By Vinnie Manginelli, PGA
Based out of Langdon Farms Golf Club in Portland, Oregon and his own indoor facility in Vancouver, Washington (about a half hour apart), Sean Lanyi has an aggressive teaching model that touches many golfers with his expertise and mentorship.
Lanyi, the PGA of America Director of Junior Golf at Langdon Farms, opened 18 Shots in May of 2020. His small footprint indoor facility has two Foresight GC Hawk simulators, Gears Golf 3D Motion Capture technology and two creatively designed SIMTurf Putting Greens. Offering a robust membership program, seasonal league competitions, coaching and custom fittings as an exclusive account with TaylorMade Golf has put 18 Shots Golf in high demand. In addition to a food and beverage component, 18 Shots offers daily Happy Hour sessions for $25 per person and a fun social vibe that is more in demand since the pandemic. Lanyi’s staff of four employees focuses on taking great care of members and guests, which enables Sean to satisfy his teaching initiatives and grow his brand.
“It’s been a profitable three years with a tremendous amount of player retention and growth,” Lanyi states. Lanyi looks to implement additional golf technologies to complement the current technologies he maintains as his business physical footprint expands in the future.
Lanyi, a three-time Golf Range Association of America (GRAA) Top 100 Growth of the Game Teaching Professional and former Southern California PGA Section Junior Golf Leader, has also earned recognition and accolades from Golf Digest and U.S. Kids Golf.
His journey in golf began in Southern California when he was 15 years old, after growing up skiing and playing competitive ice hockey in South Lake Tahoe, California. He credits his mom with being the catalyst to get him interested in the game of golf and says his dad and his Uncle Chris hopped on board the golf train as well, as it became a true family affair. After attending college in California, Lanyi studied Professional Golf Management at the Professional Golfers Career College in Temecula and attained PGA Membership in 2005.
Sean credits Jerry King, former PGA of America Director of Instruction at the Kapalua Resort, Alan Ochiai of Oak Creek Golf Club and Mike Malaska from the Nicklaus Academies with teaching him how to coach, use innovation and technology and share his passion for golf with his students and others around him. “You’re on stage with every lesson given, and you can’t take one minute off with the players in front of you,” Lanyi observes. “You have to be at your best with each new lesson or student.”
Sean has learned the value of building his brand, and with his role at Langdon Farms, combined with his specialization in AimPoint Express as a Level III Certified Instructor, Level III SAM PuttLab Certified Instructor and Putt Doctor Certified Instructor under the watchful eye of Dr. Craig Farnsworth, he is poised to increase the already large impact he has made in the business of golf instruction, player development and mentorship. Putting, green reading and short game workshops benefit his business and the following host facilities through his innovative revenue share model.
Lanyi takes his extensive knowledge and engaging personality on the road several times each year, with day trips, clinics and golf schools at such facilities as The Farms Golf Club in San Diego, California; Monarch Beach Golf Links in Dana Point, California; Anaheim Hills Golf Course in Anaheim, California; Rolling Hills Country Club in Palos Verdes Peninsula, California; Saticoy Country Club in Somis, California; Red Rock Country Club in Las Vegas, Nevada; Entrada at Snow Canyon in St. George, Utah; Punta Mita Golf Academy in Punta Mita, Mexico; Ko Olina Resort on Oahu, Hawaii; Astoria Golf & Country Club in Warrenton, Oregon; Columbia Edgewater Country Club in Portland, Oregon and Canterwood Golf and Country Club in Gig Harbor, Washington.
“I pride myself on applying high-level diagnostics with high-level diagnostic tools and simple communication patterns that people understand and can relate to,” he shares. “I have great follow-up with students that allows us to create retention for their learning and ongoing improvement.”
To keep up with Sean Lanyi, PGA, check out his website and the 18 Shots site as well.
