Youth inspired at Nike N7 Jr. Golf Experience at the Whirlwind Golf Club

Christopher Lomahquahu

Gila River Indian News

Native youth teed off at a golf clinic at the Nike N7 Jr. Golf Experience, which was held at the Whirlwind Golf Club at Wild Horse Pass on Jan. 25. 

The event was organized in partnership with the Gila River Indian Community, Notah Begay III (NB3) Foundation, Nike N7 and the First Tee of Phoenix for an interactive day of golf and education for 197 youth, ranging from seven to 18-years-old.  

Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis welcomed the group of Native youth, who also participated in the clinic. 

“The Notah Begay III Foundation is a great organization that encourages the youth to be active in the game of golf,” said Gov. Lewis. 

Lewis thanked the NB3 Foundation and Nike N7 for providing the event to Native youth, which promotes physical activity, healthy nutrition and teaches important life skills on top of teaching golf.  

“We are a proud partner, to bring an inspirational day of learning about the game of golf to a world class facility, like [this],” said Gov. Lewis. He said the Community was proud to host the golf clinic that contributes to positive and motivating experiences for Native youth.

“It all started with Sam McCracken, the founder of Nike N7 to expose kids to the game of golf, being that the Waste Management [Phoenix Open] is coming-up and [we] have Native communities around the Valley, we partnered with several organizations to host [this] event,” said Clint Begay, Director of NB3 Fit, brother of Notah. 

“Gov. Lewis is a great partner and advocate for youth development and it allowed us to do what we set out to accomplish in reaching the Native youth on a tribal community,” said Begay. 

Begay added, “The goal was for the kids to go out there and feel like they are accomplishing something new they can experience and they come away with an understanding about how to play golf.”

He said their organization works with Native owned golfing facilities to get Native youth interested in golf. Begay said the clinic included workshops on life lessons, leadership games and health nutrition. 

Gabby Lemieux, Nike N7 ambassador, professional golfer on the Symetra Tour and a member of the Shoshone-Paiute Tribe was present to share her passion for the game of golf with the youth participants.  

Sam McCracken, N7 General Manager, said, it’s their second year hosting the Jr. Golf Tournament in the state of Arizona. “We’d really like to thank our sponsors and recognize the Gila River Indian Community and the land, we are hosting this event on today.”