Vinnie Manginelli, PGA
Steve Sieracki is no stranger to awards and accolades. The PGA of America Director of Instruction at The Legacy Club in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, was the Philadelphia PGA Section Youth Player Development Award winner in 2016 and the Section’s Teacher of the Year in 2022. He was named a Golf Digest Best Young Teacher in America for 2025-2026, and now adds to those honors with his first Golf Range Association of America (GRAA) Top 100 Growth of the Game Teaching Professional Award in 2024.
“I got into the game with a cut-down driver from my grandfather when I was nine years old,” Sieracki shares. “We took the driver to a baseball field near my house and started hitting shots. This was when Tiger Woods played in his first Masters and made golf seem cool.”
Sieracki went to Arizona State University for its Professional Golf Management Program, as he knew he wanted to work in golf since those early days with the cut-down driver. However, after being there for a short time, he realized being closer to home and closer to his golf coaches would be more beneficial to him. He transferred to LaSalle University in Philadelphia to play golf. While there, he was close to his coaches, Mike Bennett and Andy Plummer, who he would see regularly.
“During my senior year, I began traveling with them to PGA Tour events, as well as helping them with golf schools in the winter,” Sieracki recalls. “This ultimately led me to teach and run their Stack & Tilt Golf Academy at Burlington Country Club.”
Now in his 4th year at The Legacy Club, Sieracki’s role is to oversee all of the teaching and coaching programs, which include individual lessons, ladies’ clinics, junior summer camps, junior golf programs and golf schools. He also trains the staff. He says the club has new ownership, a new driving range and plans for a state-of-the-art learning center and second indoor golf studio. Sieracki will be instrumental in the design of both buildings due to his experience, understanding and passion for how these rooms can grow the game and help members better themselves and utilize the tools and resources available to them. We will certainly cover these enhancements and renovations in Golf Range Magazine.
Sieracki says a typical day for him consists of seven to ten hours of teaching. These lessons include on-the-tee instruction, on-course playing lessons, lessons on their two practice holes and indoor instruction during inclement weather. In addition, Sieracki does about 30 hours of online lessons per week after his daily in-person sessions conclude. This online coaching is filmed and demonstrated in a new indoor golf studio that he recently installed in his home.
Sieracki uses Trackman technology and the Onform app in his coaching and communications with students and members. That student base includes players of all skill levels – from professional golfers to those striving to break 100 for the first time.
“I get just as excited seeing my amateur players shoot their best scores as I do helping my high-level players achieve their goals in the game,” Sieracki says. “Most recently, one of my players reached the final stage of Q-School. This was very exciting, as it was the first time in our three-year span that he got to the final stage.”
When he’s not teaching, Steve Sieracki is playing and socializing with his members to build relationships among The Legacy Club community. He wants to be visible and accessible to his members. This helps with member retention, increases lesson revenue and boosts club sales in the golf shop.
“Not only has the teaching business improved substantially, but our club fitting business has thrived as well,” he adds. “This was our fourth year using Trackman 4 with simulator capability. As a result of this state-of-the-art technology, paired with the social media advertising on my platforms, we have successfully sold over $80,000 in clubs for the second season in a row.”
Looking ahead, Sieracki is hopeful that with all of the game’s technology, there will be a consensus on how to view the golf swing. “For example,” he concludes, “if you break your arm and go see seven doctors, those doctors will make very similar recommendations because they have a system of how they go about treating a broken arm. However, in the golf industry, if you see seven instructors, you may get seven different opinions when the cause of a slice is a very specific reason.”
