Leading Golf Teachers from Across the U.S. Recognized for their Passion, Commitment and Contributions to the Game
FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla., April 22, 2013…In an effort to continue helping golfers “Play A Better Game,” Edwin Watts Golf Shops, LLC, one of the world’s largest specialty golf retailers, today introduced the Company’s newest growth of the game initiative, the annual Top Instructors Program. Backed by the Company’s portfolio of more than 90 Edwin Watts Golf Shops located in the U.S., a designated selection committee made up of elite golf professionals has named nearly 80 men and women to the 2013 Edwin Watts Golf Top Instructors List, in recognition of their passion, commitment and contributions to the game of golf.
“We created the Top Instructors Program to honor an acclaimed group of individuals who collectively share a passion for teaching the game and demonstrate the highest level of expertise at their craft,” said John Watson, CEO, Edwin Watts Golf. “Equally important, these elite instructors boast an unmatched willingness and excitement to teach players of all skill levels. This philosophy falls directly in line with our commitment to growing the sport by helping golfers play a better game through best-in-class instruction combined with today’s advanced game improvement equipment technology.”
The individuals honored on the Edwin Watts Golf Top Instructors List include some of golf’s most accomplished teachers, such as Jimmy Ballard, Michael Breed, Chuck Cook, Martin Hall, Mike Malaska, Jim McLean and Bob Toski, among dozens of the leading minds in golf instruction located throughout the U.S.
By accepting inclusion on the list, these distinguished instructors establish an unmatched teaching network for Edwin Watts Golf, enabling the Company to continue growing the game at the local level by connecting best-in-class instruction with consumers of all ages and skill levels, while advocating the true game improvement benefits of in-store club matching and performance fitting. In fact, the Top Instructors Program coincides with Edwin Watts Golf’s new ARC (Advanced Robot Certified) Club Matching System that uses scientific robot testing of golf club performance to objectively “club match and performance fit” golfers with products that best perform to their swing characteristics. As a result, throughout 2013, Edwin Watts Golf will be hosting a series of special events across its store portfolio featuring members of the Top Instructors List who will conduct in-store game improvement and club matching clinics.
Adds Watson, “This Top Instructors Program will come to represent one of the industry’s leading grassroots programs for golfers to truly improve their performance. Our ability to place golfers in clubs that best match their swing characteristics, and then provide in-store lessons and tips from golf’s premier instructors, creates game improvement opportunities that are unmatched for our customers.”
Among the criteria for inclusion on the Edwin Watts Golf Top Instructors List, candidates must have at least 12 years of full-time teaching experience; they must demonstrate a commitment to learn by attending continuing education programs, summits, etc.; they must have proven success with local and prominent students, having demonstrated the ability to develop a golfer into a successful competitive player; and they must serve as mentors in the game, using their skills to help grow the game by educating and working with up and coming instructors.
Watson concludes, “Through our grassroots nomination process, the selection committee was presented with hundreds of potential candidates for inclusion in the Top Instructors List. We believe that the more than 80 honorees on the 2013 list represent the best of their profession and will serve as great ambassadors for Edwin Watts Golf in helping to improve the game for golfers of all levels.”
On the heels of announcing the Top Instructors Program, in the coming weeks Edwin Watts Golf will unveil a “Regional Spotlight” list, recognizing accomplished teachers who are at the top of their profession at the local and regional levels nationwide. All instructors honored in the Top Instructors Program, both nationally and regionally, will be featured at www.edwinwattsgolf.com.
About Edwin Watts Golf
Edwin Watts Golf Shops, LLC (an affiliated portfolio company of Sun Capital Partners, Inc.), headquartered in Fort Walton Beach, Florida is one of the world’s premier specialty golf retailers. The company operates as an integrated, multi-channel retailer, offering the freshest assortment of brand name golf equipment, apparel, and accessories through its 90 domestic Retail Locations, eCommerce Internet site (www.edwinwattsgolf.com) and Telephone/Catalog/Direct Mail sales (1.800.874.0146). Edwin Watts Golf touts a team of highly experienced and knowledgeable sales associates who can assist customers of all skill levels with lessons, performance fitting, special orders and repair services. The combination of the highest level of customer service, price match guarantee and reputation as the most trusted retailer in golf for over 45 years has earned the organization the right to be known as America’s Golf Club.
