By Vinnie Manginelli, PGA
Steve Brewer grew up in Michigan and was into sports for as long as he could remember. Basketball was his first love in high school, and he credits his high school basketball coach with motivating him to be a coach himself.
Today, Brewer is the PGA of America Director of Instruction at Dubsdread Golf Course in Orlando, Florida. He was the 2021 and 2022 North Florida PGA Section Player Development Award recipient and is a three-time Golf Range Association of America (GRAA) Top 100 Growth of the Game Teaching Professional.
“Although golf wasn’t a part of my childhood, and I didn’t know anyone who played, I stumbled upon a few of my dad’s golf clubs and balls in our garage. He hadn’t played since before I was born,” Brewer recalls. “I began creating my own little golf courses in the backyard, pitching balls at makeshift targets, and that’s how I started developing my short game. On top of that, there was a local Putt-Putt Golf & Games facility where kids could play every Wednesday for just $2.50. With three 18-hole courses, it was there that I learned the basics of putting, including how to read breaks and angles.
“The summer before my senior year, my dad joined a golf league for the first time. One evening, I went with him to watch him and his partner play in the nine-hole league, and I was immediately captivated. I played a few times that summer and loved it. Then, in the spring of 1987, I watched The Masters for the first time. When Larry Mize chipped in to beat Greg Norman in a playoff, I was officially hooked. The Masters quickly became my favorite tournament, and that summer, after graduating high school, I began playing golf regularly.”
Brewer’s journey to becoming a PGA of America Golf Professional wasn’t a traditional one. Now a regular golfer, Brewer was checking in at a local course when a plaque on the wall caught his eye. It read, “Kirk Sherman, PGA Professional,” and had the PGA Professional Member seal. His first thought was simple: “How do I become one of those people?”
Just a few years later, Brewer was competing in amateur tournaments and was shooting in the low 70s on a regular basis. He knew he had the skills and the drive, and he wanted to soak up as much knowledge about the game as possible. That pursuit led him to the Steve Dresser Golf School, a three-day intensive program in South Carolina. It was there that he realized his true calling was teaching and coaching golf. Dresser is a GRAA Elite Growth of the Game Teaching Professional.
“I made the bold decision to leave a successful post-collegiate career to enroll in a golf college in Florida,” Brewer explains. “There, I met Ted Eleftheriou, PGA, who became a pivotal mentor. Ted taught me the fundamentals of teaching the golf swing, the business side of golf instruction and how to build a successful player development program.”
While at golf college, Brewer landed his first job in the golf industry as an Assistant Professional at a busy course in Orlando. In 2008, he was hired as the Director of Instruction at Dubsdread Golf Course and is now entering his 18th year in the role. It was here that Brewer founded the Dubsdread Golf Learning Center.
“At the heart of the Learning Center is a true player development program, which serves as the foundation for all of our instructional programming,” says Brewer. “Each year, over 1,000 adults participate in our Adult Tee It Up group instruction program, and our Junior Academy now has 120 students enrolled during the school year.”
Brewer says they’ve achieved this growth with limited resources, but the program thrives thanks to two key factors: a dedicated portion of the tee line on the range and the full support of the course owner, The City of Orlando and Troon Golf. As a result, the Learning Center helps drive revenue across all departments of the facility.
“A testament to the success and impact of our program is the new driving range renovation we are about to complete,” Brewer boasts. “This project includes significant upgrades to the Learning Center, featuring a 2,000 sq. ft. teaching and performance building with a large classroom, two Trackman teaching bays and Smart2Move force plates. Outside, we are installing a 3,000 sq. ft. putting green and short-game area, as well as an expanded group instruction tee line to accommodate up to 30 students. These improvements will provide even greater resources for teaching, learning and player development at Dubsdread.”
Brewer credits David Orr, PGA, a top-50 teacher and world-renowned putting coach, as being an invaluable mentor in shaping his approach to the game and teaching.
Looking ahead, Brewer, now a mentor to many golfers and young golf professionals himself, sees the way new players are introduced to the game continuing to transform. He believes programs like Operation 36 are proving that the traditional model—offering a single one-hour lesson—isn’t enough to create lasting golfers or maintain long-term participation.
“What truly works is a comprehensive program that combines a structured course curriculum, group instruction and on-course play. By guiding new golfers through appropriate yardages, building their skills and boosting their confidence, these programs foster sustained engagement and long-term retention in the game,” he concludes.
