College Golf
Travel just got easier for more than 50 HBCU college golf programs

Golfers at Winston-Salem State hold boarding cards to help celebrate the new travel grant program initiated by the PGA Tour and United Airlines.
Putting together a challenging tournament schedule is tricky business for any college golf program, but particularly so for schools with tight travel budgets. Coaches often are forced to pick only events within driving distance of campus, limiting the potential competition their players can face.
Such is often the case at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. However, a new program unveiled this week by the PGA Tour and United Airlines will offer HBCU schools the opportunity to fly to tournaments, giving men’s and women’s teams at these school the chance to compete in higher-profile events.
More than $500,000 in grants will be awarded to 51 HBCU golf programs in 2022, with each school receiving $10,000 in travel credits. The grant program will reach more than 250 college golfers, collectively, according to the PGA Tour.
Winston-Salem State University brought back its golf program last fall after a 10-year hiatus, but with a limited schedule. According to head coach Charles Penny II, the grant program will make a significant impact in getting the sport back up and running. “This past fall, we were only able to play one tournament due to limitations in our travel budget,” Penny said. “This fall, we will be able to add close to four.”
United is the first sponsor to support the PGA Tour’s HBCU Grant Program, which was created in 2021 out of discussions at the tour on how to utilize its partner network to offset financial issues at HBCU golf programs.
“We have made a pledge to help diversify the landscape of competitive golf,” said PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan in a press release, “and this collaboration between United Airlines and these colleges and universities will be a significant step towards leveling the playing field and enhancing the student-athlete experience along the way.”
Here are the schools that will receive the grants:
Men’s Golf
Alabama A&M University
Alabama State University
Bishop State Community College
Bluefield State College
Chicago State University
Elizabeth City State University
Fayetteville State University
Fisk University
Florida A&M University
Howard University
Jarvis Christian College
Johnson C. Smith University
Kentucky State University
LeMoyne-Owen College
Lincoln University
Livingstone College
Miles College
Morehouse College
North Carolina A&T State University
North Carolina Central University
Prairie View A&M University
Saint Augustine's University
Savannah State University
Talladega College
Tennessee State University
Texas Southern University
University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff
University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Virginia State University
Virginia Union University
West Virginia State University
Wilberforce University
Winston-Salem State University
Women’s Golf
Alabama State University
Bethune-Cookman University
Bishop State Community College
Bluefield State College
Chicago State University
Delaware State University
Fisk University
Howard University
Jarvis Christian College
Lincoln University
North Carolina A&T State University
North Carolina Central University
Prairie View A&M University
Savannah State University
Tennessee State University
Texas Southern University
University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Wilberforce University