By ALEC ETHEREDGE | Sports Editor

Thousands of junior golfers will descend on East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia to cheer on their favorite PGA Tour idols on Sept., 24, 2017, in a race to win the FedEx Cup, but a small segment of them will do so with a purpose.

Nearly 40 junior golfers from the Hank Johnson School of Golf will travel by bus in hopes to learn the intricacies of what makes these players great.

The young golfers will be guided by their instructors with the help of parental chaperones through a series of assignments that look at every aspect of the game including: technique, practice routines, course strategy, the mental game, and an in-depth look at the history of golf.

Nick Lozito of Alabaster said he is excited about the opportunity “to be up close and personal with the game of golf.”

This is the fourth time the Hank Johnson School of Golf has made this trip possible and it is the only program of its kind in the country.

“These juniors begin to see there is so much more than just screaming for your favorite players and getting autographs signed,” a press release read. “There is a history to this game that has made it possible for them to participate in it, and in the world of big data — the gritty details of statistics can take a player from average to great at any level.”

The students “turn heads” as they walk the grounds of the tournament with their notebooks jotting down how to be like the pro’s, often getting asked by others in attendance, “Who are you guys? What are doing here?”

“That gives them the opportunity to show others that becoming great is no accident, but a series of calculated steps,” the press release read.

It is the heart of the Hank Johnson School of Golf to keep the history of the game of golf alive and interesting, to give juniors every opportunity to learn from a wide array of experiences, and to share this heart with other programs around the country in hopes that they too will take a page out of this playbook to share it with junior golfers all around the globe!

“These junior golfers ask about the Tour Championship year-round looking for the exciting new features that await them each year like it’s Christmas Day,” the press release said.

You can learn more about this exciting event by visiting the following YouTube link that showcases their previous trips to East Lake! Visit Youtube.com/watch?v=_an6xPEERN0 to see clips from the 2016 event.