Stephen Curry sponsoring golf team at Howard University

NBA star Stephen Curry is reportedly sponsoring a new golf program at Howard University.

The Washington Post reports that Curry, a three-time NBA champion with the Golden State Warriors and an avid golfer, will announce a seven-figure donation paid out over six years to give Howard University the means to start the program.

“No matter where you come from or what socioeconomic background you had, we all were that kid once upon a time that was just excited about finding out who they were as a person through athletics,” Curry told the Post.

{mosads}Curry’s donation will allow Howard to have a Division I golf program for the first time in its 152-year history. A Division II golf team folded in the 1970s.

Officials at the historically black Washington, D.C., university told the newspaper that it will take a year to get the program up and running as they hire a coach, recruit student-athletes and find a location to practice and play.

“It’s a big opportunity for us to expose students to a game that oftentimes is played as business deals are decided and a game that generations of families can play together,” Howard President Wayne A.I. Frederick said.

Additionally, the student-athletes who join the upstart golf program will agree to volunteer with a foundation set up by Curry and his wife, Ayesha, that promotes healthy development for kids.

Howard University Athletic Director Kery Davis said hearing about Curry’s donation “was sort of a jolt for us” after he and other university officials mulled the idea of bringing golf back to the school.

“Golf has always been a game of privilege,” Davis said. “An association with the sport can break down barriers.”

Curry’s announcement will reportedly take place Monday at Langston Golf Course, Washington’s historic black golf course.

–Updated at 8:54 a.m.