Staff WriterKent Golf gave young players and their families another reason to smile at The Royal St George’s Golf Club, as its third Disability Golf Clinic of the year delivered coaching, laughter, family involvement and that rarest of golfing commodities: a day where nobody appeared to be muttering darkly at a three-putt.
A Welcoming Day At One Of Kent’s Great Golf Venues
There are few settings in the county better suited to making golf feel special than The Royal St George’s Golf Club. On this occasion, however, the grandeur of the venue was not the point. The point was access, encouragement and the simple pleasure of giving young people the chance to enjoy the game on their own terms.
The clinic welcomed several participants who had already taken part in earlier sessions during the year, including young golfers first introduced to the sport through Kent Golf’s new disability golf initiatives.
Familiar faces returning is not a small detail. In golf, as in most things worth doing, coming back is usually the first sign that something has properly landed.
Parents and siblings were also part of the day, giving the clinic a relaxed family feel rather than the stiff, clipboard-heavy atmosphere that can occasionally haunt organised sport. This was golf with room to breathe.
Coaching, Confidence And A Proper Family Atmosphere
After a warm welcome and lunch provided by the club, the young golfers headed to the practice range for a coaching session led by Kent Golf’s Disability Development Officer, Gary Bason of Stonelees Golf Centre.
He was joined by Jordan Fraser, Head Teaching Professional at The Royal St George’s Golf Club, bringing together county-level development work and expert club coaching in a setting that could make even a range bucket feel slightly ceremonial.
The value of sessions like this sits in the balance between instruction and enjoyment. Too much technique, and young players can feel as though they have accidentally wandered into a physics lecture with golf balls.
Too little structure, and the day becomes pleasant but forgettable. This clinic appeared to find the useful middle ground: coaching with purpose, but never at the expense of fun.
Putting, Nearest The Pin And A Few Competitive Glances
The day finished with a putting session and a nearest-the-pin competition, giving everyone the chance to test their touch and enjoy a little friendly rivalry.
That matters. Inclusive sport is not just about opening the door; it is about letting people experience the rhythm of the game itself. The practice, the improvement, the tiny triumphs, the gentle competition, and yes, the occasional ball that refuses to behave like a civilised object.
All attendees also received Royal St George’s merchandise as a memento of the occasion. For young golfers, that sort of keepsake can carry more weight than adults sometimes realise. It says: you were here, you took part, and this place was for you too.
Why Kent Golf’s Disability Programme Matters
The smiles throughout the day told their own story, but the wider significance is just as clear. Accessible golf opportunities can give young people confidence, routine, social connection and a sporting pathway that may otherwise feel out of reach.
For families, too, the benefit is obvious. A well-run inclusive session is not simply a coaching appointment. It becomes a shared day out, a chance to see progress, and sometimes a quiet reminder that sport can still do what it claims to do when it is at its best: bring people in.
Kent Golf’s work in this space is gathering useful momentum. The return of participants across the year suggests the programme is doing more than staging one-off events. It is building familiarity, trust and appetite.
Another Clinic To Come In August
Kent Golf has confirmed that a further Disability Golf Clinic will be held at The Royal St George’s Golf Club in August as part of the club’s Junior Week programme, with further details to be announced in due course.
That continuation is important. Inclusion in golf should not be treated like a novelty act wheeled out for polite applause and a photograph. It needs repetition, commitment and people willing to do the unglamorous work that makes the game easier to enter.
The Royal St George’s Golf Club staff were thanked by Kent Golf for their hospitality and continued support, with their generosity playing a key role in helping deliver inclusive opportunities across the county.
On a day built around coaching and participation, the lasting image is not of a famous venue or a polished programme. It is of young golfers finding their way into the game, families watching on, and a county golf scene looking just a little broader, warmer and better for it.
Golf has many doors. Days like this make sure more of them are actually open.
