The First Tee Nine Healthy Habits is a new framework for curriculum that focuses on promoting health and wellness through golf.

The First Tee, a youth development organization that provides character education through golf, officially launched its five-year strategic plan at its Network Meeting. World Golf Hall of Famer Annika Sorenstam attended the meeting and was introduced as the spokesperson for The First Tee Nine Healthy Habits, a new framework for curriculum that will be included in The First Tee programs that focuses on promoting health and wellness through golf.

Developed in partnership with the ANNIKA Foundation and Florida Hospital for Children, The First Tee Nine Healthy Habits are platforms categorized into nine pillars that children can easily remember and understand. They include energy, play, safety, vision, mind, family, friends, school and community.

In addition to the Nine Healthy Habits, The First Tee’s plan also includes goals pertaining to increasing youth involvement. Specifically, by 2015 The First Tee hopes to increase its total reach to more than eight million young people, the number of chapter program locations from 750 to 1,500, the number of elementary schools offering The First Tee National School program from 4,000 to 8,000 and the number of youth-serving program locations that offer The First Tee programs to 500. The organization will also focus on increasing the progression of teenagers through its programs and growing the number of female and ethnic diverse participants. To date, The First Tee has reached more than 4.7 million young people.

For more about The First Tee, visit www.thefirsttee.org.