Teaching

By Vinnie Manginelli, PGA

As a writer, I consider myself a storyteller. However, many of the stories I write are told from someone else’s perspective. That’s just the format of the publications for which I write. However, with a creative writing background, sometimes I want to tell my own tales. Here’s one of them, with special thanks to esteemed PGA of America Golf Professional and PGA HOPE National Trainer J.P. Lunn, the 2020 PGA of America Deacon Palmer Award Winner.

Over the years I’ve written more than a few stories about PGA HOPE (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) for our family of PGA Magazine digital publications – Golf Range Magazine, PGA Golf Shop Owners Monthly, PGA General Managers Monthly and even Golf Fitness Monthly. But, as I mentioned, the information was shared by other PGA of America Golf Professionals who were more proactive in getting involved with PGA HOPE than I was. Perhaps they have a military background or have family who served or are currently serving.

I finally signed up for PGA HOPE training this past summer, only to cancel my registration due to a conflict in my schedule. I’m sure our professionals and administration in the Northeastern New York PGA Section did a wonderful job of introducing the program to the PGA pros training that day.

Back in September, I saw that our neighbor to the west, the Central New York PGA Section was hosting a PGA HOPE training session at the very cool Turning Stone Resort in Verona, New York. With a beautiful hotel, awesome dining, a casino, golf dome, amazing golf courses and a great PGA of America Professional staff with whom I’ve done several articles, I anticipated a fun and unique experience however the PGA HOPE training turned out. So I reached out to CNY CEO Alan Seamans, PGA to see if I could get in. After all, the website wouldn’t let me register online since I’m not a CNY member. Alan, Joe Tesori, PGA, Executive Director of PGA Reach CNY and Casey Ware, PGA Works Fellow got back to me with a welcoming email and invitation to join them on October 17th.

Two and a half hours from home, I went up to Turning Stone the day before with my son and played the Shenandoah course, an amazing experience that was made more special by the hospitality of PGA of America Head Golf Professional Jeff Kleinman and his staff. Despite posting a score that will not be published in this article, I had a great time and was highly motivated for my PGA HOPE education the next day.

I showed up a half hour early as I tend to do and met Casey in person. What a nice young man and promising professional with a bright future ahead of him. Soon after, I met J.P. Lunn, PGA. As I have with thousands of my fellow PGA of America Golf Professionals, I had worked with J.P. on a previous story or two but never met him in person. I asked about his involvement in PGA HOPE and he replied, “I had been helping out with local programs for veterans and had a few working at a facility that I owned. The impact that those vets had on me was overwhelming. After that, I was asked by then PGA President Jim Richardson, to cochair the initial PGA HOPE national committee. From that point, four years ago, I’ve been all in.”

With training materials on the tables, notepads and pens at the ready and breakfast available on the side counter, I was ready to learn all about PGA HOPE. As a non-green grass professional, I sometimes feel disconnected from other PGA members in my section. So, it was nice to be in a room with almost two dozen PGA of America Golf Professionals who were all there with a similar goal.

The 23-page training document consisted of 92 slides. Thinking back to my corporate days in financial services in Manhattan and even my PGA checkpoints when pursuing membership almost 20 years ago, I could have been somewhat daunted by the volume of materials I was expected to learn. But J.P. made the four hours of classroom time flow seamlessly, with ample breaks of just the right amount of time.

If you haven’t heard the stories that pros have told from their engagement with veterans in PGA HOPE, find someone who’s done it and listen to what they have to say. Saying that PGA HOPE saves lives is not hyperbole. Veterans who’ve gone months without leaving their homes have joined PGA HOPE clinics, engaged with fellow veterans and even found a new purpose in life, one they might not have seen before. The luxuries and pleasantries of everyday life are often overshadowed by the horrors that they relive in their minds far too frequently. Think of any random trauma from your past and consider how often it crosses your mind.

There was a clear purpose and definitive vibe to this training session.

• • • Basic understanding of military culture.
    • Understand that adaptive golf is any modification to how the game is taught, learned or played through modified swing/equipment.
    • Understand that PGA HOPE is first a veteran’s program…then a golf program.

That last point was reiterated over and over again that day. Similar to other programs that benefit a variety of demographics in our society, PGA HOPE uses golf as a vehicle through which we engage individuals, guide them, encourage them, motivate them and hopefully inspire them. Just like every student we touch, we hope these veterans will love the game, enjoy the experience and want more of both. The PGA of America is sparing no expense in its efforts to build the PGA HOPE program in dollars, member participation, advertising and marketing and word-of-mouth promotion by PGA pros from all over the country.

During the classroom time, J.P. was careful and deliberate in telling us the impact the program has on veterans and what our participation will mean to them. He also “warned” us of some things to say and not to say, as well as how to act. After all, a simple touch to you and me might rekindle angst or fear of experiences gone by for the veterans in front of you. Depending on the injury, ailment or disability – both mental and physical – there are several do’s and don’ts that we discussed and then put into action on the range that afternoon.

In addition to the benefits to the veterans, J.P. highlighted what it means for a PGA of America Golf Professional to get involved with PGA HOPE. “I think the benefits can be different for each professional,” he told me later. “I know I have become a better teacher since working with veterans. However, the greatest impact for me has certainly come from the relationships that I’ve gained through the program. I keep in touch with many of the vets who have gone through the program, even years after they’ve graduated. I keep track of their golf journey and their families too. A lot of PGA Professionals thrive in the business because of their ability to foster relationships. In my opinion, this is just another avenue to enhance relationships with a great group of individuals who sacrificed for our freedoms.”

Lunn discussed the length and format of PGA HOPE programming.

• • • 6-8-weekly sessions with on-course play and reception to commemorate the veterans’ accomplishments and graduation
    • 2-3 stations with a different topic covered at each
    • 5:1 student-instructor ratio

He explained the role of the PGA Professional as it pertains to golf, as well as the specific interaction between instructor and student. “We become a support system for our veterans,” the materials state.

After lunch, we hit the expansive new practice facility at the same Shenandoah course I played the day before and paired up for a series of interactive activities that would reinforce the materials we discussed in the classroom that morning. My partner was a recent Keuka College graduate who played golf in school and recently enrolled in the PGA PGM Associate Program. Together, we learned how to teach golf to individuals with visual or hearing loss or impairment, upper or lower limb loss, depression, anxiety, PTSD and an array of other disabilities, including spinal cord injuries. We hit golf balls from the seat of our pants from three different chair positions – it was quite an eye-opener. After almost 20 years as a PGA of America Golf Professional, this was one of those experiences I will never forget – as a writer, it’s one of those experiences that I chose to document.

As I look back, the contrast between the beauty of the facility and the heaviness of the subject matter was jarring at times, but Lunn made the experience worthwhile and inspiring for everyone in the group. I think it’s safe to say that my colleagues in the class will recall the day as a similar moment in time, one that is officially the first step in our PGA HOPE engagement.

In thanking Lunn for his mentorship during this process via email a day or two later, I asked him about other programs that are based around athletics that touch any specific demographic as deeply as PGA HOPE does with veterans. “There are a lot of great programs for veterans out there,” he replied. “I have seen firsthand the emotional, social and physical benefits that come to veterans who have gone through PGA HOPE. Our new PGA of America President, Don Rea, says it all the time, ‘PGA of America has many programs that change people’s lives. PGA HOPE can save lives.’ I’ve been lucky enough to experience this myself, and don’t have the words to describe that realization.”

With my in-person training in the books and all winter to review the printed materials a few more times, I look forward to participating in PGA HOPE days here in the Northeastern New York PGA Section in 2025. I look forward to sharing the next chapter of this experience with other professionals in my area. Many facilities are stepping up to host PGA HOPE. Others are doing their part by providing discounts to veterans and honoring them on Memorial Day, Independence Day and Veterans Day. As just one person, what can I do? What can you do? As an Association and as an industry, we can all play our little role to make these efforts greater than anyone ever thought they could be. I’m glad I took my first step.

For more information about PGA HOPE and all the amazing efforts of the PGA REACH Foundation, log on to its website today.