What is PGA Junior League? – PGA Junior League (PGAJL) is an opportunity for First Tee – Pittsburgh (FTP) participants to play golf on a team, with numbered uniforms, against other teams in a fun two-player Scramble format. NEW in 2024 we wil be offering 10U, 13U and 17U PGAJL programs for participants ages 7-10, 10-13 and 14-17. All games are played on Sunday afternoons. We offer both a Spring/Summer season and a Fall season.
PGA Junior League Game Changer Award – Our First Tee – Pittsburgh PGA Junior League programs have won five consecutive GameChangers Awards (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023) as the largest program in the Tri-State PGA Section
NEW in 2024 – Based on feedback from participant families, we will offer a 10U program in addition to our 13U and 17U programs.
10U Division (Ages 7-10) – Players 10U division will have 3-hole games on the Palmer Loop only on Sundays between either 12:00-1:30 PM or 1:30-3:00 PM. Since this group typically has less experienced players, FTP coaches will monitor and assist the participants during the games to enhance the development of their golf skills and rules knowledge.
13U Division (Ages 10-13) – Players in the 13U division will continue to play 9-hole games on Sundays from 3:30-6:00 PM at multiple facilities based on the weekly schedule and their team’s HOME COURSE designation.
Players in the 13U Division (Ages 10-13) MUST choose one of our programming locations as their HOME COURSE designation. We will have up to four teams at our Bob O’Connor Golf Course location in Schenley Park, one team at our Victory Hills location in Elizabeth, and one team at our All About Golf location in Butler. When registering, please choose the appropriate HOME COURSE designation for your 13U Division (Age 10-13) participant.
17U Division (Ages 14-17) – ALL Players in the 17U Division will be assigned to our Bob O’Connor location in Schenley Park, however the 17U games will be played at multiple locations. The regular season schedule will be finalized once all participants have registered, and 17U games will rotate between the Bob O’Connor, All About Golf, and Victory Hills locations throughout each season.
CLICK HERE to watch a short video to see how PGA Junior League works!!
PGAJL Code of Conduct
We encourage ALL players, spectators, and coaches to download and review the PGAJL Code of Conduct
CLICK HERE for the PGAJL Code of Conduct PDF
PGAJL Program Information and Schedules will apply to ALL 10U, 13U and 17U PGAJL program participants.
Practice Game & Regular Season Games – During the Spring/Summer season, we will have one practice game and six regular season games in all age divisions.
Report Times & Start Times – Players will be expected to arrive at least 15-30 minutes before the start of their game so they have time to warm-up, find out who they are playing with and walk to their starting hole.
2024 Spring/Summer “In House” Schedule – 10U, 13U & 17U Divisions
Sunday, April 7, 2024 – Coach Training (BOGC)
Sunday, April 21, 2024 – Team Kit Distribution & Practice Game (BOGC)
Sunday, April 28, 2024 – Regular Season – Week #1 (All Locations)
Sunday, May 5, 2024 – Regular Season – Week #2 (All Locations)
Sunday, May 12, 2024 – Mother’s Day – OFF (Potential Rain Date)
Sunday, May 19, 2024 – Regular Season – Week #3 (All Locations)
Sunday, May 26, 2023 – Memorial Day Weekend – OFF (Potential Rain Date)
Sunday, June 2, 2024 – Regular Season – Week #4 (All Locations)
Sunday, June 9, 2024 – Regular Season – Week #5 (All Locations)
Sunday, June 16, 2024 – Father’s Day – OFF (Potential Rain Date)
Sunday, June 23, 2024 – Regular Season – Week #6 (All Locations)
Sunday, June 30, 2024 – Championships / Party / All Star Selection (BOGC)
Sunday, July 7, 2024 – Independence Day Weekend- OFF (Potential Rain Date)
2024 Fall “In House” Schedule – 10U, 13U & 17U Divisions
Sunday, September 8, 2024 – Regular Season Week #1 (BOGC)
Sunday, September 15, 2024 – Regular Season Week #2 (BOGC)
Sunday, September 22, 2024 – Regular Season Week #3 (BOGC)
Sunday, September 29, 2024 – Regular Season Week #4 (BOGC)
Sunday, October 6, 2024 – Regular Season Week #5 (BOGC)
Sunday, October 13, 2024 – Regular Season Week #6 (BOGC)
Sunday, October 20, 2024 – Championships (BOGC)
All Fall games will be played at the Bob O’Connor Golf Course with the exact schedule TBD.
Player Eligibility – Only ACTIVE members of First Tee – Pittsburgh will be eligible to play in our chapter’s 10U, 13U and 17U PGAJL programs. However, only players ages 10-13 on or before July 31, 2024 will be eligible for the All-Star team and postseason competition in the 13U division. Players ages 14-17 may register for the 17U regular season, which will use the same dates and locations for their games.
Registration Process, Timeline, Scholarships & Fees
The REGISTRATION process BEGINS on February 15, 2024 and ENDS on March 31, 2024.
STEP ONE – Members MUST first register on the First Tee – Pittsburgh chapter website, and pay their $80 FTP fee to the chapter. The chapter fee covers course usage at our participating affiliate facilities. Financial aid is available to any families who need assistance in paying the chapter fee. Participants will receive an email confirmation of their chapter registration.
STEP TWO – If you qualify for financial aid, YOU WILL NEED a separate PGA Reach SCHOLARSHIP CODE to complete the PGA Junior League registration. The PGA Reach Scholarship code will cover the national PGA Junior League fee, and allow you to register your child on the PGA Junior League website. If you require a PGA Reach scholarship, please DO NOT begin the registration process until you have secured a unique scholarship code from PGA Professional Eric Kulinna.
STEP THREE – After completing the FTP registration process, you will receive a separate email from PGA Professional Eric Kulinna with additional directions and our UNIQUE ACCESS CODE. The 10U, 13U and 17U programs are listed separately on the PGAJL national website, and each program requires our unique First Tee – Pittsburgh chapter access code to complete the national registration.
STEP FOUR – Once you have the unique code(s) necessary to complete the national registration, families MUST then create an account and register on the PGA Junior League website (www.pgajrleague.com), and pay their $224 PGAJL fee. The national fee includes the Coaching Fee ($125) and the Annual Membership ($99) that includes a Team Kit (Headwear, Home & Away Jerseys, Bag Tag, etc.) for each player.
Program enrollment is taken on a first come, first served basis, and will continue until a maximum number of players have registered, or registration closes, whichever comes first.
National registration on the PGA Junior League website for the Spring/Summer 10U, 13U and 17U programs will CLOSE on March 31, 2024.
PGAJL participants MUST register with both First Tee – Pittsburgh on our chapter website, AND with PGA Junior League on their national website. Your child’s registration in the FTP PGAJL program is not complete until you do both.
Other PGAJL Information
PGA Junior League Captains – PGA Professional Eric Kulinna will serve as the PGA Junior League Captain during the regular season for all 13U and 17U teams, and coach the 13U and 17U All Star teams throughout all post-season competition at the Sectional, Regional and National levels. He will be assisted on a weekly basis throughout the regular season by Assistant Captains Aaron Lindauer and Liz Caplan from First Tee – Pittsburgh coaching staff.
Team Coaches & Scorekeepers – Our PGA Junior League program will only work with engaged Parents and Guardians, and we encourage you to get involved and volunteer. Each 10U & 13U PGA Junior League team will need TWO adult coaches, and at least TWO adult scorekeepers each week. Parents and Guardians who are interested in being a Team Coach should contact PGA Professional Eric Kulinna, and he will assist you in completing the required background check. Once the team rosters have been finalized, we will have a MANDATORY 90-minute Coach Training session on Sunday, April 7, 2024 from 3:00 to 4:30 PM at Bob O’Connor Golf Course.
Team Formation – Once registration closes, we will form teams, with rostering to be completed within a week at the latest. Team rosters will be determined by age, ability, member level, and programming location. We will strive to get evenly matched teams, and make sure that each team in the 10U and 13U Divisions have at least two trained adults who will serve as coaches during the games.
Team Kits & Player Uniforms – Players in the 10U, 13U and 17U divisions will receive both Orange (Home) and Blue (Away) jerseys with their number and team name on the back, and headwear to be worn during games. They will also receive a PGAJL bag tag and a drawstring bag to keep their gear in. All PGAJL teams will have their last name printed on the back of their jerseys.
Regular Season Practices – We strongly encourage all PGAJL participants to be actively enrolled in FTP programming classes and utilize the FREE Operation 36 app (www.Operation36.golf) to track their golf skill development. Coaches Eric Kulinna and Aaron Lindauer lead the Thursday night class from 5:00-7:00 PM that uses the Op36 app, and participants in this class develop their golf skills, rules knowledge and course strategies by playing with adult volunteer coaches on the Palmer Loop and Bob 9.
Coach Training – Once the 10U and 13U teams are formed, coaches will be notified, and a Coach Training will be held on Sunday, April 7, 2024 at Bob O’Connor Golf Course in the Arnold Palmer Learning Center from 3:00 – 4:30 PM. The Coach and Assistant Coach for each team will be primarily responsible for setting the lineups before each regular season game, making sure that official scorecards are kept for each match, and posting the game scores. .
Practice Game & Team Kit Distribution – All the players, coaches, and parents/guardians will meet together as a team on Sunday, April 21, 2024 at Bob O’Connor Golf Course. The players will get to meet their teammates and coaches, and will receive their uniform kits. The teams will have the opportunity to conduct an “intrasquad” practice game together on the course. More information regarding game locations will be provided as soon as possible before the start of the regular season.
MyPGA App – The PGA of America has developed the MyPGA app to share information about the PGA Junior League program. Coaches will post pairings and results, and can communicate delays and other pertinent information through push notifications on the app. Parents can also digitally share photos and videos with each other. The MyPGA app is available at both the Apple and Android stores, and all parents/guardians are strongly encouraged to download the app to their phones, and learn how to use it, as it will be our primary communication platform during the season.
Post-Season
Postseason Competition > 13U & 17U Divisions – Both the 13U and 17U divisions of the Spring/Summer programs will have a postseason competition. Eight 13U players and six 17U players will be selected to the All-Star teams that will represent First Tee – Pittsburgh at the Sectional, Regional and National levels. Additional detailed information on this process will be available at the conclusion of the regular season.
Postseason Practices & Fees – FTP PGAJL All-Star team members in both 13U and 17U divisions must be available to practice in July 2024 and compete in August 2024. All-Star team members will be asked to attend practices at a location(s) to be determined to prepare for the Section Championships. The PGA of America has introduced additional fees at the Regional and National levels, and should our teams advance to those levels, the chapter will seek a sponsor to cover the costs incurred.