PGA Tour golfer Austin Eckroat introduced dozens of young people to his sport recently with a special event hosted by Bank of America in partnership with Youth on Course. The Edmond golfer, who has won two PGA championships to date, demonstrated his swing and techniques for the students from Boys & Girls Clubs of Oklahoma County and a handful of students from Youth on Course. He also signed their t-shirts and hats and visited with any of them who approached him with questions, mostly about golf. Boys & Girls Club of Oklahoma County brought about 40 students and Youth on Course brought about 10 to Lincoln Park Golf Course in Oklahoma City to swing, chip and putt with Eckroat and other golfers. The clinic exposed them to the game of golf and incorporated lessons like hard work and resilience as part of Bank of America’s new Golf With Us program. “Anyone who has ever golfed knows that you need focus, concentration, discipline, practice,” said the bank’s Oklahoma City Market President Tony Shinn. “It’s a game that gets you outside. … There are certain rules of golf and etiquette that hopefully you learn. And it’s a game that is more about an individual trying to accomplish something.” Thanks to Bank of America’s partnership, Oklahoma City is Youth on Course’s fastest-growing expansion market in the country, noted Mary Caroline Vincent with The Monument Group representing Bank of America. Eight Oklahoma City municipal courses participate with the bank’s support. After their lessons, those who participated in the Golf With Us clinic last week received a one-year Youth on Course membership from Bank of America, which created it to help bring affordable access to golf nationwide. The membership allows young people ages 6 to 18 to play a round of golf for $5 at participating partner courses across the country and borrow clubs to do so. The bank announced this new program during the 2025 Masters Tournament, which it sponsored for the first time this year, Shinn said. They expected 50,000 to sign up in the first year but already, the Golf With Us program has had 85,000 join nationally, Shinn said. More than 1,500 of them are in Oklahoma City. Shinn said Bank of America’s local representatives wanted to bring participants in the Boys and Girls Clubs to Lincoln Park because the bank already works with the nonprofit on other initiatives. Golf With Us “is making a sport available that might not otherwise be available and introducing the kids to it,” Shinn said. Austin Marshall, vice president of development for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Oklahoma, praised the bank’s partnership with the club and noted that the organization was fortunate to be part of its Golf With Us program. He emphasized the life skills the game teaches that others mentioned. “You also learn how to be competitive, but also be a good sport about it so it checks all the boxes,” he said. For information about the bank’s Golf With Us program and partnership with Youth on Course, go to youthoncourse.org/bofa-golf-with-us. https://journalrecord.com/2025/09/02/austin-eckroat-youth-golf-clinic/