Teaching in the Golf Learning Center at Commons Park is a complete joy for me so when I was asked to share a few tips that the Village of Royal Palm Beach could post on social media I was happy to help.  The following are some simple tips that every golfer should keep in mind when they are practicing:​

If you have any questions feel free to contact me at 708-584-0887 or submit a request online.  I look forward to hearing from you. 

Golf is a fun sport to play but it is also a business with many different career opportunities.  I always encourage my students to think creatively about golf holes when I ask them to design a hole.  I have received some rather unique and carefully thought out ideas over the last few years.  When I was advised that a local golf course designer was willing to share his knowledge with my students I was more than happy to make that happen.  

Unfortunately, when the day came I had a personal conflict arise but my Junior Programming Manager, Mayda Muñiz was able to coordinate the event.   Our guest speaker, Mr. Swanson was a big hit with the golfers:

My kids loved the class and Shay is now on a mission to convince us to design at least a putting green in our backyard.  (He’s even organizing a garage sale so he can start saving money for it.)   -Jennifer Atkins, parent

    Annie said “Mr. Matt was reaaally good at drawing and I like that he gets to create things from his mind and make them become real.  Also I didn’t know golf courses were so expensive!”

   Shay said “I really liked learning how putting greens were made.  I didn’t know all that went into it and how many layers there were and why there needs to be that many layers to make it work.” 

“The golf course design class was super helpful by teaching me to understand the landscape shape no matter where you are. The fact that there are so many steps to a golf course is crazy! I didn’t know that underneath golf courses there were drainage with sand and pipes. The class was AWESOME!” -Emma Gard

“Thank you so much for taking your time to show us all what you do for your job. You really encouraged me to do things you love.”  - Olivia Gard

It was certainly a very productive and inspiring day!

In February, I highlighted the opportunities some of my junior students were able to experience during the Honda Classic as a result of their involvement in my First Tee program.  It is a tremendous honor to be able to refer my students to participate in these events. 

Just yesterday, Joshua Kaiser, 14, served as one of two ambassadors during a fundraiser at The Banyan Golf Club.  He was assigned to the 13th hole (165 yards, Par 3), where he challenged each of the players to beat his tee shot.  It was a great opportunity for Josh to practice his approach shots while building awareness for First Tee. 

Last month, Mateo Muñiz,10, was asked to play in the Raymond Floyd Open at the Palm Beach Par 3, another First Tee fundraiser.  He and 2 other First Tee players were part of a 5-person team that ultimately tied for 1st place but lost the scorecard tie breaker.  Mateo's putting was a key reason the team did so well.   

These fundraisers make it possible for the local First Tee to offer several national opportunities with strict eligibility requirements.  Golfers must be invited to apply.  Once they have completed a very lengthy application, their entries will be reviewed by a panel at headquarters. 

One such opportunity is the John Deere Drive Your Future Academy which is an all-girls event that focuses on learning the value and impact of volunteerism, understanding the significance of values and skills learned through playing the game of golf, and recognizing the importance of building a strong network. 

It gives me great pleasure to announce that Jayda Dookie, 17, is one of only 24 girls nationwide that was selected to attend this year's event in San Francisco.  I have been her coach for over five years and I can truly say that this honor is well-deserved.  

I have been fortunate to coach a lot of junior golfers over the years.  Several develop a passion to play competitively and I am happy to help them develop the skill and mindset for that kind of play.  In January, I was asked to coach a junior golfer with competitive experience from Peru.  I was excited to see what she could do.  

In the first lesson, I discovered that Micaela is very talented but she could be so much better with some adjustments to her swing.  When I suggested the changes, she looked at me like my head was going to explode.  While it was a difficult change, she saw the results immediately and committed to making the adjustment.  

As a student, Micaela is very astute and quick to grasp concepts. Her dedication to practicing and playing over the last couple of months yielded a 3rd place finish in the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour at Eagle Trace Golf Club in Coral Springs this past weekend. She shot an 85 and 81 in a two-day tournament.  This win is extra special because she  played against a former Peruvian teammate who consistently hit longer drives in the past.  Armed with her new swing, those days are over and the future is bright for Micaela. 

There's nothing like your first ACE!  Congratulations Mica!!! 
​One Swing in the hole 167 yards.

Last Sunday, I learned that Junior Achievement of the Palm Beaches and Treasure Coast, Inc. needed some golfers to participate in their annual Play4JA Golf Tourney that was held yesterday.  With such short notice, I was not sure how many of my students would be available.  Some were already committed to playing in tournaments, while others had had personal commitments.  In the end, several of my students decided to skip their weekly lesson and take advantage of this great opportunity to play the Palm Beach Par 3 to practice their short game, meet some new people and have some fun.  

The tournament format was a scramble where a junior golfer was paired with three adults.  Those adults represented Gulfstream Goodwill Industries, Woerner Holdings, Keller Williams, Keiser University, Fifth Third Bank, and Bank of America.  It was my honor to have nine of my junior students participate and even more rewarding to learn that one of them, Thomas Nevico, led his foursome to the best score, shooting a 35. Thomas also won a closest to the pin contest. The other students were: Kirk Barto, Annika Collado, Spencer Shapiro, Vivian Sterijevski, Danny Tadeo, Troy Tharitimanont, Nathan Vertes and Sydney Rogers who won two closest to the pin contests.

This was a unique opportunity for my junior students and I am proud of each of them for having the courage to step outside of their comfort zone to help Junior Achievement raise almost $30,000 to cover the cost of Junior Achievement curriculum kits.  Each kit contains enough supplies for one volunteer to teach up to 30 kids. 

Thank you again for this opportunity to golf at the Junior Achievement tournament today! Vivian had a lovely time golfing & the weather could not have been better. It was a beautiful  course & she played with a Keiser University team. It was a scramble format and she held her own with these three gentlemen. She was best ball several times, had some great putts, & struck up conversations when appropriate. The men cheered her on & tried to help her with her short game. Overall a really great day!  - Vivian's Mom

Thank you so much for inviting me to play in the golf tournament. It was tons of fun and the people I was with were awesome. I won a yeti in a putting contest. It was a good experience. -Nathan

I had a really great time today, met some nice people. Thank you for thinking of me and inviting me to play.  I represented Team Beaver well! - Annika