Our Instructors

Craig Allan received his initial Club Fitting in South Africa, and since graduating college in Alabama, has worked at several well-recognized facilities in the Southeast. Allan is a nationally renowned fitter who is certified at the highest level with all major club companies’ fitting systems and has extensive experience with the Trackman Launch Monitor.

PGA TOUR Students: Davis Love III, Zach Johnson, Brian Harman, Harris English, Jonathan Byrd, Garrick Higgo, and Keith Mitchell

A PGA and LPGA Member, Gale Peterson has taught at Sea Island for more than 30 years. Peterson is one of the mentors/presenters for LPGA, PGA AND NCAA Women’s Coaches Educational Programs throughout the country. She is on the Board of Directors for LPGA Education Division and the PGA National Education Board. Peterson’s experience has earned her numerous accolades, including National LPGA Teacher of the Year, Golf Magazine’s Top 100 Teachers and LPGA’s Top 50 Teachers. Peterson has appeared as a guest instructor on national television broadcasts such as the Golf Channel, ESPN, FOX and NBC’s Today. Peterson co-authored LPGA’s Guide to Every Shot and is a contributor to FOX Sports “Inside Golf Magazine,” Golfer’s MD, and Golf Magazine. She continues to instruct players of all talents and ages and prides herself on helping players reach their potential and become their own best coach. Personalities such as Sam Nunn, Bob Schieffer, Marguerite Salle, and Mort Kondracke have worked with Gale to improve their games and become their own best coach. Gale teaches all aspects of the game and specializes in wedge play.

LPGA Tour Students: Dori Carter, Karlin Beck, Alison Whitaker, and Stephanie Connelly

Dr. Morris M. Pickens received his Ph.D. in sports psychology from the University of Virginia in 1995. During this time, he focused his research and consulting interests in the area of golf psychology, specifically the acquisition of putting confidence. Dr. Pickens has provided sports psychology consulting for numerous PGA, LPGA, KornFerry, and Champions tour players and authored The Winning Way in Golf and Life. In addition to working with professional golfers, Dr. Pickens has also provided performance enhancement consulting for other athletes including the NFL and MLB, and conducts leadership seminars for companies of all sizes.

Current and Former PGA TOUR Students: Zach Johnson, Jonathan Byrd, Stewart Cink, Kyle Reifers, John Rollins, Blayne Barber, Nick Watney, Keegan Bradley, Chris Stroud, Justin Leonard, Will Gordon, and Davis Thompson.

Randy Myers joined Sea Island as Director of Fitness in 2005, having previously served as Director of Fitness and Personal Training at PGA National Resort & Spa since 1992. Myers’ Master’s thesis topic, “A strength training and flexibility program for recreational golfers,” helped establish the standards for golf exercise conditioning. His articles have been featured in Sports Illustrated, Golf Digest, and PGATOUR.com, and authored Fit for Life Fit for Golf. Over his thirty-year career, Randy has designed fitness programs for elite junior golfers, college golf teams, and winners on the LPGA and PGA TOUR. His passion for providing cutting-edge performance programs extends to recreational golfers as well as the best players in the world.

PGA TOUR Students: Davis Love III, Lucas Glover, Jonathan Byrd, Charles Howell III, Zach Johnson, Chris Kirk, David Toms, Brendon deJonge, Brian Harman, Luke Gutherie, Justin Leonard, and Billy Horschel.

Phil is one of the most sought-after specialist putting coaches in the world and has worked with many of the world-leading players. Before developing a career as a coach, Phil was a professional golfer who competed worldwide as a tournament professional. Prior to his career in professional golf, Phil completed a Master’s Degree in Sports Science. Phil’s background in sports science brings a cutting edge to putting instruction which when combined with his experiences as both player and coach means that his putting instruction is always pushing the limits and looking for new ways to help golfers.

Past and Present Students: Matt Fitzpatrick, Keegan Bradley, Brooks Koepka, Max Homa, Rory McIlroy, Henrik Stenson, Gary Woodland, Justin Rose, Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer, Tommy Fleetwood, and Francesco Molinari

Ryan’s teaching career began in Greensboro, North Carolina, in 2014, where he refined his teaching skills under the guidance of PGA Hall of Fame Teacher Rick Murphy. His passion for player development led him to seek knowledge and expertise in coaching and human performance from experts across the world, including PGA Tour coaches, fitness professionals, and Ph.D.s. Ryan holds numerous certifications in teaching and coaching, motor learning, and biomechanics, specializing in developing golfers of all skill levels, with a particular focus on elite junior and college athletes. His dedication and expertise in golf instruction earned him the honor of being the keynote speaker at the 2023 CPGA Teaching Summit, and he was named by Golf Digest as one of the ‘Best Young Teachers in America’ in 2021-22 and again in 2023-24. He was ranked #14 in the 2022-23 ‘Best Teachers in South Carolina.’ In 2016, 2017, and 2018, Ryan was selected as a Top 50 Master Teacher by the U.S. Kids Golf Foundation for his exemplary work and dedication to the growth and development of youth golf.

Past and Present Students: Katie Burnett, Scott Langley, and Austin Morrison

Justin Parsons is originally from Killinchy in Northern Ireland. He joined our team after serving as the Director of Instruction at The Butch Harmon School of Golf in Dubai since 2008 where he had the opportunity to be mentored by Butch Harmon and his son and respected coach, Claude Harmon III. Justin is a Titleist Advisory Staff member and a Titleist Performance Institute Level 3 Golf Professional Certified coach. He is a specialist in 3D analysis and functional movement screening. Since his arrival in 2019, Justin has enjoyed success with players he assists winning events on the Korn Ferry, PGA Tour, appearing in the Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup and twinning the Open Championship.

TOUR Students: Davis Love III, Brian Harman, Harris English, Louis Oosthuizen, Branden Grace, Patton Kizzire, Will Gordon, Luke List, Tyson Alexander, Ben Martin, and Ben Kohles

Chan was born in Americus, GA, and played collegiately at Georgia Tech from 1987-1991. As a junior golfer, he learned to play the game from Davis Love, Jr. and Jimmy Hodges at the Sea Island Golf Club. After college, he played professionally for three years and then started his career in the golf business at Ansley Golf Club in Atlanta in 1995. In March of 1997, Chan moved to the Atlanta Athletic Club where he taught all levels of players both as a Teaching Professional and Director of Instruction over a 24-year period. He has helped more than 40 juniors both male and female reach their goal of playing collegiate golf. Chan joined the Sea Island Golf Performance Center in 2021 as an Elite Instructor.

TOUR Students: Keith Mitchell and Michael Thompson

David Angelotti, a PGA professional since 2011, began his teaching career under the tutelage of the Jim McLean Golf Schools. During his tenure with JMGS, he achieved the Master Instructor classification. David regularly travels to observe and learn from some of the best minds in the game. His love for the game, specifically putting, has grown since his very first lesson. He has continually sought out short game specialists such as Phil Kenyon, David Orr, Dr. Rob Neal, James Ridyard, John Graham, Kevin Weeks, and many more. David accredits his passion and knowledge of putting to two specific individuals, Phil Kenyon and David Orr. David has spent numerous hours with these fantastic coaches to help hone his craft. David takes pride in the opportunity to work with all ages and skill levels from beginners to accomplished players guiding them to achieving their goals.

Current and Past Tour Player Students: Will Gordon, Jonathan Byrd, Hudson Swafford, Alex Fitzpatricka, Ariay Jutanugarn, Moriya Jutanugarn, Akshay Bahatia, Keith Mitchell, Josh Teater, and Michael Thompson

A PGA professional since 1995 and LPGA member since 1997, Chrissy Felton began her golf career at the Sea Island Golf Performance Center in 1992. She became a teaching professional after many hours of observing several of the top instructors in Golf Digest schools and in private instruction. She studied under noted golf professionals Jack Lumpkin, Scott Davenport, Gale Peterson, Tom Ness, Bob Toski, and Lousie Suggs. As a junior golfer, Felton was a student of the late Davis Love, Jr. and Jimmy Hodges. Felton’s golf career includes collegiate golf at Furman University, post-college amateur and professional competition. She competed in many tournaments including the 1989 Ladies U.S. Amateur Championship.

Mike Cook joined Sea Island Golf Club as a teaching professional in 1991. Cook was selected among the top 15 teachers in Georgia by Golf Digest and has been named teacher of the year by the Georgia PGA East Chapter three times. He plays a large role in the development of Sea Island’s renowned junior golf program and, in 2007, the Georgia PGA named him Junior Golf Leader. Cook’s teaching successes include work with top junior, collegiate, and professional players. A University of Georgia graduate and member of the university’s golf team, he was named to the NCAA All-American team in 1982 and went on to play professionally from 1983-1986, including the 1984 South African Sunshine Circuit. He has coached and taught 35 collegiate All Americans and forty Collegiate Medalists, including a Naia Medalist and Atlantic Coast Conference medalist. Since 2010 Mike has been the Golf Director of Men’s and Women’s golf programs at the College of Coastal Georgia and is the Men’s Head Coach. College of Coastal Georgia won back-to-back the Men’s NAIA Championship in 2014 and 2015.

Tom Hemmings joined Sea Island in 2015 as an exercise specialist after completing his Masters Degree in Kinesiology. Tom’s experience with a variety of professional athletes has allowed him to customize his scientific approach when training golfers of all levels. Tom collaborates with our top instructors to ensure the exercise program focuses on areas that will enhance golf performance. He utilizes corrective exercise techniques to ensure the body is optimally prepared, as well as strength and conditioning elements to ensure that all areas of fitness are considered when developing a periodized plan for each individual. Tom has seen success with his players who have earned PGA Tour wins, Korn Ferry wins, Ryder Cup wins and selections, one Olympic team member, college scholarships, and junior-level wins.

PGA TOUR Students: Harris English, Hudson Swafford, Michael Thompson, Jonathan Byrd, Sepp Straka, Will Gordon, Greyson Sigg, and Luke List

Part of the Sea Island teaching staff since 1998, Victor de Sola taught golf schools under the direction of nationally known instructors Scott Davenport, Jack Lumpkin, and Todd Anderson. He has extensive experience and success teaching players of all skill levels, from beginner to professional. Fluent in Spanish, Victor played professionally from 1986 to 1989 and has been teaching ever since.

Jeff Nelson, PGA member, joined the Sea Island team in the Spring of 2018 after having a very successful 17-year career at Druid Hills Golf Club in Atlanta. From 2010-2017, he served as Director of Instruction and during that time, he was able to help develop one of the city of Atlanta’s premier junior golf programs. His focus is on creating long term golf development programs for youth, high school and collegiate players. Jeff enjoys teaching all areas of the game and works with players of all levels from the beginner to the accomplished player.

Curtis Leggett, a St. Simons native, has been at the Sea Island Golf Club since 1984. Leggett received his initial training under Ray Cutright building Sea Island Classic Persimmon woods and iron sets. Leggett is a nationally renowned fitter who is certified at the highest level with all major club companies fitting systems and has extensive experience with the Trackman Launch Monitor.

PGA TOUR Students: Davis Love III and Keith Mitchell

Jeffery joined the Sea Island team in 2013 and has worked his way up through the golf department. A great player and long-time student of the game, Jeffery has found his passion in clubfitting and enjoys working with players of all ages and abilities. Having studied under the direction of the renowned Sea Island Golf Performance Center Fitting Staff, Jeffery is well versed and trained in the fitting systems of all the major club brands as well as the Trackman Launch Monitor.