Minnesota Minority Junior Golf Association
“A Family Affair”
and earn money
at the same time,”
Isaiah said.
During a Tiger Woods clinic in 1999,
the Garry family made a discovery: the
world of golf had changed. “Growing up,
I never thought about golf because I only saw
people like Jack Nicklaus playing it. When
my family saw Tiger and the crowd, it looked like
a United Nations convention – all kinds of people.
That was when we first became interested in the
game,” said Pat Garry, pictured above right.
Today, it’s not unusual to find the whole Garry
family out on the course. “Our oldest is stationed
in Iraq,” Pat continued. “The first thing he
asked for was a sand wedge.”
Caddieing
with MMJGA
was also his
first paying
job. “I was
amazed to
see him get
up every morning at 5:00 a.m.,” Pat said.
“The program really gave him confidence
that he could handle responsibility.”
Darcy Williams, Isaiah’s mother, added,
“Isaiah has a supportive family life, but most
youth really benefit from role models outside
the home. MMJGA does this for Isaiah, through
the organization’s positive support, and the
relationship-building activities.”
The Minnesota Minority Junior Golf Association’s
(MMJGA) goal was to help make the game of golf
more diverse, utilizing golf as a tool to enhance the
lives of minority youth. Pat’s youngest son, Isaiah
Garry, soon investigated MMJGA online and signed
up for a summer program. “MMJGA looked like
a good opportunity to learn even more about golf
Isaiah appreciates getting different perspectives
on the game he loves. “We see golf on the
course as caddies, we also get to take classes
and compete in tournaments, then we also
caddie for professionals at a whole different level,”
Isaiah said. He hopes to apply for the Evans
Scholarship, a full scholarship to the University
of Minnesota.
For more information on MMJGA please visit:
www.mmjga.org
www.pga.com/diversity