Junior Achievements

Evan leading the way in 'ClubGolf' coaching programme - November 2005

Local sportsman Evan Sutherland has become the first in the Highland area to complete the PGA level two coaching course.

Evan Sutherland

Evan was one of the two representatives from the Highland region who joined 12 other level one golf coaches from all over Scotland to attend this first pilot course organised by clubgolf Scotland.

The course, tutored by Ron Wallace, the Scottish coach education manager, together with David Colclough and Craig Singleton, from the PGA's national training academy, was held over three weekends in September and October at the SportScotland complex at Largs.

Evan, who covered nearly 2000 miles to attend the course, is no stranger to having to travel to bring golf to the youth of Caithness and north Sutherland.

Having spent the last two years as a juniors' coach at Reay, he also helps deliver 'clubgolf's' 'firstclubgolf programme to local schools in the area and has recently attended a 'firstclubgolf' trainer course in Alness so that he can help train local teachers to deliver the schools' programme themselves.

Retired, Evan has carried out nearly two hundred hours of coaching and enjoys his visits to the schools helping the active sports co-ordinators in both Caithness & Sutherland.

His travels have taken him from Tongue primary in the north-west Sutherland to Crossroads in north-east Caithness and many schools in between. His commitment to youth golf extended to running three after school clubs last year, one in his home village of Reay, one at Mount Pleasant primary in Thurso and another at Farr school, Bettyhill.

Evan puts his efforts down to seeing so many youngsters enjoying a sport that they will be able to play, at some level, for the rest of their lives and also to the enthusiasm of clubgolf's Highland junior golf development officer, Willie Mackay, in delivering the programme across the Highlands.

"Delivering golf to so many young people is a team effort, from the golf club committees and their junior conveners to sponsors and especially the adult helpers who turn out on a weekly basis to assist the coaches and supervise the kids," he said. " The coaches are only one part of the programme and everyone else involved is as vitally important in bringing more children into golf."

Evan Sutherland (left) with some of the kids he teaches.

End-of-Document