Eric Eshleman keeps coaching at heart as PGA Professional of the Year

A Noble Profession

“I believe being a PGA Professional is one of the most noble professions that exists. We have the opportunity to leave ‘footprints’ in people’s lives on a daily basis,” says Eshleman, who as a coach and mentor has left his indelible imprint on tour professionals such as 2010 U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell, Patton Kizzire, Smylie Kauffman and Paul Dunne, as well as leaders and luminaries such as 66th U.S. Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice.

"My most significant contribution has been training dozens of professionals to be outstanding golf instructors,” says Eshleman, the 2000 and 2004 Alabama-NW Florida Section Teacher of the Year. “I look at golf instruction as being synonymous with relationships. People love to take lessons from, and play golf with, a PGA Professional who can help their game and also be their friend.

“There is nothing I enjoy more than teaching other teachers, or helping other PGA Professionals in any way I can.”

Passionate Coach, Educator

“I’m a big believer in our golf family trees and paying respect to those PGA Professionals above us,” says Eshleman, a two-time Section PGA Golf Professional of the Year. “PGA Professional Bucky Ayers got Fred Griffin and Buster Inman in the business. All three have been tremendous mentors to me.

“I’m trying to do the same for all the staff professionals and interns who have worked for me.”

“That started a relationship that is emblematic of what the PGA of America stands for — a caring, skilled professional helping an aspiring golfer — in this case, one relatively new to the sport,” recalls Rice, who served as Secretary of State under President George W. Bush from 2005-09.

“Eric has done so much for my game with his patience and insight. But he has also become a friend because he is just a good human being. We have continued to work together all these years later, much to the benefit of my game and much to my delight to have such a good friend.”

A Champion of Diversity

“Adrian was an incredible player and an even better person,” recounts Eshleman. “People gravitated to him like he was a magnet, and everybody loved him. I saw how Adrian was a minority in rooms and at parties, but it never affected him.

“I wanted others to have that same opportunity, so I hired Josiah Singletary as a summer intern from Methodist University’s PGA Golf Management Program. He was the first African American on the Country Club of Birmingham’s golf staff. He too learned how to hold his own and went on to be a shining star in the Jim McLean golf schools. Josiah said at our junior banquet that I was like a second father to him. We still stay in touch and I was happy to open a door for him.”

“I don’t know what we would do without Rebecca Acre,” Eshleman says. “She heads up our ladies golf association and teaches all of our younger girls in the junior golf program. She also became a PGA Class A member in 17 months. Because of Rebecca’s success, I am trying to get more young women from college golf teams to think seriously about the golf profession as a career. There are no ceilings to their success.”

Another Important Hire

“One of the best things that has ever happened in my life is getting to know Chris Biggins. He interned for us for three summers in a row, largely because he was receiving incredible medical care at the Cerebral Palsy center in Birmingham,” says Eshleman. “He has now become one of their role models to others with cerebral palsy.”

“He is my right-hand man with our junior golf program. Kids, parents and our staff at the Country Club of Birmingham all look up to Chris,” says Eshleman. “He is simply amazing! I can’t beat him in ping pong, hoops or tennis. He’s an amazing athlete.

“I give him the winter months off so he can spend them in Park City, Utah, training and trying to qualify for the U.S. Paralympic Ski Team. He flies down a snow-covered mountain, and while walking a golf course is difficult, I’ve never seen him shoot above 79. Chris is a miraculous person who has had a great impact at our club and in our Section.”

Teaching Life Skills

“We teach our kids to tuck in their shirt tails, the proper way to shake hands, use library voices at the club, and to open their mom’s car door,” he says proudly. “We also currently have five kids heading to play Division I college golf. I’ve always said that dads don’t call each other on Friday night to say grab your helmet and let’s go tackle each other a few times tomorrow morning. They call and make their foursomes for golf.

“Most of the kids who grow up in our junior program will be single-digit handicaps, act properly, and love the game for all their lives. PGA Jr. League, Drive, Chip & Putt, and an overall commitment at all levels have helped reopen the floodgates to junior golf. The impact our junior program has made on lives will long outlast my career.”

“We now have more than 350 kids in our junior golf programs,” says Eshleman. “As has become typical at our club, we had 141 days in the past year with a junior event on our golf calendar. I was responsible for junior golf in my first job at Grand Cypress. Now, almost 27 years later, I’m still in charge of junior golf. I teach after-school clinics, summer camps, and travel with our team to junior league matches. Each year, we produce an end-of- the-year video that is played at our junior club championship banquet.”

“I still believe the ultimate way you can have an impact on golfers is to give them a lesson, fit them to a new set of clubs, or play 18 holes with them,” insists Eshleman. “I’m unapologetic about how much time I spend each day giving lessons and being outside with golfers.”

A Devoted Family Man

“Despite the long hours and long days we all spend as PGA Professionals, I’m a big believer in family first,” says Eshleman, who counts Kelli’s first hole-in-one while playing in the Mountaintop Husband-Wife member guest event with their friends, the Browns, last year as a priceless memory.

“Kelli hit a beautiful 9-iron from 125 yards that took one hop and rolled dead-center into the cup. She started crying and we all went nuts. It’s one of the most fun memories I’ve ever had on a golf course. We’re still talking about the total joy we witnessed that day. I’ve had eight aces over the years, but none brought me as much happiness as Kelli’s.”

“Some of my top accomplishments in my career are the countless golfers I’ve been able to help,” notes Eshleman. “My students have won tournaments around the world and on all tours.”