PAR TEE TIME: My Golf Story

Van Earl Wright is an American television sportscaster, news anchor and journalist with over 30 years of national and local experience.

A graduate of the University of South Carolina, Wright is known for a homespun delivery which reflects his Southern roots. His signature greeting is "Hel-looooo, everybody."

Broadcasting career
Fox Sports Net (FSN)
For much of the late 1990s until the summer of 2...

Van Earl Wright is an American television sportscaster, news anchor and journalist with over 30 years of national and local experience.

A graduate of the University of South Carolina, Wright is known for a homespun delivery which reflects his Southern roots. His signature greeting is "Hel-looooo, everybody."

Broadcasting career
Fox Sports Net (FSN)
For much of the late 1990s until the summer of 2...

Justin Kristich, Tournament Director of LECOM Suncoast Classic, a Korn Ferry Tour/PGA Tour event for professional golfers at Lakewood National Golf Club in Lakewood Ranch, FL. Previously, he was the Assistant General Manager for the Bradenton Marauders and Manager of Tickets Sales for the Pittsburgh Pirates in Bradenton, FL. He is a graduate from the University of Florida with a degree in Sports Management and serves on the Board o...

Chris Truppi (pronounced "Troopy") is the founder and owner of Paradise Craft Distributors in New Port Richey, FL.  PCD is Florida's number one,  family owned, craft wine and spirit distributor.  They specialize in Florida produced/owned spirits and imported wines. Their coverage is statewide in Florida and services most large retailers and any independent locations, both on and off premises.

Chris has a lon...

Prior to graduating the Golf Academy of America (Orlando, 1999), Greg met Terrie Purdum and joined Florida Golf Central Magazine where he was a welcome addition in the magazine’s first year of publishing and eventually served a role as Managing Editor. Greg’s experiences at FGCM thrusted him into a career of newspaper journalism serving as Sports Editor for The Daily Southerner, Tarboro, N.C., and The Montclair Times, Montclair, N....

Nicole Weller is a proud member of the PGA of America, the LPGA,  Proponent Group and the North Brunswick Chamber of Commerce. She currently instructs members, their guests and local Wilmington area golfers at Compass Pointe Golf Club near Wilmington, NC while traveling back to the Pinehurst area to instruct with the Pine Needles Golfari Schools. She has served on the LPGA*USGA Girls Golf of Savannah Board, two terms on the PGA Nat...

There’s absolutely no way he could have known but Rudy Duran held the future of an entire sport in his hands throughout the early eighties.

Now based at Chalk Mountain Golf Course in Atascadero – roughly halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco – Duran was working at Heartwell Golf Course in Long Beach in 1980 when the door to his pro shop opened and in walked Tida Woods with her four-year-old son Tiger.

Eigh...

For Caleb VanArragon ’23, ’24 M.S., the statistical way of thinking has always resonated in the most logical sense. “I love the way it can be used to solve all sorts of real-world problems,” he explains. It’s a personal truth that stuck with him throughout his Valparaiso University experience. As an undergraduate student, he combined his interests with a double-major in biology and statistics, then narrowed down his professional in...

Nicole Weller is a proud member of the PGA of America, the LPGA,  Proponent Group and the North Brunswick Chamber of Commerce. She currently instructs members, their guests and local Wilmington area golfers at Compass Pointe Golf Club near Wilmington, NC while traveling back to the Pinehurst area to instruct with the Pine Needles Golfari Schools. She has served on the LPGA*USGA Girls Golf of Savannah Board, two terms on the PGA Nat...

The Cut Golf & Grill is the only dining destination in Palmetto, Florida where great food meets fun. Enjoy fresh, locally sourced dishes while honing your golf skills on state-of-the-art simulators. Whether you're here for a casual meal or a round of golf with friends, our welcoming atmosphere, top-quality food, and interactive experience offer the perfect blend of relaxation and recreation.

The Cut Golf & Gri...

Noah Zelnik is living his dream of owning a golf course. He and his wife, Samantha are managing and creating an environment for many golfers to enjoy at Moccasin Wallow in Palmetto, FL. Their experience around golf courses has covered 55 years between the two of them. Having travelled both north and South America as well as the islands in the Atlantic and the Pacific, they have taken bits and pieces from all operations and plan on ...

Jan Lynn Stephenson is an Australian professional golfer. She became a member of the LPGA Tour in 1974 and won three major championships and 16 LPGA Tour events. She has 41 worldwide victories including (10) LPGA Legends Tour wins and 8 worldwide major championships. She has 15 holes-in-one with nine in competition. She was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame, class of 2019.

Early life and amateur career
While a tee...

Michael Belkin is a true entrepreneurial ecosystem revenue leader with a relentless customer-centric approach. He started on the buy-side at H.I.G. Growth and then seeded & co-founded Nextgengolf (acquired by PGA). Mikchaelthen moved into tech GTM at HubSpot, Catalant, and Zuora where he currently leads the Global PE/VC Practice. He has 13+ years of leading successful investments and transformative partnerships.

Michae...

Son of a PGA Tour legend, Cristian DiMarco is a prime example of what it means to represent a golf legacy with grace, grit and determination – while striving to win on his own terms.

In this encore episode, Kevin Walsh and Cristian DiMarco discuss Cristian's progress as he forges along on his journey to becoming a golf professional.  The two guys talk about Cristian's recent successes and his commitment to becomi...

In 8th grade, a basketball injury changed everything. No more contact sports. At the time, devastating. Now, a blessing. It pushed Kyle towards golf, and he was grateful.

In high school, his passion for golf deepened. By senior year, he clinched the D1 Individual State Championship and earned "Mr. Golf" honors for the state in 2013.

Eastern Michigan University offered him a golf scholarship, just a short...

Dr. Robert K. Winters is an internationally renowned Sports Psychologist, Author, and Professional Speaker. He holds Bachelor (B.S) and Master’s (M.A.) degrees from Ball State University and earned his Ph.D. doctorate in Sport Psychology from the University of Virginia.  Dr. Winters has spent the past 35 years investigating how one’s thoughts and attitudes affect one’s ability to perform to their optimal talent level.  No one in th...

Joal is a former LPGA Tour player and mother of 3, Division 1 collegiate golfers.  She has been teaching for over 30 years, most recently at IMG Academy in Bradenton.  Joal has a passion for the growth and enjoyment of the game. She uses her skills to empower the student to understand their own swing and tendencies, giving them the tools needed to make adjustments for the betterment of a lifetime of golfing fun!  
Joal teaches ...

Brendan Walsh grew up in Philadelphia. He was the twelfth of fifteen kids born by Barbara and William Walsh. I guess when your dad is a legend in the Philly golf scene and known by everyone as “Sarge,” golf isn’t as much of a choice as it is a way of life. One thing is for sure, with seventeen in the family, there was always someone to tee it up with!

He has been the Head Golf Professional at The Country Club in Brookline,...

The title – director of golf operations – suggests the job is more than running the pro shop and giving lessons. And so it is for J.P. Connelly, who is officially the director of golf operations at the Cohasset Golf Club and oversees a staff of 20 people at the prestigious Donald Ross-designed golf course. But cut a little bit deeper into the mind and soul of the 41-year old Connelly, who arrived at Cohasset in 2003, and you will f...