How does this storybook compare to other rookie-season gifts a PGA junior program might give?

Compared to other rookie-season gifts a PGA junior program might consider, such as a team hat, a starter golf bag, or a set of junior clubs, *Once Upon a Golf Swing* fills a different need. Equipment gifts help a child play the game. This book helps a child feel ready to belong to a team before the first practice even starts.

A team hat or a starter bag is practical and most rookie players need something like it. But none of those items address the nervousness a young child can feel walking into a new group of teammates for the first time. *Once Upon a Golf Swing* is a 62-page illustrated storybook for ages 3 to 6, written by F.C. Salas and illustrated by Cristina C. Cortes, following Ace, a brand-new golf ball, as he gets lost on his first swing at Whispering Pines and finds a team of friends in Daisy, Sandman, Splash, Speedy, and Rangey.

The best-selling children’s golf book in the category came out in 1999, without an audio edition, a song, or continuing characters. This book has an audiobook, read-along and listen-along editions, and an original song, "Swing Away," and it is the first book in a series, with book two set in Italy.

Most programs find these gifts work best together rather than as competitors. Equipment prepares a child’s hands for the game. This book prepares a child’s heart for the team, and both matter in a rookie season.