SNAG: Starting New At Golf

As parents, we’ve been putting our daughter in different sports programs to get a feel for what she may enjoy, and simply to get her out of the house instead of keeping her indoors all the time. That’s when we came across SNAG (Starting New at Golf). It’s put on by the City of Wichita and Golf Wichita.

SNAG is a first touch program to effectively teach the game of golf to kids. SNAG contains all the elements of golf, in a modified form, breaking down techniques so children as young as five years old can follow along. Our child is four and a half, but we still signed her up, knowing she was just slightly younger than the suggested age limit. The class is aimed at children ages 5-12, and most of the kids in the class were around 7–9 years old.

The four-week program costs $30 with each class lasting 40 minutes long. Our SNAG classes took place at Sim Golf Course.

Our daughter LOVED it. Obviously, she was entirely new to golf, but selfishly, I would love for her to learn the game so we can have family outings at the golf course.

The class size eight kids. During the sessions, children learned proper grip, club sizes and swing speed. The instructors were able to utilize the SNAG equipment to create a fun learning environment that will keep a child’s attention for the full session. While kids could bring their own clubs, the SNAG equipment was modified clubs with larger heads and mostly made of plastic.

Classes consisted of putting, chipping, and approach shots. While some lessons went over the youngest kids’ heads, others were able to grasp the concept of swing speed. Getting my daughter to make contact was sometimes a struggle, but who am I to judge, I’m still learning!

The coach was great with the kids and spent ample time with each child making sure they had an idea of what to do.

This was the first sport our daughter tried where she didn’t get frustrated once. Completely different from any time I hit the links.

She didn’t miss one class and was very excited to go to each one.

On the last day, the kids teed off at hole one and kept hitting the ball until they reached the green.

The classes were laid out in a simple way that the kids could begin to grow a love for the sport. It was done in a way that promoted fun, which is what it should be all about. With the winter months approaching, the classes aren’t on the schedule, but will return when spring hits (I’m told, April 2024). Then, I’m 100% putting our daughter back in the program.

For more information on SNAG, visit Golf Wichita’s webpage.