Do what you love; love what you do
Posted on Wednesday, July 9, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/bvwv/Sports_and_Recreation/6690/
I turned a passion into a career, Michael Dryer said. Its nice to have a job where you enjoy what you do.
What Dryer does is golf. He does not just play it he lives it and loves it.
Dryer has been a golf pro at Scotsdale Golf Course since 2005. He also handles all the day-to-day operations of the golf shop.
Were a customer-service operation, he said. Im here to make sure golfers enjoy their time. People have a smile on their face when they walk in. We want them to have a smile on their face when they walk out.
The Scotsdale course has anywhere from 125 to 250 players per day. The first tee time is at 7 a. m., and the course typically closes around 7 p. m., but not if there are golfers wanting to play.
On top of his job at Scotsdale, Dryer gives between 15 and 20 lessons per week. He instructs people of any age and enjoys the different golfers with whom he works.
I work with people anywhere from 5 to 85, he said. When golfers have something wrong with their swing, its my job to get them closer to how they want to hit it.
Dryer believes most golfers have problems with their swings when they overcomplicate things.
The game is very simple to me, he said. I have a way to implement that.
Dryer gives most of his lessons, which cost $ 50, at Tanyard Creek Driving Range. The lessons can last anywhere from 20 minutes up to an hour, depending on how quickly he can help.
Originally from Wisconsin, Dryer developed an interest in golf after graduating from high school in 1996.
He started working at a golf shop in Wisconsin in 1998. The next year, he left to attend the San Diego Golf Academy in Myrtle Beach, S. C., to train for a career in his new favorite sport.
They pretty much teach you everything (at the academy ) how to run, market and operate a golf shop, how to teach golf.
In 2001, Dryer completed his business degree specializing in golf complex operations and general management.
He was first hired as a golf pro at a course in Minneapolis in 2001 and was happy to move closer to home, Dryer said. He worked there for two years before moving back to Wisconsin.
After a year in his native state, Dryer found another interesting opportunity in late 2003 when he started working for Caddymaster in Pinehurst, N. C. Each time a company acquired a new course, Dryer went there to train the caddies.
He said working on many high-profile courses was one thing that made the job a good experience.
Id still be doing that if not for all the traveling, he said.
Along with training caddies, Dryer played golf professionally on the Hooters Tour in 2004, participating in nine events.
I thoroughly enjoy competitive golf, he said. But you have to play exceptionally well four consecutive days to make any money. So many guys are so good.
After his wife, Tara, got a job at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Dryer found a new, more favorable region to practice his passion. Arkansas does not have the strong winters that close golf courses in Wisconsin.
I like the climate here, he said. I get to do my job yearround.
Dryer took advantage of the extra season of golf when he shot a 61, his lowest score as a professional, at Valley View Golf Course in Farmington late last year. He scored 11 birdies and zero bogeys on the par-72 course.
This summer, Dryer is working with First Tee, an organization that uses golf as a way to build character in children and teenagers. Dryer will help the program July 7-9, 14-16, 28-30 and Aug. 4-6 with camps for teens ages 12-17.
They asked me to help train the kids, he said. I handle the golf part of it.