GOLF Magazine announced its newest inductees into the World Golf Teachers Hall of Fame. The 2022 class includes legendary instructors Randy Smith, Mike McGetrick and the late Ben Doyle.
The ceremony to induct this year’s honorees will be held on Monday, November 14th at GOLF’s Top 100 Teachers Retreat, at Talking Stick Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona.
The 2022 Top 100 Teachers Retreat will take place from November 13-16, and will include a cocktail reception, 9-hole round of golf, as well as a tour of True Spec Golf’s flagship Scottsdale facilities. In addition to the Hall of Fame ceremony, attendees will also hear from several luminaries from the world of golf instruction.
The World Golf Teachers Hall of Fame was established by GOLF Magazine in 1999 and has inducted more than 25 instruction legends since. It remains the only Hall of Fame solely dedicated to golf instruction. Past inductees include, among others, Jim Flick, Jack Grout, Claude and Butch Harmon, David Leadbetter, Manuel de la Torre, Paul Runyan, Bob Toski, Peggy Kirk Bell, Dave Pelz, Harvey Penick, Jim McClean and Mike Adams.
"The three gentlemen we have chosen to honor with this distinction are wholly deserving of our praise given the work they have done to elevate the art of golf instruction,” said David DeNunzio, Editor-In-Chief of GOLF. "We have the utmost respect for Randy, Mike and Ben, and commend them for their considerable contributions to the game of golf.”
Randy Smith
Randy Smith serves as the Professional Emeritus and Director of Instruction at Royal Oaks Country Club in Dallas, and was previously the club’s Head Golf Professional, a position he held since 1980.
An 18-time PGA of America National Award winner, Randy was named the 1996 National PGA Professional of the Year and the 2002 National PGA Teacher of the Year. Also, Randy was inducted into the PGA Golf Professional Hall of Fame in 2005 and the Texas Golf Hall of Fame in 2011. Some of Randy’s students have included PGA Tour Professionals Justin Leonard, Martin Flores, Harrison Frazer, Ryan Palmer, Paul Haley and he currently coaches world number one Scottie Scheffler.
Randy has built his legacy on guiding young golfers and has developed a reputation over 40 years as the go-to instructor for young players in North Texas. The Randy Smith Teaching Center is home to numerous PGA Professionals and top amateur golfers from around the world. Randy’s work with junior golfers has led to 16 NCAA All-American honors and over 100 college golf scholarships received. Most impressive, Randy has guided no less than 11 junior and collegiate players all the way to the PGA Tour.
The Great 108, started by Randy in 1983, is a fundraising event held annually at Royal Oaks Country Club to benefit junior golf in northern Texas. Since the event’s inception, nearly $2 million dollars have been raised.
Mike McGetrick
In addition to the recognition he’s received from industry leaders and his peers, Mike McGetrick has built a reputation as one of America’s premier golf instructors due to the thousands of golfers who have successfully improved their games at his award-winning golf academy.
Mike was the 1999 National PGA Teacher of the Year and a five-time Colorado PGA Teacher of the Year, who is known for the ability he has shown to connect and communicate with golfers of all skill levels in order to help them reach their playing and scoring potential. He made regular appearances on The Golf Channel and he has authored a book titled The Scrambler’s Dozen – 12 Shots Every Golfer Needs To Score Like The Pros. Mike is currently the Director of Instruction at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Virginia which has hosted 4 Presidents cups and will be hosting The 2024 Solheim Cup.
While the majority of Mike’s teaching focused on amateur golfers, he has coached players on the PGA and LPGA Tours who have a combined total of 53 worldwide wins and 11 Major Championships as well as the captains of the previous six Solheim Cups. Notable students have included Juli Inkster, Meg Mallon, Beth Daniel, Wendy Ward, Karrie Webb, Pat Hurst, Dana Dormann, Lauri Merten, Gary Hallberg, Tom Purtzer and Brandt Jobe.
As a PGA Master Professional in Teaching, Mike frequently speaks at PGA National Teaching and Coaching Summits, is a faculty member for the PGA Teaching Certification Program and presents at PGA Section/National Education Workshops.
Ben Doyle
Ben Doyle, known for the work he did with notable golf pros Bobby Clampett, Steve Elkington, Mac O’Grady, Tom Kite, Johnny Miller, Bernhard Langer, Gary Player and Curtis Strange, started caddying at age nine at Vancouver Golf Club in British Columbia, Canada. It’s there that Ben would study “Ben Hogan: Power Golf”, laying the book on the ground and copying the images.
Ben went on to play college golf at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington, and following his first assistant job, was hired by Chuck Congdon of the Pacific Northwest Section – becoming the first professional to teach under him. Two and a half years after that, General Truman requested that Ben be hired as the new civilian Professional/Manager at Fort Lewis Golf Course. While at Fort Lewis Ben had the opportunity to design a new nine holes to the existing eighteen.
Ben met Homer Kelley in 1969 while Kelley was in the midst of writing his now iconic book, “The Golfing Machine”. Ben ultimately became the first instructor authorized to utilize the methods Kelley developed. Ben was considered a teacher of teachers as golf instructors Chuck Cook, David Edel, Martin Hall, Brian Manzella, Tom Ness, Laird Small, and countless others from all over the world, traveled to Quail Lodge in Carmel Valley, CA to learn from Ben.
While working as the Associate Professional at Broadmoor Golf Club in Seattle, Ben played on five Hudson Cup Professional teams. In 1971, Ben decided to become a full-time teacher and moved his family to Monterey, CA where he had qualified to play in the Bing Crosby tournament ten years earlier.
Ben passed away at the age of 82 on December 15, 2014, in San Francisco.
For more info and to purchase tickets to GOLF’s Top 100 Teachers Retreat, click here.
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