First Tee is modernizing and transforming to better meet the needs of kids, teens, and families today. To determine the best way to do this, First Tee Headquarters gathered feedback from network leaders and chapters as well as experts in youth development and technology.

Through this research and listening, the need to move to age-based programs became clear. With this switch, we are adjusting to match the way nearly all other youth sports and programs are arranged. More importantly, we will meet the preference of kids and their parents to keep participants in groups of similar age.

When registering for classes, families will be able to register their participant(s) based on their age.

When you visit our registration website, you notice classes will now be listed by age groups, with the skill-level name designations “Level 1” or “Level 3+” no longer being used; instead, they would be displayed as “7-9 years old Golf Class” or “10-11 years old Golf Class”, for example.

Participants will move to the next age group once they become age-eligible for that group. For example, a 9-year-old participant will be able to register for the 10-11 year old group class once they have turned 10 years old.

Our primary objective will be to ensure consistency across the different levels by having participants be with friends their own age and experiencing the updated lessons for their age level.

First Tee Headquarters is currently in the development phase for a digital badging system to keep track of participant progression. While this system is developed, we will be hosting Skill Testing Days to provide participants ways to track skill progression.

Participants will be able to complete skills checkpoints throughout each session on their own. We will keep track of participant progression for golf and life skills, and recognize participants as they achieve different skill levels.

No, you will be able to continue using your current email/password. There are no steps you need to take with this change. However, please note that our registration website is getting a makeover!

The age a child is on the first day of any session will dictate what class they sign-up for.

If a child has a birthday in the middle of a session that moves them up to the next age group, they will remain in the current class until the next session. For example, a child turning 10 in the middle of a session will remain in the 7-9 year old class until the end of the session.

The current levels will be used when assessing a child’s skill level and will still progress through our leveling system earning the perks and benefits of each class level. We will no longer use level designations to refer to classes, instead we will be using the age-based designation. While the skill-level designations will be phased out, a participant’s progress will be saved and recognized.

To welcome experienced and newer players to the same age groups, we will be transitioning to the updated curriculum developed by First Tee. This new curriculum has been developed keeping in mind the individual needs of participants in each age group and include topics that are appropriate for their cognitive levels.

Moreover, we are providing additional training to our coaches to help them effectively coach different skill levels in the same class. Additionally, we will be encouraging participants to exchange feedback with their coaches during class to help ensure a player’s needs are met by providing additional, more tailored instruction to their golf skill during class, and/or adjusting the difficulty or objective of the golf skills being practiced in class.

Additionally, as participants achieve different skill levels, they will become eligible to participate in local events and receive invitations to other participant opportunities.