GOLF FOR ALL
Presented by the Riviera Country Club
The GOLF FOR ALL initiative, presented by the Riviera Country Club in partnership with the Play Equity Fund and the Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission, is a nine-year partnership leading up to the 2028 Olympic Games, where Olympic golfers will compete on the world’s stage at The Riviera Country Club. This initiative is focused on leveling the playing field and providing greater access to golf for all kids.
Why? Golf is a sport that provides tremendous benefits such as instilling values that are essential for success in life, off the fairways and greens. Values and skills such as humility, respect, punctuality, vision, problem-solving, focus, practice, persistence, listening and graciousness are developed through understanding the game.
Unfortunately, kids who come from poor, underserved and under-resourced communities often don’t have access to the game of golf because of the expense, lack of transportation, limited exposure and/or the perception that golf is an elitist sport.
As a result of the legacy and social impact program during the 2017 U.S. Amateur Golf Tournament held at Riviera, these organizations have partnered to create GOLF FOR ALL. The goal of this initiative is to harness the power of golf, and the return of the Olympic Games to Los Angeles in 2028, to engage and inspire the next generation of golfers, specifically to youth with limited access.
There are three facets to the Golf For All initiative:
INSPIRATION
Golf is My Game is a promotional, digital media campaign which features and highlights current athletes, former athletes, influencers and celebrities who play and love golf. The objective is to share stories from athletes and influencers why the game of golf is fun, accessible and provides value to their lives and to inspire kids to pick up the game.
FUN ACCESS
Give Golf a Go will engage youth ages 8-13 not yet involved in golf through fun and non-traditional ideas to expose youth to the game. Programs run by our nonprofit program partners will include golf course open houses, buddy/mentorship programs and local park takeovers in communities lacking golf facilities where kids can play non-traditional golf games like baseball-golf and glow ball golf.
COMPETITIVE ENGAGEMENT
The Road to Riviera, expected to launch in 2021, will include a series of tournaments that will provide high school golfers from CIF-Los Angeles City Section member schools, ages 14-18, with the opportunity to complete in two events during each respective golf season.
Two girls’ tournaments (pre/post) will take place during the fall season and two boys’ tournaments (pre/post) during the spring season. The winner of each tournament will have the opportunity to play a round of golf at Riviera based on their tournament ranking, GPA, school attendance and other criteria.