10 Best: Golf Pros

The Encourager

Golf pros new to Southwest Florida will likely cross paths with Bill Constantine, head golf professional at Fiddlesticks Country Club in Fort Myers. As secretary of the Southwest Chapter of the South Florida PGA, Constantine lines up new members and helps steer the direction of the chapter. On the links he's all about keeping the training simple and focusing on the positive aspects of your swing rather than chipping away at your faults.

The Instructor With Heart

Trevor Gliwski is the head golf instructor at the Rick Smith Golf Academy at Tiburón in Naples. Named to Golf Digest's "Top Instructors" list in Florida, Gliwski brings his PGA-level experience, friendly demeanor and ever-present patience to the Naples' course for all levels of players. And if you decide golf isn't your game, Gliwski has also taught skiing and martial arts.

The Best Player

You might want to hang out at Hideout Golf Club and hope that Gene Fieger's skill rubs off on you. Considered the best player in town by area pros, Fieger, Hideout's head professional, has a slew of championship wins, including many in South Florida and his native Philadelphia. A regular PGA qualifier, Fieger has six career holes-in-one, three of which were during competition. Let the rubbing off begin right there.

The pros' instructor

Catch him if you can. Jim Suttie, National PGA Teacher of the Year in 2000, splits his time primarily between Cog Hill Golf & Country Club in Lemont, Ill., and The Club at TwinEagles in Naples. He's in high demand among touring PGA players who seek his corrective techniques. Away from the links, he often speaks at PGA teaching summits around the country and abroad. Suttie will tailor your game to your body type, as he describes in his book, The LAWS of the Golf Swing, named best new instruction book of 1999 by GOLF Magazine. He recently released his second book, Your Perfect Swing.

The BIG BROTHER

Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club's Larry Gantzer knows where the future of golf lies: in its junior players. He has spearheaded Collier Junior Golf under the Community Foundation umbrella. Its program director, Ty Andersen, taught 20,000 kids last year. Gantzer has also urged county commissioners to develop a juniors' course. For his instructional skills, Gantzer was named Golf Professional of the Year in 2003 by the South Florida Professional Golfers' Association.

The ONE TO WATCH

Eden Foster's career is on the fast track. In 2004 he was named one of GOLF Magazine's "Top 100" instructors. Now he splits his time at two big-league courses-as the director of golf at Calusa Pines Golf Course in Naples and as general manager and head golf pro at Maidstone in East Hampton, N.Y. GOLF Magazine has tapped him to write instructional articles aimed at teaching players the intricacies of strength, speed and flexibility to improve their swing.

The protÉgÉ

A native of Great Britain, Adam Bazalgette came to Florida in 1977 and began training under the self-proclaimed father of modern golf instruction, fellow Brit David Leadbetter. Bazalgette developed his game and eventually his teaching style using Leadbetter's philosophy, which focuses on correcting muscle coordination during the golf swing. Bazalgette has led the David Leadbetter Golf Academy at LaPlaya Beach Resort in Naples as its academy director for the past 13 years.

The ONE TO KNOW

So you think you're ready to play with the biggest wheels in town at the Old Collier Golf Club? You'll need to get to know Lynn Josephson. Currently the director of membership and marketing, Josephson started his career in Naples in 1974 as an assistant golf pro, and he's continued teaching for more than 30 years. In the 1990s, he was the founding member of the Olde Florida Golf Club, one of the country's most exclusive clubs. At Olde Florida he instituted an invitation-only policy that he uses at Old Collier as well.

The SLICE DOCTOR

Not only has Jim Sowerwine appeared on the Golf Channel, been named to Golf Digest's "Top Instructors" list and mentored by PGA greats like Jim Flick, the director of instruction at Rick Smith Golf Academy at Tiburón also invented one of the best-selling golf swing aids-The Inside Approach. The device is geared to fix a golfer's slice, improving aim and distance. Jack Nicklaus has said, "The Inside Approach is something that's quite effective for the game of golf and quite good for your golf game."

The EQUIPMENT GURU

You've got your membership, your cart, your clubs, your hours of practice, but why is your game still suffering? This is where Chris Nolan of the Rick Smith Golf Academy at Tiburón comes in. With a background in golf equipment research and development, Nolan is a golf-club fitter to the sport's brightest stars. He not only knows how to get you the right club; he can also teach you to use it and gain an extra 20 yards on the fairway. Nolan also specializes in creating customized equipment for physically limited players, including amputees and stroke victims.