SOUTH FLORIDA PGA

“As soon as I finished my round, I was taken in a golf cart up the hill for a golf channel interview,” recalled Jeremy Wells, PGA, remembering the moment he qualified for the 2023 PGA Championship. “I called my wife and couldn’t even talk, I was so emotional. It was just a very proud moment in my life.” Going into the final round of the 2023 PGA Professional Championship (PPC) in New Mexico, Wells, Director of Player Development at Cypress Lake Golf Club, was in a tie for 29th and needed to get inside the top-20 to qualify for the PGA Championship. Wells delivered and fired a final round low 66, moving him 22 spots up the leaderboard, into seventh place. “It is just amazing how quickly things can change on a golf course,” Wells said. “A few hours earlier I was in a divot in the middle of the fairway about to make a bogey to move to 40th place and three hours later I'm on the golf channel thinking about how my kids are going to be watching me play against guys like Jon Rahm.” While qualifying for a Major Championship is an incredible feat, it wasn’t the only major accomplishment for Wells in the months leading into the PPC. Playing in the PGA Professional Championships requires being a Class-A PGA of America Professional which Wells earned in May of 2022. The new status allowed him to compete in the South Florida PGA Professional Championship that September where his third place finish qualified him for the PPC, April 30-May 3, 2023. Just 15 days later, Wells was teeing it up in the 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club, competing against the best players in the world. A Virginia native, Wells grew up around the game, attending the College of William and Mary where he competed on the golf team for all four years. Upon graduation, Wells, like many aspiring TOUR players do, moved to south Florida. He settled in Fort Myers and was fortunate to find Cypress Lake Golf Club where he practiced and played while competing on mini-tours. After three years, Wells wasn’t seeing the results he wanted and decided to try teaching, as someone who has always loved the mechanics of the golf swing. He began giving lessons at a local driving range in August of 2016. “I still remember my first paycheck for two weeks. I made $1,100 and that was more money than I had ever made for a few weeks of teaching compared to three years of playing,” Wells recalled laughing. The transition was smooth for Wells and proved to be a smart decision financially and professionally. “I’ve always had an obsession with the mechanics of the golf swing so it was a natural transition to get into teaching,” he said. “Towards the end of my first season I had basically a full book of business at a local driving range.” Wells continued teaching for the next two-and-half years before deciding to enter the PGA Associate Program. For Wells, the idea of becoming a Member was perfect. “I can be busy teaching all winter, and then when my lesson book isn't as full in the summertime, I can go and play competitive golf against my peers,” he explained. Officially committed to his career as a teacher, Wells had the opportunity to move into a full-time teaching role at Cypress Lake, the facility that was so gracious to him as a player. With this role, Wells gained support and mentorship from the PGA Professionals at the facility, which allowed him to stay motivated to finish the Associate Program. Once completed in May of 2022, Wells took off, making the most of his PGA Membership and all the opportunities that became possible with it. At 33 years old, Wells is as happy as he has ever been personally and professionally. “It is a very well-rounded situation that I have created and I am very proud of what I've done,” he explained. “I spend every day trying to help members at Cypress Lake enjoy their golf games and their lives more, but I also get to compete at a national level and potentially a world level at a PGA Championship. I am incredibly proud of the work I have done.” As Wells reflects on an incredible first two years as a PGA of America Professional, he once again has the chance to play on one of the biggest stages in golf as he competes in the 2024 PGA Professional Championship, starting Sunday at PGA Frisco’s Fields Ranch, vying to once again finish in the top-20 to make his second consecutive PGA Championship start.

Fort Myers, FL - Adam Miller, PGA and his team from Verandah Golf Club won the South Florida PGA Pro-Am presented by Cadillac, yesterday at The Club at Renaissance. Miller, the Director of Golf at Verandah Golf Club was joined by amateurs, Lee Bennett, Wayne Morris and Anita Morris. The team finished play at 17-under, one better than the team from Esplanade Golf and Country Club led by Nick Marcoaldi, PGA. James Desanges, PGA of Panther Run Golf Club claimed low pro honors with a total of 47 points, edging Miller by one point. Desanges managed only one bogey to go along with six birdies. 20 teams of a PGA of America Professional and three amateurs competed in a two best ball of four format with the maximum score allowed per hole being a double bogey. The professional individual division was played in a stableford format with pars worth two points, birdies worth four points and eagles worth eight points. The event was presented by Cadillac with Devoe Cadillac and Val Ward Cadillac supporting the event. Leaderboard