By Vinnie Manginelli, PGA
Brian Varsey is a Quarter Century PGA Member and recently earned his first Golf Range Association of America (GRAA) Top 100 Growth of the Game Teaching Professional Award. The PGA of America Director of Instruction at Essex Fells Country Club in New Jersey and Lost City Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida was the 2014 South Florida PGA Section Southern Chapter Teacher of the Year and has been nominated for the award in the New Jersey PGA Section five times.
Born and raised near Cleveland, Ohio, Varsey started playing golf with his father in their backyard when he was just four or five years old. Growing up, he played during the summers with his cousins, as one of their parents would drive them to the course in the morning and pick them up before dinner. He still enjoys playing with his parents when visiting with them.
Varsey started working in golf at the age of 15 when he was hired by Craig Immel, now a PGA of America Life Member. Varsey played his collegiate golf at Baldwin Wallace University, a DIII college on the west side of Cleveland, Ohio. Immel would again call upon Varsey to join his staff during the summer just after graduation from BWU. Varsey soon turned pro and would head to Florida for the winter. He’s worked in golf ever since – 40 years of promoting the game and helping golfers find more enjoyment through player development and coaching.
“My primary mentor in teaching was Bob Toski, who I met when I worked at Sea Island in 1997,” Varsey
explains. “I spent several winters between 2000-2008 observing and assisting Bob when he was teaching. In 2012, I became the PGA of America Head Teaching Professional at the Ocean Reef Club in Key Largo, Florida, where Bob was the first head professional from 1960-72. I am still very close with Bob and take him to dinner almost every week. We continue to share teaching stories and he talks about his days on the tour and all the lessons he learned from watching Ben Hogan and playing with Jimmy Demaret, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson and all the greats of the 50’s. Most of the research done by today’s experts aligns with Bob’s beliefs and his teachings over the years.”
Varsey has worked at several top golf facilities throughout his esteemed career. In addition to the Ocean Reef Club, he was the Director of Instruction at Canterbury Golf Club in Cleveland. He also gained much valuable experience as an assistant golf professional at Sankaty Head on Nantucket Island, the Windsor Club in Vero Beach and Sea Island Golf Club in Georgia.
At Essex Fells Country Club, Varsey uses video, Trackman and Smart2Move 3D force plates in his instruction. The technology allows him to know what’s really happening in his students’ diverse golf swings and enables him to measure as progress takes place.
“I send a weekly email that includes a video ‘tip of the week,’ as well as a schedule of all upcoming clinics,” Varsey says. “The correspondence also contains educational articles about long-term improvement and motor skill learning. The videos are all on my YouTube page – @brianvarsey. The weekly email keeps members interested in improving their skills and encourages them to play on a regular basis.”
“I put together a Destination 36 program for the women at Essex Fells, which was my version of Operation 36, and had 25 different participants. At Lost City,” he adds, “I started Short Game Saturdays, which is every other Saturday for four people and have had over 50 golfers attend.
Varsey is also an Aimpoint certified instructor and has taught the concepts to dozens of students in the past year alone and almost 400 since he became certified. He conducts weekly men’s and ladies’ clinics that have brought out over 100 different students in the past year, connecting golfers from different demographics and growing the game across his entire membership.
Although there are very few junior golfers at Lost City, Varsey started a bi-weekly junior clinic last year that brought out over 30 different juniors over the season.
During slow times, Varsey will walk the range to give pointers to members and plays in many pro-ams with his students. On the competitive playing side, Varsey continues to work on his own game and competes in Section and state tournaments. In fact, he recently competed in the Senior PGA Professional Championship, finishing T35, and is currently the first alternate to play in the 2025 Senior PGA Championship in May.
“I teach our Essex Fells Head Professional, Brian Gaffney, who made the cut in this year’s U.S. Senior Open and won the 2024 NJPGA Section Championship. Our success keeps the members engaged and wanting to spend time with us at the golf course,” he boasts proudly.
As he looks ahead, Varsey believes technology will continue to improve and become more affordable. He says his portable force plates have become a very important aspect of his teaching.
“Use of AI and 3D technology will continue to become more common. I think relationships and the ability to connect with students will always be ultra important,” he concludes.
