For Jeffrey Cunningham, golf has always been more than the scores, wins, and losses.
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The Drexel alumnus started playing golf at 5 years old in Dallas. His coach, Dante Degrate, introduced him to his son Austin, another young Black golfer who was competing and winning U.S. Kids Golf tournaments. Seeing someone who looked like him playing golf made it easier for Cunningham to catch the golf bug.
Now, the 27-year-old hopes to create the same sense of representation for the next generation.
Cunningham graduated from Drexel in 2022 and earned a spot on the Advocates Professional Golf Association tour after finishing second in the APGA’s collegiate rankings. Cunningham returned to Philadelphia to compete at an APGA Tour event at The 1912 Club on Aug. 3-5.
The APGA Tour provides competitive opportunities for underrepresented golfers and an inclusive future for the game. What began in 2010 as just three events has grown into a national schedule held almost every month from coast to coast.
The APGA has provided Cunningham a place to compete, develop his game, and build a professional resume as he works toward earning his PGA Tour card.
“The APGA Tour is definitely important for guys like me who need a place to play and get ready for qualifying school,” he said. “I don’t think what I’m doing now is possible without the APGA Tour because it gives me a chance to sharpen my game and learn more about myself to reach the highest level of the game.”
Solomon Hughes, APGA’s chief operating officer, said co-founders Ken Bentley and Adrian Stills, the last Black player to make it through PGA Tour qualifying school for 25 years, created the organization to address the lack of access and opportunity for talented golfers from underrepresented communities.
“Bentley and Stills started the organization really to help address access and opportunity issues for players who have the game but maybe haven’t had the resources,” Hughes said. “We give players you haven’t heard of, but certainly talented players, a chance to play and compete.”
But Cunningham sees the work of the tour extending beyond professional golfers.
Along with the tour, the APGA has a foundation focused on empowering underserved youth through golf, education, and wellness. While in Philadelphia, the tour hosted a youth clinic for members of the First Tee of Philadelphia at The 1912 Club.
The youth clinics are for ages 13-21, and they participate in a three-phase program focused on golf education, career development, and mental health advocacy.
“We really want to try to give the game of golf to people who may have a background in it, but also to people who don’t,” Hughes said.
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This year, the APGA had more than 3,500 participants in the youth clinics, Hughes said.
“Getting out in the community and educating the youth on the etiquette of the game and the culture and how to fit ourselves within the culture of the game is important for our country,” Cunningham said. “I think the game and the industry would look a lot more represented if we met at those crossroads.”
Austin Degrate was a major influence on Cunningham’s golf journey and pushed him to compete in tournaments in West Palm Beach, Fla., where he moved to when he was 8. As Cunningham got older, he became more serious about competition and playing in college.
After visiting Drexel, he loved the coach and program, so he decided “to take a gamble on West Philadelphia.” The difference in style of golf and wearing his North Face parka between shots in qualifying rounds during the winter was an adjustment for Cunningham, but his time in the city pushed him to be where he is today.
“It was the best decision that I’ve made for my career because it gave me a place to play for five years and hone in my game, then get into the APGA Tour through their collegiate program,” he said.
His time in Philadelphia also gave him a firsthand look at the barriers facing Black golfers.
In 2022, Cunningham was the first African American golfer to advance to the finals of the BMW Philadelphia Amateur Championship.
“In the city of Philadelphia, there is a large population of African Americans and Black folks who have not gotten the opportunity that I have gotten, as we can see from me being the first African American to reach the finals of the Philly Am,” he said. “It is awesome to be able to break that barrier, but we can also learn that it was 2022. … We should be pressing and doing what we can and using the right resources to make that more possible for people who look like me.”
America is diverse, Cunningham said, and golf should reflect that.
“The misrepresentation is something we see in all levels,” he added. “Whether it be professional golf, teaching pro level, we are not giving enough opportunities across the board to underrepresented communities.
“It is cool to see we are on the right path, but we still have a lot of work to do, and it starts with getting the youth into the game.”
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