History
Golfers Recognizing Opportunities for Women, Inc. was founded in 2007 and was approved as a 501c3 non-profit organization organization two years later in July 2009.
Mission
The mission of GROW - Golfers Recognizing Opportunities for Women, Inc. is to train and provide developmental opportunities for women through a mutual interest in the game of golf. We target minority golfers to bridge the divide. We also provide organized training to various affinity groups, allowing their membership to have a mutual interest in the game.
The GROW training curriculum consists of two 4-hour sessions of golf training that is taught by a PGA Certified Golf Pro. The training is specifically designed with the beginner in mind. Sessions take place on two consecutive Fridays or Saturdays with 4-8 participants in each class. Lunch & Learn sessions are available on Fridays. We can also arrange private lessons or exclusive group lessons for an organization’s membership.
Participants come from a broad range of industries, representative of corporate, civic, and entrepreneurial backgrounds. They can apply through a GROW member, their company, collaboration through a non-profit agency, or self interest.
Direct Message About the History of GROW from the Founder
President & Founder, Tracy Pointer
In Spring of 2006, while volunteering at a golf tournament, I was in conversation with several players who suggested that I should be playing and they were right. I coordinated charitable contributions and grants for my employer. My role in Community Relations included coordinating representation at special events including luncheons, dinners, and golf tournaments. But at golf tournaments, something was wrong with the picture. I hardly ever saw women playing and very rarely minority women. I NEVER considered playing myself, although I had a slight interest in the game and even owned golf clubs.
I recall seeing only one female player at the tournament that Spring day. She was African American woman, but I had a feeling that there were several other women like me who had a desire to play, but just hadn't really taken the initiative to learn the game. I had a brief discussion with a community colleague who told me of a few other women that were interested in learning to play the game. I met with one of them for lunch and while driving back to the office, it suddenly occurred to me that the whole conversation focused on GROWing and networking. I'm typically creative with acronyms and that's where the name GROW (Golfers Recognizing Opportunities for Women). I'm also passionate about growth, as I had purchased a desk plate for my home office a few months prior that says GROW!
From there, we exchanged dialogue and had great chemistry and said we'd invite a friend or two for lessons. A logo was drafted, we tossed around ideas about scheduling lessons. Lessons for Fall 2006 were not scheduled. However, in early 2007, at the first information session, there were six attendees. We met at The Vinny Links Golf Course and then had 3 lessons. The first one was offered April 24, 2007.
After those lessons, the word spread and more ladies were interested. I hosted a Networking Mixer at my home on July 12, 2007. I called it Clubs and Cocktails. At that event, there were 21 ladies. How awesome! From there we went on to have a second round of 3 clinics and were working on our game. Some even began taking private lessons and playing in scrambles.
By the end of the second year, there were over 60 members. In 2009, I began the application process for GROW to be recognized as a 501c3 non-profit organization