LUTZ, Fla. — Learning a new sport can be intimidating, especially one as nuanced as golf.

But in 2020, business executive Joan Woodward decided she wanted to give it a swing.

What You Need To Know

  • SHE Golfs is sponsored by Travelers Insurance and was founded in 2022 to make golf accessible to women through small clinics

  • The program was founded by Joan Woodward, who is the executive vice president of policy at Travelers Insurance

  • In the last year-and-a-half, the program has reached over 1,000 women across the United States and Canada

  • SHE Golfs recently made a stop in Tampa Bay, where 40 women learned the fundamentals of the game

“I took up golf during the pandemic a couple of years ago. I never played before,” Woodward said. “I’m an older woman, I’m not an athlete. And I said, ‘If I can do it, anybody can do it.’ And I surprised myself that I love it.”

Woodward is the executive vice president of policy at Travelers Insurance. 

She felt she was missing out on networking opportunities on the course, but at the time, she didn’t feel she knew enough about the sport to play. 

“I wish I’d been playing my whole life, because I would be back in the office saying, ‘You guys do the scramble or the charity golf event, I’ll answer the phones or get the work done, you go ahead,’” she said.

Once she started playing, Woodward fell in love with golf and then had an idea to get more women on the greens.

She started an initiative for other women like herself, who wanted to try the game of golf.

“So I went to my CEO. I said, ‘Mr. CEO, would you please allow us to start a women’s golf program? Do you know that only 22 percent of golfers are women in this country? And we need to change that.’” Woodward said.

In 2022, SHE Golfs came to life sponsored by Travelers Insurance, a program that makes golf accessible to women through small clinics. 

“Deals are done on the golf course. We know this happens. And so now, our women are not missing out,” Woodward said.

In the last year-and-a-half, the program has reached over 1,000 women across the United States and Canada. SHE Golfs recently made a stop in Tampa Bay, where Jennifer Welch decided to try the game for the first time.

“I think naturally, as we get older, it always feels a little more intimidating to try something new. But at some point, I think we just have to put ourselves out there and say, ‘Look, let’s just go for it,’” Welch said.

Welch was one of 40 women who learned the fundamentals of the game. From putting and swinging, to the rules, and golf etiquette. 

“For someone like me just to feel a little more confident in it. Learning it a little bit, understanding the game, the protocols, the golf culture in general. And this is a really good first step,” Welch said.

Woodward says seeing women gain confidence on the course is what SHE Golfs is really all about.

“Self-confidence is a big part of women’s career development. If you have self-confidence out here on the course to go out and start playing with others, it’s a real sign of I’m a self-confident person. Because I can go play with a stranger.”

SHE Golfs is bringing women together through the game.