HEATHROW, FL – This week’s Proponent Group newsletter carried a message of congratulations for 42 members named to Golf Digest’s 2025-26 list of America’s Best Young Teachers. The magazine’s prestigious list honored a total of 191 U.S. instructors, which means the Proponent Group contingent represents over 20 percent of the total.
“Joining Proponent Group is something golf coaches tend to do when they get a bit older and wiser, so the under-40 cohort among our 460 paid members isn’t particularly large,” said founder and president Lorin Anderson. “I’d estimate that a majority of our members who were young enough to be considered did end up making the list.”
The 42 Proponent members named to the list are: Jason Barry, Nick Bova, Bryan Dougherty, Joseph Ingoglia, Stephen Sieracki, Nate Eaton, Kellie Edelblut, Andrew Kiger, Stuart McKechnie, Brian Rogish, TJ Yeaton, Chris Biggins, Dan Carraher, Preston Combs, Katie Dahl, Steven DeBoer, Sara Dickson, Megan Johnston, Jason Kuiper, Joe Ostrowski, Jason Sedan, Ryan Smith, Derek Swoboda, Molly Braid, Adam Farabaugh, Justin Kraft, Kyle Morris, Chelsea Soda, Justin Klemballa, Kenneth Mesimer, Devan Bonebrake, Jordan Gibbs, Jon Horner, Blake Jirges, Sebastian Martinez, Brett Meyer, Tara Morris, Travis Olson, Brandon Bittner, Brian Creghan, Luke Reilly and Blake Thomas.
“Making the Golf Digest BYT list is a career boost, and we feel it’s also career-enhancing to have the support and resources of Proponent Group behind you,” said Anderson, who is as bullish on the teaching profession now as he’s ever been. “We surveyed our under-40 coaches last year and what came through was great optimism and confidence about their careers and future prospects.”
One survey question asked what it generally feels like to be a golf coach at this point in time. Among the response options was this one: “Golf coaching is entering a Golden Age of technological advancement, expanding knowledge and increased credibility—a skilled, hardworking coach can really go places.” Of the 42 young members who took the survey, 32 selected that response.
“A full 73 percent of respondents went with that answer,” Anderson noted. “I don’t think we were expecting such a sky’s-the-limit attitude, but these young coaches can back it up, and what we saw on the Golf Digest list attests to that.”
About Proponent Group:
Proponent Group is the only organization solely focused on helping golf’s dedicated, full-time instructors grow their businesses and build their careers. Founded in 2007, Proponent Group recognizes that even accomplished teaching professionals need a unique array of professional services to build their teaching brand, create job security and grow compensation. For more information about how Proponent Group has benefited more than 1,400 instructors worldwide, visit proponent-group.com.
