challenge site at Cascades Golf Course in Bloomington welcomed seven teams from Monroe County Community Schools.  Both Franklin & Greenwood Community Schools competed at Otte Golf Center in early May with Webb Elementary taking home this year’s prize. “My students had a blast and all the schools had such great kindness and sportsmanship!  Can not wait until next year.” Ryan Macy, Greenwood Community Schools. 

Chapman and Tellez chosen for National Opportunities

We’re proud to announce that Jacob Tellez from our Michiana location was selected for the First Tee Game Changers Academy Honoring Joe Louis Barrow, Jr this July in Minneapolis, Minnesota! During this event teens will participate in important conversations embracing topics of self-awareness, inclusivity, and community building.

Indianapolis’s Blayze Chapman had been selected to participate in the First Tee Leadership Academy in Montana in August. The Academy is designed for teens to explore leadership concepts including (1) building authentic relationships by developing awareness, (2) growing through challenges via positive risk taking, and (3) developing positive self-identity through dynamic outdoor and team building activities. Set in the unforgettable backdrop of West Creek Ranch in Montana, Chapman will participate in activity-based workshops facilitated by leaders from PGA TOUR Superstore headquarters, West Creek Ranch, and First Tee headquarters.