Lead Instructors
— Terry Audette recently started a second career as a golf instructor. He is certified by the U.S. Golf Teachers Federation and teaches many private lessons in addition to TGA classes.
— Charlie Auld is a student at Wayne State University who was a three-sport athlete at Grosse Pointe North and loves teaching kids.
— Al Bialek is retired after 43 years in business leadership roles. He is a passionate golfer who loves sharing that passion with the kids. Al has taught many TGA after-school classes and summer camps. He also is a proud veteran and conducts seminars about veterans at schools and community centers throughout the metro area.
— Brian Bauer is the parent of two TGA golfers and an avid golfer and skier. He has a full-time job in the mortgage business, but loves working with kids and finds time to teach TGA classes, plus ski classes in the winter.
— Brandon Blackmon is assistant athletic director at Parkway Christian School and also coaches football, basketball and
baseball. He is also an avid golfer and directs our summer camps at The Myth.
— Alex Blyth is a student at Northern Michigan University. He is a former TGA student, attending many enrichment classes, summer camps, leagues, tournaments and parent-chi busiest assistant coaches throughout his years at Grosse Pointe South High School.
— Mark Boyd has been playing golf for more than 40 years and has lots of experience coaching basketball, baseball and golf. After retiring from his business career, he stays active with kids as a substitute teacher and coach.
— Nick Bruce recently graduated from Walsh College and is now an assistant pro at Wyndgate Country Club in Rochester Hills, but he still finds time to teach an occasional TGA class. Nick started as an assistant coach while a sophomore at Anchor Bay High School and earned more responsibility every year, eventually running a huge schedule of after-school classes and our Macomb County summer camps.
— Sandreea Cueva is a member of the varsity golf team at Madonna University and also an accomplished hockey player. Sandreea is a mainstay of our summer camp staff and also leads after-school classes.
— Sarah Doletzky is a student at Oakland University and former member of the state championship golf team at Lutheran North High School. She was an assistant coach throughout high school and now has a huge schedule of after-school classes, camps and leagues.
— Olivia DeVries is a student at Michigan State University who played varsity golf at Lake Orion High School. She was an assistant throughout high school and recently was promoted to lead instructor.
— Olivia Dryke is a student at Oakland University. She was a standout softball player for four years at Lutheran North High School and taught children the mechanics of pitching and hitting. She had played golf when younger and recently caught the bug again.
— Rob Fidler spent 11 years in retail golf sales and club-fitting and always has been active in youth sports. He is an avid golfer and also works part-time during the summer at Glen Oaks Golf Course.
— Greg Fisher is a former high school golf coach who began teaching TGA classes in 2017. He loves playing golf for fun, competition and exercise, getting in tons of rounds in Michigan in the summer and Arizona in the winter.
— Lance Harwood plays on the varsity golf team at Northwood University. He played high school golf at Troy Athens. He has lots of experience working with kids, including as a volunteer at his church.
— Tricia Hayes starting playing golf as a young adult after being a competitive tennis player. She fell in love with the sport immediately and has been playing for 30 years, including tournaments and casual rounds with family and friends. She still works full-time at the University of Michigan but finds time to teach an occasional TGA after-school class.
— Ben Herteg is so passionate about the game that his email address includes back9charge. Despite a full-time job at Troy Motor Mall, Ben finds time to run one of our weekend leagues and sub at occasional after-school classes.
— Sarah Hohensee is a student at Oakland University and former varsity golfer for Lutheran North. She was an assistant coach throughout high school and has worked many after-school classes and summer camps.
— Brendan Iatrow plays on the varsity golf team at Albion College, where he is majoring in finance. He played high school golf at Livonia Stevenson and has worked at Western Golf Club and Walnut Creek Country Club.
— Sabel Imesch is a member of the Wayne State University varsity golf team and winner of the Lady Bulldog Invitational during her freshman season. She is a former TGA student was was an assistant coach throughout her years at Grosse Pointe South High School, working many after-school classes and summer camps.
— Evelyn Kensicki learned about TGA through a former coach. She enthusiastically jumped in as an assistant coach, then quickly volunteered to lead after-school classes and our Rammler summer camp. She has been playing golf for 30 years and regularly shoots in the high 70s and low 80s.
— Dennis Kensicki recently retired after a long career as a school teacher and coach. He is an avid golfer and plays often with his wife Evelyn (winning a few times a year). Dennis is a mainstay of our summer camps and after-school programs at Rammler.
— Daniel Kleczynski is an enthusiastic golfer who works at Salem Hills Golf Course in the summer. He has played in many competitive golf events, and spent more than 15 years working with children at before- and after-school programs in Livonia. Daniel teaches many after-school classes and runs our summer camps at Hilltop and Fellows Creek.
— Kelly Kristy is an LPGA professional who coaches the men’s and women’s golf teams at Concordia University in Ann Arbor. She runs our summer camps at Maples Golf Course in Novi.
— Jack Light recently retired after a long business career and is staying busy with grandchildren and golf. In addition to playing as much as he can, he teaches occasional TGA classes and works in the pro shop at Glen Oaks Golf Course.
— Nick Lico is an avid golfer and student of the game who has worked with kids his entire life, teaching golf, roller hockey and soccer. He has taught TGA enrichment classes since 2009, including our hugely popular Saturday morning classes at the Macomb Township Recreation Center.
— Mike Mercier recently graduated from University of Michigan-Dearborn and has a full-time job at Whispering Pines Golf Course in Pinckney, but he still has a great connection to TGA and we will make sure he subs occasionally at an after-school class. Mike is a former TGA student who became an assistant coach while playing varsity golf for Berkley High School. He then played varsity golf at UM-Dearborn and became one of our most prolific instructors, teaching tons of after-school classes and running summer camps and leagues.
— Randi Miller is a former LPGA professional who played competitively and also was teaching pro at several country clubs. She is now the parent of two Maire Elementary students, and teaches our classes at Maire, plus summer camps at Belle Isle.
— Gene Myers succeeded Dave Robinson as sports editor of the Detroit Free Press in 1993 and stayed in that role until he retired at the end of 2015. That means the Free Press had two sports editors from 1985 to 2015. During the same period the Lions had 10 head coaches. Gene’s first year of retirement was incredibly active, filled with hiking, running, cycling, yoga and some book projects. He added TGA classes in 2017, bringing his enthusiasm and sense of humor to after-school classes and summer camps in West Wayne.
— Ann Parvin is a long-time LPGA professional who has taught many juniors and adults in private lessons, camps and clinics. Ann joined TGA in 2014.
— Pamela Panagos recently retired from the Livonia School District, where she worked in before- and after-care programs. She has been playing golf with family and friends for 40 years and loves introducing children to a life-long game.
— Brett Pawlowski is a student at Michigan State University and has been a fixture at our Macomb County summer camps, advancing to the director role in 2023 at Glacier and Oak Ridge. He is a former TGA student who attended tons of our camps and other events.
— Taylor Pickett is a student at Oakland University who previously played on the varsity golf team at L’Anse Creuse High School. She was an assistant coach during high school and recently was promoted to lead instructor.
— Joey Randazzo is a student at Macomb Community College who played four sports at University Liggett High School and has coached kids at baseball camps. He is an avid golfer and used to work at Gratiot Golf Center.
— James Robinson is a retired science teacher in Detroit and Southfield Public Schools. He discovered TGA while working as a golf course ranger during one of our summer camps. James plays lots of golf and is always working on his game.
— Elliot Spoon played on the state champion Southfield High golf team back in 1968 and learned about TGA when he played a parent-child event with his grandson. He was a law professor at Michigan State from 1999 to 2021 and practiced law before that. He earned BA and law degrees from the University of Michigan.
— Owen VanderWeele is a student at Michigan State University who has been one of our most active summer camp coaches. He also coaches some after-school classes in the spring.
— Adam Wagenknecht first learned about TGA in the fall of 2016 when he signed up his kindergarten son for the after-school class at Great Oaks Elementary. He has been a fixture at our Macomb County after-school classes since then. Adam has a long background in golf, as a caddy at Country Club of Detroit and varsity player at Roseville High.
— Laura Winch is retired after 40-plus years in medical sales. She is former president of the metro Detroit Chapter of LPGA Amateur Golf Association. She was previously active in Campfire Girls.
Adult Assistant Coaches
Ann Batory
Aaron Brown
Joe Carlson
Myra Cartwright
Jim Finkelstein
Matt Gordon
Jim Hartnett
Lauren Kotzian
Grace Leone
Tom Leone
Bob O’Brien
Corky Read
Susan Rubin
RJ Schauer
Andrew Silva
Gary Skop
Lee Stevens
Carol Thompson
Connor Zydeck
College Assistant Coaches
Albion — Emily Abramczyk, Helen Buk
Detroit Mercy — Ariel Chang, Gowtham Nalluri, Mason Sokolowski
Eastern Michigan — Gabby Tapp
Grand Valley State — Sarah Himmelsbaugh, Matthew Himmelsbaugh
Hope — Noah DeHorn, Parker McClure, Allyson Zuidema
Macomb Community College — Nik Szpotek
Michigan — Zach Penoza, Mikaela Schulz
Michigan-Dearborn — Colin Boyd
Michigan State — Lea Faust, Ava Gadawski, Corbin Ifkovits, Art McCarthy, Filomena Spencer, Samantha Raedel, Mary Ronayne, Parker Salciccioli, Jake Smith
Oakland University — Emily Hohensee
Wayne State — Bryn Duncan, Max O’Rourke
Western Michigan — Megha Vallabhaneni
High School Assistant Coaches
Almont — Olivia Kotelnicki
Anchor Bay — Lilli Getzschman
Avondale — Ria Narang
Berkley — Marley DeRoven
Birmingham Groves — Daphne Breen
Bloomfield Hills — Sophia Stearns, Krista Studier
Brother Rice — Rocco Iacobelli
Chippewa Valley — Hunter Fleming
Dakota — Alex Carlson
DeLaSalle — Bennett Rankin, Luke Smith
Dearborn — Tim Burdick
Grosse Pointe South — Cate Hampton, Taylor Lewis, Skip Moody, Murphy Russell, Tenley Stiyer
Grosse Pointe North — Camden Baker, Morgan McIntyre, Colin Smith
International Academy Bloomfield Hills — Brianna Park, Jessica Finney, Kevin Lai, Hannah Wang
International Academy Macomb — Nick Kozierowski
Lake Orion — Jacob Rybak
L’Anse Creuse North — Caeden Amara, Aubrey Howard, Morgan Jones, Mila Menendez
Livonia Franklin — Kelsie Jeziorowski
Livionia Stevenson — Sophia Marsh
Lutheran North — Gabby Cardenas, Landon Nilson, Saige Rothey, Lauren Timpf, Isabella Vincent
Mercy — Lila Polakowski
North Farmington — Zach Schultz, Evan Tasdemir
Northville — Grace Bae, Meera Sankar, Sanya Singhal
Notre Dame Prep — Dino Acciavatti, Brooklyn Haddad, Emily Szalach
Novi — Haele McManes, Esme Scott
Oxford — Ellie Gieselman
Orchard Lake St. Mary’s — Mikey Karwaski
Plymouth — Brooke Morris, Sydney Mazur, Drew Niemiec
Roeper — Sam Salinas
Rochester Adams — Daniel Lee
Rochester High — Ella Harrison, Brooke Haney, Aidan Miceli, Libby Phillips, Ellery Yates
Romeo — Chase Laverell, Dante Salvatore
Royal Oak Shrine — Sophie Clemence
South Lyon East — Will DeHorn
Troy — Ahina Bajwa, Leo Penoza
University Liggett — Steve McMahon
Utica High — Alexander Steele
Utica Eisenhower — Ryan Dex, Brady Grimes, Dylan Knapp, John Murphy
Utica Stevenson — Megan Luke
Walled Lake Northern — Jack Holland, Andy O’Keefe