Ex-PGA instructor puts on free youth clinic in Mamou

BY: TRACEY JAGNEAUX
Sports Editor

Sometimes when you have a passion about something that runs through your soul, you feel as if it must be passed on for the next generation to enjoy.
Just ask former PGA golf instructor and California native Bill Hights.
Hights, in conjunction with Savoy Heights Apartments, recently put on a free golf clinic for the area youth ages eight years and older.  
The idea for the clinic came about when Savoy Heights manager Amanda Duplechin saw Hights working on his game outside one day.
“Amanda saw me chipping out here and asked me if I would be interested in putting on a youth golf clinic. I told her absolutely.”
The three day clinic was limited to 10 youngsters from the area.
For Hights, a resident of the apartments, it was way to bring the love of the game that he feels to a group of young people that may have never touched a club before.
“This is the next generation of golf,” said Hights. “It is the true love of my life to see someone get into the game of golf. I get the chills just thinking about it.”
Hights has been all about teaching his passion for the last 15 years.
“I began teaching at a local driving range in California,” stated Hights. “Then I went on to teach at some different golf courses. I started the Bay Point youth golf clinic for underprivileged  kids to introduce them to the game. The one’s that are interested, stay with the game for the rest of their lives.”
So, how does a Californian wind up in Mamou putting on a youth golf clinic? Love, of course.
“The reason I am here in Mamou is because of my wife,” said a smiling Hights. “I met her in Lafayette while helping my brother-in-law on a documentary about Cajun music. She was a tour guide at Vermilionville. After getting to know her, I fell in love and moved to Louisiana.”
The couple settled in Lafayette and then moved to Ville Platte for a short time. While in Ville Platte, Hights was the greens keeper at the Ville Platte Country Club for a short time.
He and his wife, Betty, moved back to California for a while. But, with some of her family members needing care, the couple decided to come back to her home and settled in at Savoy Heights Apartments.
Since that time, Hights has continued to enjoy the game he loves. He even hopes don the instructor’s cap once again while here in Mamou.
“If anyone would be in need of golf instruction, I would love to be able to help them with their game,” stated Hights. “It’s not just a job for me, it is a passion”