Tonya Gill Danckaert

Please indicate past awards won/recognitions:
Other (Indicate specific awards below in 3-a)

Other awards won:
Golf Teacher of the Year for Bobby Jones Links

Total number of individual lessons given per year:
Male: 100
Female: 400
Junior: 90

Total number of individual clinics given per year:
225

Please indicate any Growth of the Game initiatives your facility/academy has launched over the past year (please give specifics on such programs):
Women’s Clinics (Mid-March–Mid-November, Saturdays)
• Two Beginner and two Intermediate sessions weekly; 7:1 student-to-coach cap to ensure individualized coaching.
• Beginner → Intermediate pathway: Level-up requires purchasing personal clubs; this year saw record promotions from Beginner to Intermediate.
• Curriculum: Beginners learn full-swing fundamentals with high-rep practice. Intermediates rotate through putting, chipping, bunkers, pitching, full-swing, practice routines, uneven lies, and scoring on our par-3 course.

9-Hole Play Days (On-Course Integration)
• Our 9-hole course offers 7 sets of tees, ideal for graduated on-course progression (start at Level 1 tees and work back).
• Hosted 22 guided play days (up to 4 students per session); saw a significant increase in students taking the course on their own, with many crediting Play Days for confidence and course-readiness.
Junior Summer Camp Instructor – 11 weeks 50-64 juniors from ages 5-12 per week.

PGA REACH Programs
PGA HOPE
• Conducted five (5) 6-week sessions in the past year.
• I asked for funding for an all-women veterans session led by our three female professionals; ~18 women veterans participated, and engagement was exceptionally strong.
Her Shot
• Certified instructor for the inaugural 6-week “Her Shot” at Bobby Jones GC; 32 teenage girls participated—building confidence, fundamental skills, and a pathway into ongoing programming.

New Golfers Series (Level 1 & Level 2)
• Level 1 (6 hours): Three weekly 1-hour clinics (putting, chipping, full-swing with driver/7-iron/wedge) plus a 3-hour final week with 3–5 on-course holes.
• Level 2 (6 hours): Two 1.5-hour clinics adding bunkers and hybrids, culminating in a final week 9-hole playing lesson.
• Both tracks were consistently sold out with men and women; most Level-2 graduates advance into weekend clinics or private coaching, reinforcing retention.
Women’s Golf Society (Launching November)
• A new community at Bobby Jones GC connecting women of all skill levels through friendship, fun, and skill development.
• Early demand is strong: ~150 women on the interest list; the first Putting Social filled 20 spots within 24 hours.

Please share any programming you have made to keep your customers & students engaged:
My overarching goal is to keep programming fresh, purposeful, and encourage retention. I attended several on-line LPGA seminars to gain fresh ideas for my clinics. I developed a comprehensive manual with a co-instructor that reviews every skill taught in our New Golfers Level 1 class; a Level 2 companion manual is in progress. These resources reinforce both the skills and the teaching sequence, giving students clear take-home guides that extend learning between sessions. I also refined a simple three-step, two-club progression with Driver and wedge to get beginners, especially women, swinging confidently and quickly. I use this in my beginner clinics and many corporate clinics so participants can step onto the course with enough skill accept and enjoy company scramble-style outings.

To support on-course confidence, I focused instruction in my Intermediate classes on my T. to Green method, helping more women feel comfortable keeping pace and playing their own ball rather than defaulting to scrambles. To meet the growing demand for community and continuity, I’m launching the Women’s Golf Society, beginning with a putting social and building to one event per month so women can meet playing partners and sustain momentum throughout the season. Finally, I introduced a Women’s Winter Program leveraging our indoor bays—now outfitted with nets, TrackMan, and video for mechanics work all winter. For a single registration fee, students can book as many discounted 30-minute lessons as they wish from December through February, maintaining gains and arriving spring-ready; after one day of registration, the program was already 60% full. Based on the response, we anticipate expanding this model across the Academy.