How to Become a Head Golf Professional
Some of the benefits that you may have the opportunity to earn as a PGA professional include:
The PGA of America allows up to eight years to complete the program—the average is four years.
Duties: The Head Professional (a) directs daily activities of the entire golf operation in accordance with the philosophy, policy, and procedures of HGG, (b) manages the Golf Shop to ensure the highest level of service to patrons and guests.
Research indicates it could take seven to ten years to become a top professional golfer. It has been reported that athletes need 10,000 hours of practice to master a skill, but practice quality also counts in becoming a professional golfer.
It costs a minimum of $110,000 to compete for a year on the PGA Tour—$75,000 on the Nationwide—and there are no guaranteed paydays. Each week the worst-scoring half of the field is eliminated after the second day of the four-day tournament and earns nothing.
In order to be certified by the PGA as a pro golfer, you either have to complete a bachelor's degree in a related field, such as professional golf management, or complete the PGA professional golf management apprenticeship program.
Strictly speaking, anyone who earns money by playing or teaching golf can be considered a golf pro. The vast majority of golf pros, however, are instructors who likely play much less golf than the students they teach. A pro golfer is someone who plays golf for a living.
The good news from the research is that players can still turn professional even in their early 30s. It was also found that the best years for a golf professional are between 30 and 35, although plenty of tour players have shown they can still win tournaments in their 40s.
For a golfer to turn professional, they would usually have a handicap of between +4 and +6 as an amateur, as this would get to the entry-level ability for the pro tours. To be a pro, you'd need to shoot around three over par as a maximum playing on a championship course!
Allen DoyleThe Oldest Rookies Ever on the PGA Tour: Two 47-Year-Olds Allen Doyle: Was 47 years, 5 months, 6 days old when he started his rookie year in 1996. Jim Rutledge: Was 47 years, 4 months, 6 days old when he started his rookie season in 2007.
Except at the highest levels, professional golfers must pay entry fees to play in tournaments. It may seem counterintuitive, but a player at the top of golf's food chain often doesn't have to pay an entry fee, because expenses for high-profile tournaments are covered by sponsors and TV networks.
Win a PGA Tour Event or Major Championship Anybody who wins a PGA Tour event gets an immediate two-year PGA Tour exemption. This means that any non-member who gets into the field at a PGA Tour event via a sponsor exemption or Monday qualifier, and goes on to win that event, gets their PGA Tour card.
But if you're a PGA member, you may not need to worry about those costs. PGA takes care of its own, providing free golf clubs wherever there are tours. Professional competitions are full of reps from various retailers.
A golf pro is someone who has completed the requirements to become certified as a professional by the Professional Golfer's Association. Golf pros often manage golf courses and provide lessons to other golfers.
There are several primary tasks that golf pros perform depending on the position a golf club has hired them for, including:
In order to become a golf pro certified by the Professional Golf Association, there are several steps that you can take:
The average salary for a professional golfer is $29,569 per year. There are many job titles that golf pros have while working at golf courses, such as
Becoming a golf pro requires extensive knowledge of the game and the ability to perform very well when playing. Here are some tips for becoming a successful golf professional:
Developing an outgoing personality and the ability to listen to customers’ needs and concerns are important aspects of becoming a pro. Giving lessons to club members or daily fee golfers also requires a winning personality and a positive attitude.
A golf pro at a club must be a proficient player and instructor. At both public and private courses, the head golf professional oversees the operations of the golf shop, including merchandise sales. The head pro may also give golf lessons, but at some golf facilities this is done by a teaching professional--a separate position.
Brian Hill is the author of four popular business and finance books: "The Making of a Bestseller," "Inside Secrets to Venture Capital," "Attracting Capital from Angels" and his latest book, published in 2013, "The Pocket Small Business Owner's Guide to Business Plans."
The first step to choosing a career is to make sure you are actually willing to commit to pursuing the career. You don’t want to waste your time doing something you don’t want to do. If you’re new here, you should read about:
Requirements for becoming a golf pro vary with the type of position desired. For touring professionals, there is usually no certification required other than a PGA or Ladies Professional Golfer's Association (LPGA) membership.
A head golf professional oversees the operation of a golf shop that is a part of a golf facility certified by the PGA. In this career, you may only oversee shop management, but in many positions, you both manage the shop and oversee the program to train guests in the fundamentals of the sport.
To become a head golf professional, you need to have significant qualifications related to the sport of golf, as well as work experience in golf course maintenance, finance, budgeting, and retail. You also need to have an active PGA membership to be considered a golf professional.
One of the requirements for gaining membership in the PGA is to pass a PGA Playing Ability Test. Gain PGA membership through university training.
The position may also be called head golf professional. Clubs may have golf professionals on staff called teaching professionals, who specialize in golf instruction for members or guests. Get started early. During high school or college, take a summer job at a golf club and learn as much as possible about its operation.
At large clubs and golf resorts, this position is called director of golf, reflecting the responsibility for all aspects of the facility.
Brian Hill is the author of four popular business and finance books: "The Making of a Bestseller," "Inside Secrets to Venture Capital," "Attracting Capital from Angels" and his latest book, published in 2013, "The Pocket Small Business Owner's Guide to Business Plans.".
Warning. Though a golf course can be a fun place to work, club professionals do not have an easy job. They work long hours, particularly during the club’s busiest seasons, and the pressures to operate the club efficiently are similar to any other retail business. References. Professional Golfers Association. Tips.
Amidst all of this you will also be expected to get thirty-six hours of experience. These experience hours can be collected through a wide variety of ways, including college courses. Otherwise, you can earn one credit a month working alongside a certified PGA professional.
If you are not a citizen you will need to be a registered alien. The Pro Golf Association will also require that you have six months of relevant employment experience at the time of registration. You can find an extensive list of what jobs they consider relevant on their website.
The PAT takes place over two rounds, with the player being expected to shoot a low score both days. While their expectations will depend on the slope rating of the course, you can generally plan on shooting 2 – 3 over par per round. Any higher than that and you will not meet their requirements.
The life of a golf professional is not, by definition, transient, but there are also a limited number of teaching jobs available. Not all golf courses employ teaching professionals at all, and the ones that do usually only keep one on the payroll at a time. If all of the golf courses in your area are already fully staffed you may need ...
The truth of the matter is that not everyone can be a golf professional. If you play a few times a month and struggle to break bogey, chances are the life of a golf pro probably is not for you. Disappointing, I know, but don’t fret too much. There are plenty of careers in golf that don’t hinge on your ability to teach or play the game.
Becoming a golf professional (the teaching kind, not the Tiger Woods kind) isn’t easy but that doesn’t mean that you can’t do it. There are plenty of people who are paying their bills by their love of golf and with the proper practice and knowledge, you can certainly be one of them. If you want to make money doing the thing that you love the most, ...
While some golf retail stores will keep a pro on staff this is somewhat rarer, and generally also less lucrative than working for a course.