First Tee doesn’t just get kids on the golf course - it offers exciting opportunities for growth. With the help of First Tee national corporate partners, more advanced participants can apply to attend life-changing golf and leadership events across the country. During these opportunities youth will meet new people, play golf, achieve greatness, and show our Nine Core Values in action. Most opportunities use an application and committee review process to select participants who will benefit the most from each opportunity. For more information about participant opportunities, contact Jenna Coonrod at (503) 722-1530 or [email protected].  

First Tee National Championship

First Tee's National Championship will be a 54-hole stroke-play event at Clemson University’s The Walker Course, featuring a Girls and Boys division for 72 high school participants ages 14-19. Participants will have the opportunity to take in the “college experience” including dorm-living, an official Clemson University campus tour and dinner at the West End Zone Club of the football team’s  Memorial Stadium.

Game Changers Academy

Each summer, selected participants of First Tee attend a week-long Life Skills and Leadership Academy. They participate in championship golf, life skills activities and career exploration, experience dorm living and meet a wide variety of young people from around the world.

PURE Insurance Championship Impacting the First Tee

Each summer the PURE Insurance Championship showcases the talents and character of young people who participate at First Tee chapters. An official Champions Tour event at Pebble Beach Golf Links on the Monterey Peninsula, the tournament pairs one junior with a PGA TOUR Champions player and two amateurs. The tournament is televised nationally on Golf Channel.

America's Future - The Coca-Cola Company

Dedicated to impacting communities, Coca-Cola Company supports The First Tee by offering five participants annually the chance to experience working at one of the largest corporations in the world. The semifinalists spend two days in the heart of downtown Atlanta visiting the Coca-Cola campus, attending new-hire training, meeting with executives and taking part in interviews to determine the winner of a $5,000 scholarship. Four runners-up each receive a $1,000 scholarship. The winner also returns to Atlanta for a VIP trip to THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola.

First Tee Scholars Program

The Scholars Program is a distinction awarded to participants who excel in academics, leadership, character development, and chapter and community involvement. More than 20 colleges and universities offer partial merit-based or leadership scholarships to participants who are seniors in high school. A student designated as a Scholar will be eligible to participate in any educational scholarship programs made available by First Tee and/or one of its partner institutions.

Wells Fargo Succeeding Together

This year, the Wells Fargo Succeeding Together essay contest is encouraging teenage participants of The First Tee to showcase the importance of having and being a part of a “Go-To-Team”. The panel of judges will select ten finalists and then ultimately four winners, each of whom will win a trip to the Wells Fargo Championship with one grand prize winner experiencing the thrill of playing golf with a PGA TOUR pro during the pro-am.

Youth Leadership Summit

The Youth Leadership Summit recognizes exemplary achievement by a young person currently involved in First Tee programming. Participants will be evaluated in the areas of academic achievement, community service, chapter involvement, leadership, short essay responses and letters of recommendation. This is an interactive and educational summit in which participants will have the opportunity to develop plans for leading a meaningful service project in their communities focusing on raising awareness on global issues. Participants who are selected to attend the Youth Leadership Summit will have the opportunity to learn from and work with Global Citizen Year fellows in order to apply the skills and concepts learned at the three-day summit and become social change leaders.