ROYAL PEKAN HOSTED ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL JUNIOR CLINIC

Royal Pekan Golf Club in Pekan, Pahang successfully hosted the MGA State Junior Clinic on February 26 for Intermediate and February 27 for Beginners. 13 juniors turned up for the intermediate session and 56 juniors participated in the beginner session.

The Clinic was headed by MGA's Resident Pros, V. Gunalen and assisted by local Pro, Vinayagam for the Beginner's session.

The MGA State Junior Clinic is part of MGA's development program to introduce golf to the masses.

The juniors were taught fundamental golf swing, short game skills as well as rules of golf and course etiquettte. A 9-hole game was conducted for the intermediate session.

MGA gave thanks to Royal Pekan Golf Club for hosting the clinic and assistance given to MGA which contributed to the success of the clinic. MGA also thanked En Zailani Said, Timbalan Pengarah PPD Pekan and Royal Pekan Committee for being present as well as Cikgu Zaidi and En Azizul Rahim for their assistance. MGA State Reprpesentative for Pahang, En Jaafar Hj Abdullah was also present to lend support.

SUPER JUNIOR SQUAD FOR THE SUPER TALENTED UNDER 14

Appreciating that talent can be cultivated at a young age, KLGCC has joined hands with MGA and MST Golf Academy to introduce the 'National Junior Elite Development Programme' for budding golfers between the ages of 10 and 14 in the country.

The National Junior Elite Development Programme is aimed at creating national golfers who can compete in major international golf tournaments and possibly even the Olympics in the future.

The programme will see junior players undergo unique conditioning and learning insights similar to the training programmes adopted for the much older champion golfers who have displayed strong mental game which is key to consistency in golf.

The young golfers are selected based on eight specific traits, including self confidence, emotional stability and tough mental condition, which are said to be found in champion golfers as determined by Golfpsych Inc., USA.

"We are very excited about this new programme given that these young talents who can be groomed and trained from a tender age. We hope to see these youth golfers develop their skills and excel in the sport, with the aim of meeting international standards and doing their country proud one day. This is also very much in line with Sime Darby's commitment to promote sports development in the country," said Dato' Tunku Putra Badlishah.

Datuk Loh said these commendable initiatives will surely go far in helping junior golfers to live up to their potential as well as give them a competitive edge.

"Instituting these types of programmes is essential for the progress of the golfing industry in the country, and especially to stimulate national interest in the sport. It is truly a worthy effort by Sime Darby to invest in this unique programme and provide the junior golfers with an avenue for growth," he added.

Paul Gibbons, MST GOLF Director of Group Marketing, said MST Golf is proud to partner with Sime Darby and pave the way for golfers in Malaysia to enhance their abilities and further their golfing potential. "With continued commitment and enthusiasm, we are confident that both of these programmes will be a success," he noted.

The selected juniors are as follows:

Boys:

1. Aeaerishna S. Balakrishnan (Johor) - Age 11
2. Ervin Chang (KL) - Age 13
3. Amir Nazrin Jalani (Selangor) - Age 13
4. Ryan Wong (KL) - Age 12
5. Sim You Jin (Selangor) - Age 13
6. Khavish Varman Varadan (Selangor) - Age 11

Girls:

1. Kelie Kan (KL) - Age 13
2. Natasha Andrea Oon (KL) - Age 10
3. Loy Hee Ying (Johor) - Age 14
4. Chong Yong (Johor) - Age 13