underrated junior golf tour

Stephen Curry announces new junior golf tour

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NBA star Stephen Curry has already impacted the golf community in various ways.

In 2019, Curry partnered with Howard University to launch and financially support the school’s first Division I golf program for a six-year period. The previous year, he had donated $25,000 to support longtime pro Scott Harrington and his wife Jenn in her battle with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Curry announced his latest initiative Thursday afternoon, aiming to provide aspiring college golfers a more accessible path to their dreams. The UNDERRATED Golf Tour, an AJGA-accredited junior tour, will hold five events this summer at highly acclaimed courses across the United States.

The Tour will be free of charge for players, including travel, lodging and meals. Players will compete for a season-long “Curry Cup.”

The UNDERRATED Golf Tour is an extension of Curry’s UNDERRATED brand, established in 2019 with a mission “to empower underrated and underrepresented individuals all over the world.” The brand was founded with a focus on basketball, with Thursday’s announcement extending its efforts to golf.

“Everybody knows I love the game of golf, and I couldn’t be more excited to extend this love to the best young players around the country,” Curry said in a video released Thursday. “Less than 2% of golfers are people of color, and our Tour provides a platform of equity, access and opportunity for girls and boys who want to play and compete with the current best players on the AJGA.”

The UNDERRATED Golf Tour will debut at Cog Hill GC in Chicago, June 21-23, with stops in Phoenix (Wickenburg Ranch), Houston (GC of Houston) and Tampa (Innisbrook’s Copperhead) leading to the Tour Championship at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, August 28-30. Cog Hill (BMW Championship), Golf Club of Houston (Hewlett Packard Enterprise Houston Open), Innisbrook Report’s Copperhead Course (Valspar Championship) and TPC Harding Park (PGA Championship, Presidents Cup, WGC-Dell Technologies Championship) are all either current or former TOUR venues.

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Steph Curry launches junior golf tour to help underprivileged kids

Photo by Walter Iooss Jr.

Steph Curry is launching a junior golf tour to help serve the game’s underprivileged and overlooked markets.

Curry’s “Underrated” brand is venturing into the golf space in conjunction with the AJGA to host five tournaments. According to a release, the endeavor aims to provide avenues for student-athletes to the game with the goal of increasing participation numbers from diverse communities.

“Less than 2 percent of golfers are people of color,” Curry noted in a video message. “This provides a platform for equity, access and opportunity for those who can’t get their big break, but also who want to play head-to-head with some of the best players on the AJGA.”

RELATED: The mini-tour fighting to give Black golfers a chance

In its first year the Underrated Golf Tour will select each of the 24 best boys and girls who will compete for the Curry Cup at the season ending Underrated Tour Championship held at TPC Harding Park. The tour will begin in Chicago at Cog Hill in late June, with other stops in Houston, Phoenix and Tampa. Curry said he will cover all travel and lodging expenses as well as entrance fees. In the coming years the circuit hopes to grow the participant pool, ultimately having a global footprint with the world's best prospects.

This is far from Curry’s first golf-related effort. In 2019, Curry made a seven-figure donation to bring back the Howard University golf team for the first time in 40 years. He’s also launched a golf brand through Under Armour, and his foundation struck a deal to be associated with Jack Nicklaus’ Memorial Tournament .

Those looking to register for the Underrated Golf Tour can do so on the circuit’s website .

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2022 Underrated Golf Tour  Golf · Co-Ed

2022 UNDERRATED GOLF TOUR

The Underrated Golf Tour is a national junior golf tour, created to provide a positive, competitive, safe space environment for culturally diverse male and female junior golfers .

Our athletes have enjoyed success at a competitive level, respect the game, and always exhibit the etiquette expected.

Through their competitive journey on the Underrated Golf Tour they'll foster relationships in the community, network with college coaches, meet and be mentored by PGA of America professionals, and be exposed to opportunities in golf.

Tour Dates and Locations:

Stop 1: Cog Hill Golf Club, Chicago, IL   June 21 - 23, 2022

Stop 2: Wickenburg Ranch, Phoenix, AZ   June 29 - July 1, 2022

Stop 3: Golf Club of Houston, Houston, TX   July 17 - 19, 2022

Stop 4: Innisbrook - Copperhead, Tampa, FL   August 8 - 10, 2022

CHAMPIONSHIP: TPC Harding Park, San Francisco, CA   August 28 - 30, 2022

3-day Event Breakdown:  

• Day 1: Practice round and local qualifying*
• Day 2: 1 st round*
• Day 3: 2 nd  and Final round*

*Tee times: TBD

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT: WWW.STAYUNDERRATED.COM/GOLF  

Event Notes:

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How Stephen Curry's Underrated Golf is opening doors

Second-year golf tour is assisting junior players who might not otherwise have access to regional and national tournaments.

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When NBA star Stephen Curry was a high school basketball player in Charlotte, North Carolina, he called himself "a skinny, scrawny kid ... a late bloomer" in a 2022 Charlotte Observer interview. Neither of the state’s blue-blood college programs, Duke or North Carolina, gave him the time of day.

Why would they? He was a 5-foot-9, 150-pound guard playing at a private school, with only a connection to a NBA veteran father, Dell Curry.

What has played out since Curry graduated from Charlotte Christian in 2006, through an emergence as a force at next-door Davidson College and as the NBA’s top shooter evokes thoughts of pursuing dreams no matter the odds, both for his main sport, basketball, and his off-court passion, golf.

A similar level of ascension can be envisioned for Jaden Soong, a 13-year-old golfer from Burbank, California. The rising eighth grader is small in stature — 5-foot-2 and 115 pounds — but his golf game has proven large as he can mash drives in the 280-yard range. In early June, Soong became the youngest player to reach the final round of U.S. Open qualifying, missing out on becoming the youngest player to ever reach golf’s U.S. national championship during that final phase.

"I definitely have to go out there and prove that I have game because when you play with bigger kids maybe they don’t respect you as much," Soong says. "They expect to beat you. But in golf, it’s not your size that matters as much. It’s not like football or basketball, but how sharp you are mentally to get ahead of them."

Soong is part of Curry’s effort to bring golf competition to boys and girls age 12-18. Curry started the Underrated Tour in 2019 as a basketball showcase for players who might not have otherwise been scouted by college coaches, just like him. Last year, Curry launched Underrated Golf with a focus on providing equity, access and opportunity to young golfers by paying their way to national events during the summer and exposing them to top courses and college coaches when they otherwise may not have the resources to travel the very expensive national junior circuit.

In late June, Soong flew from California to play in Florida for the first time. He shot 66-73 to win the first event of the 2023 Underrated Golf season by one stroke at The Park, a newly renovated West Palm Beach municipal course. On the girls’ side, Nicole Sardinha of Doral, Florida, shot 72-70 to win by two.

The field for the season debut was welcomed by DJ Khaled, a renowned recording executive, producer and rapper — and golf nut — alongside Seth Curry, Steph’s younger brother who is also an NBA veteran and golf enthusiast. Scores ranged from 65 to 98 on a course that stretched beyond 6,700 yards. Each player was able to choose their walk-up song on the first tee, with Soong choosing Tupac Shakur’s "California Love." Steph Curry FaceTimed the winners after their rounds and encouraged them "to keep working hard."

"When you’re around greatness, that greatness rubs off on you," said Khaled in a pep talk to the young golfers. "Our job is to be around greatness at all times. This positive energy, this group right here, if I’m around this all day, I’m gonna be a plus-two (handicap)."

Aside from being basketball's greatest long-range shooter, Curry is also being recognized this summer as golf's top long-range planner.

Last week, Curry and NBA basketball’s Golden State Warriors teammate Klay Thompson faced the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs teammates Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelsey in the next televised bro-fest, The Match. This Saturday, at the conclusion of the second Underrated Tour event at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio, Curry will be honored by the PGA Tour as the 2023 Ambassador of Golf during an evening banquet at the same location. On July 21, "Stephen Curry: Underrated," a documentary film, debuts in theaters and on Apple TV.

Curry’s latest foray into golf follows an investment in college golf. In August 2019, Curry guaranteed full funding of Howard University’s men's and women's golf teams for six years as the school added NCAA Division I teams for the 2020–21 school year. Howard’s men have dominated the PGA Works Championship, a season-ending event for HBCUs. The Washington, D.C., school produced the medalist in 2021, 2022 and 2023, and won the team titles each of the last two years. Howard’s men barely missed making the NCAA Tournament in early May, finishing five strokes behind champion Long Island University in the Northeast Conference tournament.

The tour features four regional events with boys and girls fields of 96 players, made up of exempt competitors and those who qualify regionally. There are separate competitions among the boys and girls, but no age groups. Tees are varied by age brackets (12-14 and 15-18).

In addition to stops in West Palm Beach and Akron, Underrated Golf will also visit Paiute Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada, and Chambers Bay, the 2015 U.S. Open site, outside of Seattle, Washington. The Curry Cup, a season-ending tour championship, is slated for Aug. 20-23 at Lake Merced in San Francisco, California. The finale brings together the top 12 point earners in both the boys and girls sides.

“While golf has always been a passion of mine, I can’t turn a blind eye to the major inequities that exist in the sport amongst underrepresented individuals,” said Curry upon being named the Ambassador of Golf recipient. “I believe that golf, unlike any other sport, offers a very powerful vehicle to positively shape and impact an individual’s social and professional career across their lifetime. It is my hope that through this exciting endeavor, we can create a brighter and sustainable future for these young prospects.”

The game changer is that all expenses are paid to attract those who can't afford entry fees and national travel for larger junior golf competition. It’s a benefit that became available with recent relaxing of amateur status guidelines by the USGA.

Will Lowery, a former professional golfer, current golf media influencer and Charlotte native, is the social media presence and organizer behind his friend’s Underrated idea. Lowery grew up in inner-city Charlotte playing public courses and was always eyeballing ways to break into the sport more easily. He and Curry are a similar age — Lowery is 38, Curry 35 — and brainstormed on how to make this type of pathway a reality.

All travel, entry fees and accommodations are covered, participants’ sport golf bags, travel bags and shirts and hats feature the Underrated logo. Each participant can have one parents’ expenses covered also, Soong said. Much of that is due to KPMG’s sponsorship, announced earlier this year and piggybacking off the global professional service firm’s nine-year sponsorship of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

“It’s hard to play good golf when you know your parents are sacrificing a bill to get you there,” says Lowery, who selects many of the invitees.

“The silver lining is seeing kids being noticed by college coaches,” Lowery says. “I get calls all the time now from coaches asking about this young man or this young lady. When their names are being noticed that means we’re doing something right.

“We still have a way to go. At an introduction to golf, 17 percent of black and brown kids participate in the game of golf in some capacity. But we’ve got to get them further in the competition space. In the high-level junior golf space, there’s only 2 percent. In college, it’s less than 1 percent. Hopefully, we can serve as a feeder system, increase the participation rate in golf and open the eyes of kids in the career space.”

The 2022 winners during the inaugural season displayed those wares. Roman Solomon, a junior at the IMG Academy in Sarasota, Florida, is the son of former major-league baseball player Bobby Bonilla and is eyeing college opportunities as he plays junior events. Ashley Shaw, a 13-year-old from Phoenix, Arizona, won the girls division in 2022 and is playing national junior events this year. Jaxson Kenzo, a Santa Monica, California, resident, lost to Solomon in a playoff at the 2022 finale and is in the PGA Golf Management program at New Mexico State.

It’s the beginning of an opportunity to prove themselves, just like Curry accomplished a decade ago.

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Steph Curry Creates Junior Golf Tour to Promote Diversity, Aid Disadvantaged Kids

• Author: Wilton Jackson

Steph Curry is increasing his brand on the golf course. The three-time NBA champion is launching a junior golf tour to serve the game's disadvantaged and forgotten markets. 

Curry’s brand, “Underrated,” in collaboration with American Junior Golf Association, will host five golf tournaments as a way to create pathways for student-athletes to the game and increase the number of people participating in the sport from diverse communities. 

Curry, in a video message, stated that less than two percent of golfers are people of color, something he hopes to improve upon. “Our tour provides a platform for equity, access and opportunity for boys and girls who want to play and compete with the current best players on the AJGA.”

During the first year of the initiative, the Underrated Golf Tour will choose 24 of the most talented boys and girls to compete for a chance to win the Curry Cup at the end season at the Underrated Tour Championship at TPC Harding Park. The eight-time All-Star plans to cover all travel, lodging expense and entrance fees for the group.

The tour will begin in Chicago at Cog Hill in June and will make stops in Houston, Phoenix and Tampa. Curry's newest golf initiative comes after sponsoring the men's and women's golf teams in 2019 at Howard, a historically black college and university located in Washington D.C. His donation allowed for the program to have a Division I golf program for the first time in its 152-year history. 

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UNDERRATED Golf announces second season with increased AJGA support

By ajga staff, june 21, 2023.

Stephen Curry’s UNDERRATED Golf program announced their schedule for the second annual UNDERRATED Golf Tour, consisting of four regional stops at some of the most prestigious courses in the U.S. The tour gives many young golfers their first opportunity to play on an established professional course, with stops including:

● The Park West Palm in West Palm Beach, FL | June 25-27

● Firestone Country Club in Akron, OH | July 6-8

● Paiute Golf Resort in Las Vegas, NV | July 18-20

● Chambers Bay in Seattle, WA | Aug 7-9

For each tour stop, 96 athletes will participate in tournament style events and team building activities while simultaneously networking with college golf coaches and golf executives. Ultimately, 24 of the best boys and girls will emerge from the tour to compete for the Curry Cup at the UNDERRATED Tour Championship, taking place at Lake Merced in San Francisco, CA, from August 20-23.

“UNDERRATED Golf is committed to ushering in a new season of opportunities for student-athletes to showcase their talent in the game of golf. This upcoming tournament furthers our work to be a gateway for young, underrepresented golfers to unveil their extraordinary abilities and compete on renowned golf courses across the country. This year, we will continue to engrain the UNDERRATED mindset with these young golfers, and I am excited to see how they transform the game.”

Following a successful inaugural season, the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) is further recognizing efforts UNDERRATED Golf is bringing to the community by increasing the amount of stars awarded to winning boys and girls participating in the tour. Newly added awarded accolades include:

Awarded stars for each UNDERRATED Golf regional tour event :

• Eight stars for each winning boy and girl
• Four stars for each boy and girl finishing in the top two-three
• One star for each boy and girl finishing in the top four-five

Awarded stars for 2023 Curry Cup :

• Each winning boy and girl automatically becomes a fully exempt AJGA member
• 12 stars for each boy and girl finishing in the top 2-4
• Eight stars for each boy and girl finishing in the top 5-8
• Four stars for each boy and girl finishing in the top 9-12

Furthermore, Stephen Curry and the UNDERRATED Golf program will continue their support of the AJGA’s Liberty National ACE Grant, which provides financial assistance to young men and women who aspire to earn a college scholarship through competitive golf. Founded in 2023, it helps provide opportunities to players who have the skills but not the means to play a national junior golf schedule. Since its inception, the program has reimbursed over $6 million to junior golfers who have gone on to earn over $15 million in college scholarships.

"Stephen Curry's unwavering support of the Liberty National ACE Grant and the AJGA, showcases his profound dedication to nurturing the potential of young golfers. Through the impact of the Underrated Tour and his continued involvement with the AJGA, Curry provides aspiring athletes with invaluable opportunities to excel and pursue their dreams. His commitment to making golf accessible and leveling the playing field embodies the transformative power of mentorship and investment in youth, creating a lasting legacy in the world of golf."

KPMG LLP, the U.S. audit, tax and advisory firm, is serving as title sponsor in an effort to advance equity, access and opportunity for underrepresented and underrated youth in the sport of golf. LPGA Tour player and KPMG brand ambassador Mariah Stackhouse serves as an UNDERRATED Golf ambassador, where she’ll later host the newly minted “KPMG Leadership Day” at the season-ending Curry Cup taking place in the Bay Area. Additional corporate partners include PGA, Callaway Golf, Wiz Kid, Subway, AJGA, Golf Pride, Carmax, 2K Foundation, United Airlines, CDW, Cisco, Chase, and Stephen’s own Curry Brand with Under Armour.

UNDERRATED Golf is a purpose-driven business endeavor with the overarching commitment to provide equity, access and opportunity to student athletes from every community by balancing participation in the sport to truly reflect our society. Dedicated to promoting opportunities for young athletes who may not otherwise have the chance to gain access to the sport and adjacent skills, UNDERRATED Golf is working with its corporate partners and sponsors to provide training, equipment, networking events and more. Furthermore, the program is also addressing the gender equity gap within the sport by enabling female players with the same opportunities as their male counterparts.

With a mission to increase the participation numbers amongst competitive golfers from diverse communities, UNDERRATED Golf will have players compete hand-in-hand with their peers who currently represent the vast majority of today’s golfers, and in the coming years, will continue to grow the participant pool, ultimately creating a global footprint with the world's best prospects.

For more information, please visit www.underrated.golf , and connect on social media via Instagram and Twitter .

About UNDERRATED  UNDERRATED is an inspiring lifestyle brand with a mission to empower underrated and underrepresented individuals all over the world. With a passion for celebrating the underdog, UNDERRATED echoes this message across three main categories including experiences, media and physical product. The brand, which was established by Stephen Curry in 2019, draws on the revered NBA Champion’s personal story as an underappreciated three-star athlete in high school who always stood in the shadows of his peers. As a powerful culmination of this inspiring journey to the top, UNDERRATED is committed to opening doors for often-overlooked student-athletes by developing impactful basketball programming, and fostering a platform for visibility through the UNDERRATED Championships, which create opportunities for players to be recognized by key figures. Based in the Bay Area, UNDERRATED is a mindset, a motivation, a calling, a compliment. For more information, please visit www.stayunderrated.com , and connect on social media via Instagram , Twitter and Facebook .

About the AJGA The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls, ages 12-19) of more than 8,000 members from 50 states and 51 foreign countries. Through initiatives like the Liberty National ACE Grant, a financial assistance program, and Leadership Links, a service-oriented platform that teaches juniors charitable-giving skills, the AJGA fosters the growth of golf’s next generation.

TaylorMade and adidas are the AJGA’s National Sponsors, supporting the AJGA for more than 25 years. TaylorMade has served as the Official Ball of the AJGA since 2016. adidas has been the Official Apparel and Footwear of the AJGA since 2017. Rolex, in its fourth decade of AJGA sponsorship, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004.

AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 1,000 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Patrick Cantlay, Billy Horschel, Collin Morikawa, Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Tiger Woods, Paula Creamer, Jessica Korda, Nelly Korda, Cristie Kerr, Stacy Lewis, Inbee Park, Lexi Thompson and Rose Zhang.

ABOUT KPMG LLP KPMG LLP is the U.S. firm of the KPMG global organization of independent professional services firms providing Audit, Tax and Advisory services. The KPMG global organization operates in 143 countries and territories and has more than 265,000 people working in member firms around the world. Each KPMG firm is a legally distinct and separate entity and describes itself as such.

KPMG is widely recognized for being a great place to work and build a career. Our people share a sense of purpose in the work we do, and a strong commitment to community service, inclusion and diversity and eradicating childhood illiteracy. Learn more at www.kpmg.com/us .

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Scenes from steph curry underrated junior golf tour at las vegas paiute.

Steph Curry is not only winning tournaments–like he did at the American Century Championship at Edgewood in Tahoe earlier this week–but he is helping the next generation learn the game. This week at the Las Vegas Paiute Golf Report, Curry’s Underrated Junior Golf Tour presented by KPMG is in full swing.

Here are some scenes from the early action.

  View this post on Instagram   A post shared by @lasvegasgolfinsider

Look for a complete report soon.

About Underrated Junior Golf

Underrated Golf believes the game of golf is for everyone, but we know that there is significant work to be done to make it a just, fair and inspiring sport for all. We are building that foundation from the bottom up, offering young, overlooked golfers special programming experiences including an ongoing speaker series and networking events with brands and corporations, allowing them to understand what it means to make connections and build a successful career.

We are dedicated to enacting real change by creating lanes for youth from underserved communities to gain access to all of the opportunities the sport of golf offers.  We are focused on equal representation of all genders, while being a force multiplier for them to realize their potential, positively impact the sport and be true benefactors to all participants in the game – from skills on the course to competing in major tournaments and pursuing leadership roles across industries.

  View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Underrated Golf Tour (@underratedgolf)

Stephen Curry kicks off Underrated Tour for underrepresented golfers

The four-time NBA champion wants to bring more color to junior golf

Up Next From Culture

Though his résumé is impressive now — with a fourth NBA championship and a Finals MVP trophy — Stephen Curry famously started his hoops journey as an unranked, unheralded and unrecruited high school prospect.

In recent years, Curry has looked to provide a new generation of young athletes with the skills and inspiration that fueled his rise. Beginning in 2019, Curry launched the Underrated Tour as a basketball showcase event for players who might not have otherwise been scouted by college coaches. The tour’s logo has five stars grouped together with three stars highlighted. Accordingly, the tour is open to players who were ranked as three-star recruits or lower, like Curry. To date, 31 student-athletes who have played in the Underrated Tour have gone on to receive full-ride Division I scholarships to play college basketball.

Now, Curry is adding another branch to his Underrated Tour — this time for golf.

“Everybody knows that I love the game of golf, and I couldn’t be more excited to extend this love to the best young players across the country,” Curry said during a press event about the tournament.

The Underrated Golf Tour launched this week with the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA), with the added goal of addressing the sport’s lack of diversity.

“Less than 2% of [junior] golfers are people of color,” Curry said. “And our tour provides a platform of equity, access and opportunity to boys and girls that want to play and compete with the current best players of the AJGA.”

The first of four regional Underrated Tour tournaments starts this week at Cog Hill Golf & Country Club outside Chicago with a field of 60 players — 30 boys, 30 girls — between the ages of 12 and 18.

The fields for each regional will be drawn from top players from the surrounding areas, players who applied online for entry, and winners of a one-day qualifying event taking place the day before the tournament starts.

A diverse field will be the priority at each stop throughout the summer, with a long-term aim of improving upon that 2% figure.

“That obviously is completely disproportionate to society today, which is more around 25-30%. The goal here is that we replicate what society is,” said Underrated chairperson Suresh Singh. “Our tour is going to have 25-30% Black and brown participants.”

Another key component of the tour will be the cost of entry in what is historically an expensive sport .

“Everything is paid for,” Singh said. “Absolutely everything.”

All travel, lodging and meals will be covered for each participant on the Underrated Tour, along with travel for an accompanying parent. Curry has long had a partnership with golf club manufacturer Callaway, and will provide players in need with equipment as well. 

The financial commitment from Curry and his brand partners is another piece of his commitment to uplifting the sport of golf. 

In 2019, Curry made a multimillion-dollar pledge to Howard University to fund the school’s first Division I men’s and women’s golf teams. The program, which he hopes can become “a marquee golf destination and university,” is outfitted in his Curry Brand golf apparel and footwear.

“To know that they’re rocking Curry Brand, they’re basically walking examples of the impact that we’re able to have,” the NBA star said. 

Another aim of the Underrated Tour is to provide access to top-tier golf courses, most of which can cost several hundred dollars for standard green fees, besides a tournament entry fee. Each of the four tournament locations selected — Cog Hill, Wickenburg Ranch near Phoenix, the Golf Club of Houston and the Innisbrook Resort’s Copperhead Course near Tampa, Florida — have hosted PGA Tour events.

“This tour is opening doors for young, underrepresented golfers to showcase their skill and play on some of the most revered courses across the country — where they can experience new greens and inspiring views — while elevating their techniques and strategies alongside like-minded players,” said Curry.

The best 12 boys and 12 girls from each of the four tournaments will all face off in the “Curry Cup” at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco in late August. 

“The kids that we’re serving are going to have the opportunity in these tournaments to go up against the very best players,” said Singh. 

The series of certified tournaments are being held with the American Junior Golf Association, meaning top AJGA amateur players will be competing in every tournament. The winner of each regional tournament will receive two AJGA “performance stars,” which go toward a total score that determines entry into priority tournaments and player rankings.

At the Curry Cup, eight AJGA stars will be awarded for first place and four AJGA stars each to those placing second through fifth. 

Next year, the tour plans to add a European division, with future summer sessions to be offered eventually to young athletes in South America and Asia.

Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

According to Will Lowery of the Golf Channel, who, like Curry, hails from the Charlotte, North Carolina, area and serves as Underrated Golf’s professional and tour ambassador, the costs of junior golf can escalate quickly and price out teenage players looking to advance past the recreational level.

Lowery estimates it costs families at least $8,000 to $10,000 to fund a junior golfer’s training, equipment, tournament fees and travel costs. “To do it right,” that cost could increase to as much as $25,000 a year.

“My team and I realize just how important it is to create opportunities for underrepresented communities, who may not otherwise have the chance to gain access to the sport and adjacent businesses,” said Curry.

After opening its nationwide application process in late April, the Underrated Tour received more than 900 applications from young golfers looking to enter the quartet of tournaments, according to Jason Richards, the tour’s athletic operations manager.

Just as basketball players have sought to follow in Curry’s footsteps as a late bloomer, Richards believes golfers can also draw inspiration from the two-time MVP’s career arc.

“Kids can see themselves in that, and not lose hope at a young age if they’re not a five-star or four-star recruit,” said Richards.

Richards has had an up close seat for Curry’s rise to the top. He was Curry’s backcourt running mate at Davidson College, where Richards led all of Division I in assists during his senior year as the duo carried the Wildcats to a Cinderella-worthy Elite Eight run in the NCAA tournament in 2008. After spending several years working in both coaching and administrative roles at the University of Pittsburgh, Richards signed on to help lead the Underrated Tour’s efforts and Curry’s vision of uplifting similarly overlooked young athletes.

While the tournaments will emphasize competition and top-level play, there’s also an emphasis on the access and networking that the game has given to players for generations.

“Golf is the vehicle. We are trying to give these kids a whole host of opportunities that they don’t otherwise have,” said Singh. “The privileged kid, or specifically, the white kid — they have aunts and uncles who are CEOs that they can talk to, or that give them jobs, internships or mentorships. The kids we’re serving, they don’t have that, and they don’t have a place to rub elbows with the folks to get that. We’re giving them that.”

One way the tour will look to inject that level of access is through its corporate brand partners. Each partner is being asked to provide access to its employee base and to participate in panels, workshops and in mentoring players. They will also be encouraged to consider players for internships and jobs.

“We will provide these incredible student-athletes with the opportunity to interface with major executives and decision-makers, creating the next generation of future leaders,” said Curry.

There will also be a curriculum of as many as seven long-term programs throughout the year, with each player participating in at least two.

“We’re setting it up so that not only our brand partners and the people that we have coming to these events, but their friends and colleagues in their life will become mentors to these kids after the sport part of the tour is over,” said Singh. “We’ve got 10 weeks of tournaments, and then 42 weeks of other programming that these kids will be participating in.” 

The goal of increasing diversity across the sport is matched by the collective goal of impacting corporate diversity in sports.

“The real mission here is not golf,” said Singh. “Golf and basketball are the tip of the iceberg for where Underrated is going.”

Nick DePaula is a footwear industry and lifestyle writer.

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Southern company announces official partnership with u.s. underrated golf tour.

UNDERRATED Golf Tour will kick-off at the Old Barnwell Golf Course in Aiken, SC , June 21 - June 23

ATLANTA , June 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern Company has signed on as an official partner of the UNDERRATED Golf Tour, a purpose-driven business endeavor with the overarching commitment to provide equity, access and opportunity to student-athletes from every community by balancing participation in the sport to truly reflect our society.

As part of Southern Company's commitment to promoting inclusion within the communities it serves, this new partnership will enable the organization to support aspiring golfers who historically have been underrepresented in the sport. The UNDERRATED Golf Tour provides a platform for athletes to showcase their skills, gain exposure, and compete at a high level while fostering a more inclusive environment within the golfing community.

"Golf is a game that mirrors the values we hold dear at Southern Company — integrity, excellence and respect," said Chris Womack, chairman, president & CEO of Southern Company. "Partnering with the UNDERRATED Golf Tour we are investing in the future of the sport while reinforcing our commitment to creating equitable opportunities for all."

Womack unveiled the partnership at the 2024 World Golf Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony where UNDERRATED founder Stephen Curry was recognized as the 2024 recipient of the Charlie Sifford Award presented by Southern Company. The Charlie Sifford Award was created in 2021 by the World Golf Hall of Fame to honor an individual who personifies Sifford's groundbreaking achievements of diversifying the game of golf through perseverance, confidence, respect, and adaptability.

The UNDERRATED Golf Tour has gained national attention for its efforts to level the playing field. The tour offers a series of competitive events across the country, providing a stepping stone for players to reach collegiate golf programs and, ultimately, professional ranks.

For each U.S. Tour stop, 96 athletes will participate in tournament style events and team building activities while simultaneously networking with college golf coaches and golf executives. The U.S. portion of the UNDERRATED Golf Season 3 Tour will consist of four regional stops at some of the most prestigious courses in the U.S. The tour gives many young golfers their first opportunity to play on an established professional course, with stops including:

• Old Barnwell in Aiken, SC | June 21 - June 23
• Pumpkin Ridge Ghost Creek Golf Club in Portland, OR | July 8 - July 10
• Warren Golf Course at The University of Notre Dame in South Bend, IN | July 22 - July 24
• TPC San Antonio in San Antonio, TX | August 7 - August 9

Ultimately, 24 of the best boys and girls will emerge from the tour to compete for the Curry Cup at the UNDERRATED Tour Championship. For the very first time ever, the Curry Cup will take place outside of the Bay Area and will move to The Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, NJ , September 2-5 .

For more information, please visit www.stayunderrated.com , and connect on social media via Instagram , Twitter and Facebook .

About Southern Company Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is a leading energy provider serving 9 million customers across the Southeast and beyond through its family of companies. Providing clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy with excellent service is our mission. The company has electric operating companies in three states, natural gas distribution companies in four states, a competitive generation company, a leading distributed energy distribution company with national capabilities, a fiber optics network and telecommunications services. Through an industry-leading commitment to innovation, resilience and sustainability, we are taking action to meet customers' and communities' needs while advancing our goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Our uncompromising values ensure we put the needs of those we serve at the center of everything we do and are the key to our sustained success. We are transforming energy into economic, environmental and social progress for tomorrow. Our corporate culture and hiring practices have earned the company national awards and recognition from numerous organizations, including Forbes, The Military Times, DiversityInc, Black Enterprise, J.D. Power, Fortune, Human Rights Campaign and more. To learn more, visit www.southerncompany.com .

ABOUT UNDERRATED UNDERRATED is an inspiring lifestyle brand with a mission to empower underrated and underrepresented individuals all over the world. With a passion for celebrating the underdog, UNDERRATED echoes this message across three main categories including experiences, media and physical product. The brand, which was established by Stephen Curry in 2019, draws on the revered NBA Champion's personal story as an underappreciated three-star athlete in high school who always stood in the shadows of his peers. As a powerful culmination of this inspiring journey to the top, UNDERRATED is committed to opening doors for often-overlooked student-athletes by developing impactful basketball programming, and fostering a platform for visibility through the UNDERRATED Championships, which create opportunities for players to be recognized by key figures. Based in the Bay Area, UNDERRATED is a mindset, a motivation, a calling, a compliment. For more information, please visit www.stayunderrated.com , and connect on social media via Instagram , Twitter and Facebook .

SOURCE Southern Company

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Underrated Golf Tour set to swing into Walton Heath

The UNDERRATED Junior Golf Tour is set to land in the UK this summer, with the first event scheduled to take place at Walton Heath Golf Club in Surrey from May 29-31.

Launched in 2022 by US basketball star Stephen Curry, the Underrated Golf Tour has the aim of offering more opportunities for junior golfers to compete on world-class courses in an inclusive environment. It hosted 10 tournaments throughout the US over the last two season and is now expanding to Europe to provide access and opportunities to junior golfers and give them the chance to be seen by top-tier college recruiters.

“We are thrilled to be expanding the UNDERRATED Golf Tour brand to London for season 3,” said Curry.  “UNDERRATED Golf is a brand that will uplift and inspire underrepresented individuals who have yet to have equal access to the sport and the opportunities that come with it. Through this new initiative, we will be focusing on equity, ensuring that young females have the same access and opportunity as their male counterparts. It’s time that we level the playing field, and ensure these student athletes throughout Europe have the critical tools and skills for a successful and sustainable future.”

The top three boy and top three girl winners from Season 2 (2023 Curry Cup) have been invited to play at Walton Heath Golf Club for the UNDERRATED Golf European Tour’s opening tournament. Additionally, the top boy and girl winners from the London tournament will automatically win entry into the 2024 Curry Cup.

Dedicated to promoting opportunities for young athletes who may not otherwise have the chance to gain access to the sport and adjacent skills, UNDERRATED Golf is working with its corporate partners and sponsors to provide training, equipment, networking events and more. Furthermore, the program is also addressing the gender equity gap within the sport by enabling female players with the same opportunities as their male counterparts.

“We are delighted to welcome The UNDERRATED Golf Tour to Walton Heath for its inaugural staging of a Tournament outside of the USA,” said Alex Woodward, Chief Executive of Walton Heath Golf Club. “We are proud to be part of supporting the junior game and providing special opportunities to inspire the male and female golfers of the future. To the players, good luck, we hope you are excited at the prospect of stepping foot onto our cherished Heathland and we look forward to welcoming you to Walton Heath in May.”

For each US tour stop, 96 athletes will participate in tournament style events and team building activities while simultaneously networking with college golf coaches and golf executives. Ultimately, 24 of the best boys and girls will emerge from the tour to compete for the Curry Cup at the UNDERRATED Tour Championship, September 2-4.

For more information, visit www.underrated.golf , and connect on social media via Instagram and Twitter .

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'it has endless potential': kpmg enhances steph curry's underrated golf, a junior development program on the rise, share this article.

Steph Curry felt underrated early and often as the smallest player on his elementary-aged AAU basketball teams and as a teenager overlooked by ACC programs.  As Curry says, he didn’t match the eye test, and his dreams seemingly drifted farther out of reach.

The adversity helped the eventual four-time NBA champion develop a strong work ethic.

“I don’t take anything for granted,” the Golden State Warriors star recently told Golfweek . “Every transition I made to that next level was really difficult and required all of my attention and perseverance and belief in yourself and all of that. Even with all the accomplishments that I’ve had personally, and we’ve had as a team, I still carry that mindset with me, and I feel like that’s a huge part of my DNA when it comes to trying to maintain this as well as I can.”

In January, Curry’s new documentary “Underrated”, which mostly centers around his college career at Davidson, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. Curry created the Underrated brand in 2019 to celebrate the underdog, empower and inspire. Last spring, the golf-crazed Curry launched Underrated Golf, an all-expense-paid junior tour designed to help provide access to those who are underrepresented in the game.

Now, Underrated Golf has announced KPMG as its title sponsor, enhancing the initiative with a mentoring and leadership development program for juniors.

Longtime KPMG ambassador Mariah Stackhouse is responsible for connecting Underrated with the U.S. audit, tax and advisory firm after she attended the inaugural Curry Cup in San Francisco and recognized a natural synergy between their missions.

“I think it has endless potential,” said Stackhouse, a former All-American at Stanford who, in 2017, became the seventh Black player to earn LPGA status. Stackhouse will be an Underrated Golf brand ambassador for the 2023 season.

Mariah Stackhouse looks on from the fifth tee during the second round of the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G at Kenwood Country Club on September 09, 2022 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)

There currently isn’t a single Black player on the LPGA with full status.

Underrated Golf will feature fields of 60 juniors at four tournaments across the country, culminating at the season-ending Curry Cup, reserved for the best 24 boys and girls from the tour. This year’s Underrated tour includes events at The Park West Palm (June 25-27, West Palm Beach, Florida), Firestone Country Club (July 6-8, Akron, Ohio), Paiute Golf Resort (July 18-20, Las Vegas) and Chambers Bay (Aug. 7-9, Seattle).

Juniors will have a chance to meet college golf coaches and golf executives at each stop, with Stackhouse hosting a KPMG Leadership Day at the season-ender.

“Just being in a room where you say ‘Hey, this is something I can see myself being inspired by,’ ” said Curry. “That little bit of interaction or that little bit of awareness can change a dynamic for a kid and how they see themselves and the confidence they have in themselves.

“It might not seem like a lot, but it goes a long way for kids to see themselves in places of power and excitement, and that there’s support and a pipeline for them to do it.”

KPMG has long held a strong commitment to advancing women around the game of golf, hosting an annual Leadership Summit at the KPMG Women’s PGA designed to not only introduce women to golf, but to invest in female leaders aspiring to reach the C-suite. Former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is heavily involved in the program.

Paul Knopp launched Accelerate 2025 nearly three years ago on his first day as U.S. Chair and CEO of KPMG. Accelerate is a strategic initiative focused on ensuring that more individuals from underrepresented groups choose to work for KPMG and advance to leadership positions within the company.

In 2020, 39 percent of KPMG’s partners and managing directors were from underrepresented groups. In 2022, it was 43 percent. The goal is 50 percent by 2025.

Just as Knopp wants the firm to look more like the rest of society, Curry wants the same for golf.

“We think that the mentoring we’ll be able to provide to them, the work we’ll do with Mariah around affirmation,” said Knopp, “it really, I think, is going to be a powerful combination of the three forces – Stephen, Mariah, KPMG – to try to increase access to the game for women and young people of color and everyone that’s underrepresented.”

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First-ever Legacy Golf Championship coming to Montgomery

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - On June 17, a diverse group of junior golfers and collegiate players from all over the country and different parts of the world will participate in the first Legacy Golf Championship at the Lagoon Park golf course in Montgomery.

“Having all these people come from all over the world, it’s like meeting new people and having new friends,” said Florida A&M golfer Quincy Leonard.

“Getting to know new people is always nice, and making connections, especially in this sport, is always great,” said former Pike Road golfer Lexy Bouasisavath.

All will be playing to boost their rankings. But for junior players, the top boy and top girl in the tournament also get an all expenses paid trip to the regionals of NBA star Stephen Curry’s UNDERRATED tour, which aims to make golf fair and acceptable for all.

“Steph doesn’t just hand out qualifiers. It’s very difficult to get into his tour now,” said tournament executive director Quincy Leonard. “And so to get that qualifier and his organization to allow the Legacy Golf Championship to be a qualifier into his event, it’s truly amazing.”

Leonard said he hopes that can be the case right at home too.

“The mayor during a meeting was wanting to bring more events that were different, other than just our traditional sports like basketball, football and all the traditional sports,” he said.

The Legacy Golf Championship benefit tournament will take place on June 15, followed by the actual competition from June 17-19.

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Wales Golf's push for diversity and inclusion

“I have a serious problem with golf, I really do.”

Brandie Deignan is sheltering from the rain on the terrace of Cardiff’s Whitchurch Golf Club.

That statement is one reason why Deignan has been appointed as a non-executive director to the board of Wales Golf - to drive up equality, diversity and inclusion.

Deignan does not play golf, she says she is “rubbish” at the game.

But the experience a decade ago of having spent time in golf clubs taking her now 16-year-old twin sons to play inspired her to take up her new role.

“I started off as an observer and I have to say, [in the] first couple of years, I just didn't feel like I belonged,” said Deignan.

“Essentially, I found - still find - golf too exclusive and I wanted to do something about it.

“There was nobody in the golf club that looked like me, that looked like my twin boys. They're brown and I thought, 'What is going on here?'

“And then I'll take them to football, and it would be different. I'll take them to basketball, it'd be different. I'll take them to hockey, it'd be different. And rugby, and it'd be different.

“So that's the passion to what I do now, the fact that I don't play golf, for me, I think is a big strength."

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By day Brandie Deignan works as a chief executive in NHS primary care in England . She has previously held senior leadership roles in hospitality, aviation and retail.

As she speaks, a group of 12 and 13-year-old girls from Llanishen High School in Cardiff are practising their chipping and putting in the drizzle behind her.

They are part of the Leadership in Sport – Girls to Golf programme which aims to attract schoolgirls by combining sporting skills with leadership qualities.

Deignan hopes some of the girls on the programme will keep playing in future.

“It was just like a dream come true, walking into a golf club and seeing 15 amazing young women who have never played, who have been given the experience and the opportunity to play," she says.

“I mean, it's priceless. And 99% of them said to me, they love golf, and they will stay in golf. Now, there is the magic of this.

“Now, if we did nothing but to give these young women that we've seen today the experience of golf, the warmth of golf, the feeling that they belong - because that's the sense I got from them - we would have done something really special.

“Most of all, if they went back and told a few of their friends, their family, their relatives, about golf, that is brilliant.

“But we've got to fix the access problem in golf, because we've got a real access issue in golf, and from a Wales Golf perspective we're working really, really hard [to improve that].

“That's why we're doing things like this, because we've got to have open access."

Llanishen High School student Tanya is one of the girls who have had their first taste of golf.

The Year Eight pupil had never been to a golf club before taking part in the programme and had only ever played mini golf in the park.

“The first lesson we had was chipping and I did dig up the ground quite a bit but practice makes perfect," said Saadallah.

“I do enjoy it, I prefer putting though, long-distance putting seems more ‘me’.

“I think anyone who wants to play golf should play golf."

Tanya has been hitting golf balls on the same course as local boy Gareth Bale, who has himself been involved in moves to promote diversity in golf.

The retired Wales footballing great is an ambassador for a new golf tour set up by golf-obsessed National Basketball Association (NBA) star Steph Curry.

The Underrated Golf Tour says it is committed to “provide equity, access and opportunity to student-athletes from every community by balancing participation in the sport to truly reflect our society".

“That is so cool, isn't it?” says Deignan.

“Here we are sat in the home of Gareth Bale because he's a big star. You know, we all love Gareth in Wales, don't we? And then we've got Steph Curry, who's huge from an NBA perspective.

“And for me, that affinity is amazing because… we're trying to do a lot from a Wales Golf perspective on socio-economic diversity. And the whole idea of Underrated Golf is to get 50% of golfers being black and brown to enjoy the sport. And that's brilliant.

“That's one of the big things that we're trying to really work on in world golf, because actually, under 2% of the people that play golf would describe themselves as being from ethnic minorities.

“And so this taps right into what we're looking to do. We're trying to challenge some of these norms.”

Around 20 miles from Cardiff, on the south Wales coast, Royal Porthcawl will be the venue for next year’s Women’s Open Championship, which Deignan hopes can have the same impact on golf in Wales as the 2010 Ryder Cup at the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport.

“From the junior perspective I think it is actually under 3% of girls that play, and we have a dwindling amount of women who are playing golf, and we say you can't be what you can't see," Deignan says.

“Well, the stage is going to be for women isn't it and so it's going to help us in so many ways.

“A lot of people feel that golf is a little bit exclusive, certainly from a gender perspective.

"Now this will actually bust those myths for us, the fact that we can use that platform to actually build sub-platforms around it and have conversations, and actually bring to bear all the challenges that golf has and find some solutions to it, it's just priceless."

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