TaylorMade Staff Pros Compete for PGA Assistant Professional Championship

If you've ever checked in at a golf shop, taken a lesson or played in a golf tournament, you likely have a PGA Professional to thank. These often unsung heroes of the game are given far too little credit for their contributions, but club professionals make golf possible for you and I on a daily basis.
During the crazy times that are 2020, they likely deserve even more credit. Rounds have exploded in the pandemic as golf has been uniquely positioned to provide a safe and fun way to both get outdoors and enjoy the company of others. Someone has to be up with the sun. Unlocking the golf shop, making sure sanitization protocols are in place and adhered to. Ensuring that the range is picked and fully stocked. That course conditions are up to par.
That someone is a PGA Professional. Within the walls of TaylorMade, we call them Crusaders because they’re on the frontlines helping golfers everywhere to find more joy in the game.
This week, a class of Assistant PGA Professionals get to escape the daily grind and do the thing they love the most. Play golf. The 2020 PGA Assistant Professional Championship is taking place at PGA Golf Club (pictured above) in Port St. Lucie, Florida, Nov. 12-15. There's a total of 34 TaylorMade Crusaders in the field.
Let's get to know some of them.
Facility: Northway Golf Center, Clifton Park, New York
Age: 45
PGA Class: Assistant Pro
PGA Member Since: 2011
Player Notes: Scott is one of the most feared competitors among club pros in Northeastern New York, having claimed 10 consecutive Player of the Year Awards in his region. When he’s not griding on his game, he splits time between Saratoga Spa Golf Course and Northway Golf Center, where he’s a sought-after club fitter. He finds time to grow the game as the assistant men’s golf coach at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs.
Favorite course | Bethpage Black |
Lowest round | 61 |
Career hole-in-ones | 5 |
X-Factor in your bag | My Hi-Toe ATV 60° |
Personal golf mantra (best golf tip) | Practice, practice, practice. |
Go-to on-course snack | Peanut butter sandwich (no jelly) |
Favorite golfer: | Payne Stewart |
Favorite shot to hit: | Power fade |
Dream foursome: | DJ, Rory and Tiger. |
Facility: San Diego (California) Country Club
Age: 33
PGA Class: Assistant Pro
PGA Member Since: 2015
Player Notes: Having competed professionally in the Philippines and Thailand before turning to a career as a golf pro in 2013, the San Diego native returned home to the classic and acclaimed San Diego Country Club. Thomas was named the 2018 Southern California PGA Assistant Professional of the Year and has been a common competitor on both local and national stages.
Favorite course: | San Diego Country Club |
Lowest round: | 64 |
Career hole-in-ones: | 1 |
X-Factor in your bag: | Spider Putter |
Personal golf mantra (best golf tip): | Dream big. Work hard. Believe in yourself. |
Go-to on-course snack: | Oatmeal raisin 1st tee bar |
Favorite golfer: | Jason Day |
Favorite shot to hit: | Tap in birdies |
Dream foursome: | Kawhi Leonard, Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan |
Instagram handle: | @thomas_chu705 |
Facility: Columbia Country Club, Chevy Chase, Maryland
Age: 32
PGA Class: Assistant Pro
PGA Member Since: 2019
Player Notes: Steve enjoyed a strong playing career as amateur, twice competing in the U.S. Am (2009, 2012) and the U.S. Public Links Championship (2011 and 2014). He continued his stellar play after starting his path to PGA Membership, winning this Mid Atlantic Assistant PGA Championship three times (2016, 2019, 2020). A native of Rockville, Steve is a former Assistant Coach at the University of Maryland.
Favorite course: | Ocean Course at Kiawah Island |
Lowest round: | 61 (Columbia Country Club) |
Career hole-in-ones: | I had my first one this year. |
X-Factor in your bag: | Driver |
Personal golf mantra (best golf tip): | People put too much pressure on themselves. Who cares... |
Go-to on-course snack: | I'm a big snack guy. Uncrustable PB&J. |
Favorite golfer: | Some left handed guy |
Favorite shot to hit: | High draw |
Dream foursome: | My grandfather, dad and uncle. |
Instagram handle: | @srdelmar |
Facility: Overbrook Golf Club, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania
Age: 36
PGA Class: Assistant Pro
PGA Member Since: 2014
Player Notes: For this daughter of a PGA Professional, competing against the boys is no big deal. She twice qualified for the field in the national PGA Professional Championship and in 2017 became the first women in her region to win a sanctioned Philadelphia PGA event. The two-time winner of the Maryland Open also was a member of the victorious 2019 U.S. Women’s PGA Cup Team. She’s competed in three majors over the course of her career, including the 2007 U.S. Women’s Open and 2018-19 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
Favorite course: | Old Head in Ireland |
Lowest round: | 62 |
Career hole-in-ones: | 12 |
X-Factor in your bag: | Driver |
Personal golf mantra (best golf tip): | Decade Golf-play each shot and each hole one at a time. I imagine that each shot I approach is the only and last one I have to hit that day. |
Go-to on-course snack: | Banana and/or peanut butter crackers |
Favorite golfer: | Tiger Woods |
Favorite shot to hit: | 70-100 yard wedges. ( I grew up on a pitch and putt golf course.) |
Dream foursome: | Eric Kennedy, Dirk Schultz, Bud Lintelman (maybe not a dream, but my favorite people to play golf with) |
Instagram handle: | @Aegolfer6 |
Facility: Lookout Mountain Golf Club, Phoenix, Arizona
Age: 36
PGA Class: Assistant Pro
PGA Member Since: 2008
Player Notes: As a two-time winner of the Southwest PGA Championship and four-time winner of the area’s Assistant Championship, Michael has amassed plenty of success as a player. He’s competed in the seven PGA Professional Championships and one PGA Tour event (2015 Phoenix Waste Management Open).
Favorite course: | Pebble Beach |
Lowest round: | 60 |
Career hole-in-ones: | 6 |
X-Factor in your bag: | My Spider X (pun intended) |
Personal golf mantra (best golf tip): | See your target and just let it go. |
Go-to on-course snack: | Cliff Bars |
Favorite golfer: | Tiger Woods |
Favorite shot to hit: | A flush driver(SIM) to a narrow fairway. |
Dream foursome: | My grandfather, Bill Hopper, Tiger Woods and Fred Couples. |
Instagram handle: | @TigerHopper419 |
Facility: Woodhaven Country Club, Louisville, Kentucky
Age: 33
PGA Class: Associate
PGA Member Since: 2016
Player Notes: Jesse has posted a 56. Enough said. The two-time Kentucky PGA Assistant Champion recorded the crazy round in July 2013 at Glenmary Country Club in Louisville. If you’re curious about the math: 21 putts, 14 birdies, 1 eagle and three pars adds up to 56.
Favorite course: | Pinehurst No. 4 |
Lowest round: | 56 |
Career hole-in-ones: | 1 |
X-Factor in your bag: | SIM UDI...aka the missile launcher. |
Personal golf mantra (best golf tip): | Golf is a mixture of caring way too much or not caring at all, you’ll find your best golf right in the middle. |
Go-to on-course snack: | Mingua Beef Jerky |
Favorite golfer: | Dustin Johnson |
Favorite shot to hit: | Low spinner wedge. |
Dream foursome: | My father, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer. |
Instagram handle: | @jessemassie25 |
Facility: Bel-Air Country Club, Los Angeles, California
Age: 31
Birthplace: Englewood, Colorado
PGA Classification: Associate
PGA Member Since: 2018
Player Notes: The son of PGA Tour pro Mark Wiebe, winner of the 2013 Senior British Open, Gunner has built a notable playing career of his own. After competed in the 2009 and 2010 U.S. Amateur Championships, he went on to win the 2020 Southern California PGA Assistant Championship. That victory punched his ticket to Florida for this very event.
Favorite course: | Muirfield in Scotland |
Lowest round: | 60 |
Career hole-in-ones: | 3 |
X-Factor in your bag: | My wedges |
Personal golf mantra (best golf tip): | "You never know." |
Go-to on-course snack: | Almonds |
Favorite golfer: | Mark Wiebe |
Favorite shot to hit: | Anything moving left to right. |
Dream foursome: | My dad, Mark Wiebe, and my two brothers-in-law, Nate Fogel and Steve Prioletti. |
Instagram handle: | @gunner.wiebe |
First | Last | Course | Section |
Peter | Basso | Greenwich Country Club | Metropolitan |
Scott | Berliner | Saratoga Spa Golf Course | Northeastern New York |
Ryan | Botts | Old Hickory Country Club | Tennessee |
Thomas | Chu | San Diego Country Club | Southern California |
Cian | Curley | The Golf Club of Purchase | Metropolitan |
Steve | Delmar | Columbia Country Club | Middle Atlantic |
Joe | Dolby | La Rinconada Country Club | Northern California |
Ryan | Druska | Spring Lake Golf Club | New Jersey |
Gerome | Espinoza | Albuquerque Country Club | Sun Country |
Tommy | Gibson | Old Town Club | Carolinas |
Ashley | Grier | Overbrook Golf Club | Philadelphia |
Alex | Hoffman | Manor Country Club | Middle Atlantic |
Michael | Hopper | Lookout Mountain Golf Club | Southwest |
Luke | James | Royal Lakes Golf and Country Club | Georgia |
Zach | Johnson | Davis Park Golf Course | Utah |
Jeff | Kellen | Butler National Golf Club | Illinois |
Brian | Mackey | North Jersey Country Club | New Jersey |
Jesse | Massie | Woodhaven Country Club | Kentucky |
Jon | Mclean | Jim McLean Golf School - Biltmore Miami | South Florida |
Kirk | Mitchell | Oldfield Club | Carolinas |
Daniel | Molter | Binghamton Country Club | Central New York |
Shane | Prante | The Home Course | Pacific Northwest |
Tim | Puetz | Siwanoy Country Club | Metropolitan |
Gunnar | Riley | St. Clairy Country Club | Tri-State |
Carlos | Sainz | GOLFTEC - Upper Kirby | Southern Texas |
Kyle | Scanlon | Northfield Golf Club | Minnesota |
Jordan | Shuey | West Shore Country Club | Philadelphia |
Patrick | Steiner | Windsor Golf Club | Northern California |
Kyle | Szyhowski | Old Warson Country Club | Gateway |
Brian | Varsey | Essex Fells Country Club | New Jersey |
Bob | Wallace | Ponte Vedra Inn & Club | North Florida |
Shawn | Warren | Falmouth Country Club | New England |
Josh | Webb | Sedgefield Country Club | Carolinas |
Gunner | Wiebe | Bel-Air Country Club | Southern California |
Photos provided courtesy of the PGA of America.
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