Oct. 22, 2025 (Paradise Island, Bahamas) –  Anissa Robinson fell in love with golf more than five years ago. She is now 14 and in 10^th grade, sporting a 7-handicap with aspirations to earn a scholarship and play collegiate golf in the United States.

She was one of the 80 youth who took part Wednesday in a junior clinic offered by the Northern Illinois University women’s golf team prior to competing in the White Sands Bahamas NCAA Invitational Friday through Sunday at the Ocean Club Golf Course, Atlantis, Bahamas.

“It was great to see how passionate they are about the game,” said Kim Kester, in her 14^th year as the head coach of the NIU Huskie program. “It was an awesome experience for our team.”

Mia Raines, a sophomore from Columbus, Ohio, and NIU’s leading scorer with a 74.8 average, struck up a friendship with Robinson while playing a 115-yard par 3 together. They each hit the green and 2-putted. But more importantly, Raines shared some of her thoughts to help Robinson with her course management.

“Pick out a specific target from the tee. And when on the green, practice matching up the line and the speed. It’s not all just about hitting it and chasing it,” said Raines, who can carry her drives some 280 yards. “It’s about limiting your mistakes.”

The Bahamian youth are enrolled at the Fourteen Clubs Golf Academy, directed by Georgette Rolle, a former professional golfer who realized her dream of bringing golf to the youth of the Bahamas 10 years ago.

Rolle’s program already has had a handful of its youth be offered college scholarships in the United States, following in the footsteps of Rolle, who earned a scholarship and played at Texas Southern University.

Robinson, who is in her second year as a member of the Bahamas Junior National Team, has hopes of being another scholarship winner in a few years. “I learned that I should take a break once a week and not play every day. But I can’t help it,” said Robinson, who exchanged social media contacts with Raines to stay in touch.

“We have about 400 kids participating in the program part-time, with more than 50 regulars who come out almost every day,” said Rolle. “The program continues to grow, and we are successful in teaching golf and life skills through golf.”

Northern Illinois is one of seven teams competing in the upcoming college event, along with High Point, Miami, Middle Tennessee State, Ohio University, Prairie View A&M and South Florida.