Not very often does a relatively unknown game dominate a country’s sport landscape, capturing the imagination and support of both players and supporters, yet golf has done that in an incredibly short time.
Yesterday morning, the Guyana Golf Association (GGA) handed over equipment and balls to Region 3’s Regional Education Officer, Devendra Persaud, Regional Executive Officer, Jainarine Somwar and Regional Vice Chairman, Omesh Satayannand and various teachers at the Vreed-en-Hoop headquarters.
REO Persaud said “This is the beginning of major development in education especially since the focus is on Physical Education and golf is amongst the few fully COVID compliant sports. We will put every effort behind this programme and intend to make Region 3 a dominant leader.”
Later that afternoon, the handover continued at the Woolford Avenue ground with Director of Sports, Steve Ninvalle in attendance, as several million dollars of equipment were designated for the youth and school programmes in Guyana. Ninvalle expressed his delight at the rapid growth stating “It is the mission of the Sports Commission to provide all athletes and citizens with access to every sport and golf has shown itself to be of great interest to many. We are delighted to see the progress and will monitor its growth with enthusiasm.”
In January 2021, the Ministry of Education Allied Arts Unit and Department of Secondary Schools, guided by PS Alfred King, Ms. Barker-King and Ms. Gonsalves, partnered with the Guyana Golf Association and Nexgen Golf Academy to develop a syllabus for teaching golf to students as a PE sports elective in CXC/CAPE. The success of the pilot programme led an effort to locate sufficient equipment to grow the game and president of the GGA, Aleem Hussain reached out to a variety of companies and organizations. Vice President of GOA Godfrey Munroe and William and Aleena Knight (the Shafura Hussain Foundation in New York), which started a chain of events that produced incredible results.
Quick response was received from Danny Ramnarain of Danco Electrical, Anwar Buddy Shaffie, Sally Jack and several overseas-based Guyanese golfers. The GGA, in addition to purchasing equipment and thousands of balls, received equipment donations from Anthony Gudiece, Captain Pete and Staff (Baiting Hollow Country Club), Steve Lieberman, Glenn Sable, Ken Lysek, and Mike DeLuca (Colonial Springs Country Club), Augie Abbatiello (Indian Hills Country Club), Jabbar Mowaigsh (Vineyard Valley Golf Course), Bob Maibusch (Pine Grove Springs), Guy Allen and Louie Chirco for the budding golf initiative. Transportation was provided by Zubie Hussein of Z & B Trucking.
Ricky Ramchand (Ramchand Auto) helped to secure donation of shipping services from not one but two major companies PasCargo and CS Worldwide Shipping & Logistics. These shipping giants combined to donate over $1,000,000 to the golf programme and have pledged their on-going support.
CS Worldwide Shipping & Logistics recently donated tens of thousands of face shields to Guyana and is also partnering with the Guyana Golf Association to distribute hand sanitizers and clothing (provided by Danny Ramnarain and Al Badrudeen) as the company gets ready to open local operation in Guyana.Chandi Singh said “Our organization has been active in charitable activities around the world but were looking for a reliable partner in Guyana. Mr. Hussain has shown great results and we are happy to support him and the GGA.”
Hussain praised the efforts of Pascargo, one of the largest logistics companies in the country saying “the company lived up to its motto ‘We Save You all the Trouble’ and went above and beyond providing great service, they ensured delivery and were responsive throughout the process, and we wish to thank the Ramdeo family, especially Syd, Ian, Chandra, and Stacia for their contributions and commitment to growing the sport in Guyana.”
With equipment in hand, the stage is set for the GGA and Allied Arts Unit, led by Lindley Langhorne, to start the training of PE Teachers in August for 50 more schools in Regions 2, 4 and 5 to provide over 10,000 students access to the sport by end of 2021, making good on the promise to have Golf become one of the most played sports in the country, all in less than one year. With support now being shown by dozens of major companies such as Assuria General Insurance; Copa Airlines; Blue Life Waters; Trophy Stall; Ansa McAl; Toolsie Persaud; Kanuku Suite & Apartments; Service Guyana HVAC; Kanuku Tours; Angel Seafood Restaurant & Bar; Sunshine Snacks; Ram & McRae; Puran Brothers; Ramchand Auto; Panko Steel Construction; H. Nauth & Sons; AR Printery; Bissessar Shipping Company; CS World Cargo & Logistics; Sterling Products; Caliper Drones; PasCargo; Shafura Hussain Foundation; GTT; New Trend Auto; Maraiko Bay Resorts; Nexgen Global Group and many others, it is evident that the sport is catching on, and with the added fact that it is one of the most fully COVID-19 compliant activities, it is expected to grow even faster than ever in the months ahead.
Hussain said “Just to see the sheer joy on the faces of new players, from ages three to 80, when they realize how easy to learn and how much fun this game can be, is the best reward. Our next Golf Camp (August 2-14) offers players from all walks of life access to learning and we will continue to use the sport as a platform for raising Awareness for various charities. Partnerships with various sporting disciplines such as Table Tennis, Badminton, Archery, and Football have fuelled interest in golf and there are plans for a variety of competitions such as Putting, Chipping, Long Drive and Helicopter Ball Drop along with Foot Golf that is under way.”
The GGA and Nexgen Golf Academy provides equipment and lessons for anyone interested in learning the game and the facility is open daily from 9 am to 8 pm. See nexgengolfacademy on Facebook and Instagram for details or call 668 7419 for more information.
