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When I was growing up, being a golf-obsessed kid was sometimes intimidating and often expensive.
One of the great joys of being around the game for three decades now has been seeing both of those barriers to junior golf gradually fall away. From greater organization at the club and local level to the rise of junior golf-specific organizations to a general softening of adults' attitudes towards the prospect of sharing the course with kids, now is the best time in the history of the game to be a golf kid.
Youth on Course is one of those aforementioned organizations helping to make golf better for kids. And as it celebrates its 20-year anniversary in 2026, it is reaching new heights of influence on the lives of golf's youngest enthusiasts.
A 501(c)3 nonprofit headquartered in Monterey, Calif., Youth on Course was organized in 2006 around an elegantly simple idea: lowering the green fees for junior golfers. Since inception, the magic number has been $5; after paying an annual membership fee of $50, Youth on Course members are able to play golf for $5 or less at more than 2,300 participating golf courses across the United States. These rounds are largely subsidized by donations to the organization. Bottom line: when you donate to Youth on Course, you are facilitating next-to-free rounds of golf for kids.
While images and reports of kids spending more and more hours parked in front of screens abound, Youth on Course is getting more and more kids outside to enjoy the great game of golf. By all measures, 2025 was the best and busiest year in the history of Youth on Course to date, showing massive growth over what was considered a strong 2024. The organization closed 2025 with more than 394,000 total members, up 59% year-on-year. Those hundreds of thousands of junior golfers played more than 1.5 million rounds of golf, or 46% more than in 2024. Those $5-or-cheaper rounds saved those golfers' families nearly $23 million in the aggregate.
Those numbers are impressive, but Youth on Course CEO Adam Heieck notes that they speak to the organization's noble overall mission. “It is about opportunity, community, and the countless lives golf can transform," Heieck said. "We are building on two decades of momentum to reach more young people, expand our network of courses and facilities to keep pace with the demand for play, and create meaningful experiences on and off course for every member.”
GolfPass has proudly partnered with Youth on Course for several years, helping to funnel donations into the cause in part by allowing golfers who book rounds through GolfNow to round their green fees up to the nearest dollar, with the change going straight to junior golfers' green fees. Youth on Course also organizes 100 Hole Hikes at multiple sites every year. Golfers sign up to play golf from sunup to sundown, with friends and colleagues donating money in support of a fun but exhausting golf marathon. GolfPass Managing Editor Jason Scott Deegan covered an exciting 100 Hole Hike at The Hay, the Tiger Woods-designed par-3 course at Pebble Beach, in 2022. GolfPass contributor Drake Dunaway hiked 100 holes at Orlando's Winter Park 9 in 2023 and wrote about his experience.
Youth on Course also hosts a charity auction each year, with donors making themselves available to host fellow golfers at some of the world's greatest and most exclusive golf courses. The 2025 Youth on Course Auction raised more than $800,000.
To learn more about Youth on Course's various initiatives and overall mission to maximize children's access to golf, visit YouthOnCourse.org.
