Former PGA player Brian Davis hosts West Orange High golf for preseason camp

“Trailblazer” is a word used to describe a person who makes a trail through previously uncharted lands, which results in an easier path for those who come after. Although playing professional sports isn’t an uncharted land in need of a trail, it is such a rare occurrence that navigating a journey toward the top tier of athletics can feel like blazing a new trail. Coming across a professional athlete willing to take time out of his or her day to provide guidance is rare.

This was certainly the case for former PGA Tour player Brian Davis when he was getting his start in golf. 

“As a kid growing up, because I was pretty good at a young age, I was very fortunate to have had the help of older kids to lean on,” Davis said. “These were kids that were a step ahead of me in their progression. … When I was a middle-schooler, they were on the high school team. When I was in high school, they were top amateurs, when I was the top amateur they were pros, right? So I got to learn from their experiences, but I never had the help of any tour pros who I could learn that little bit extra from a young age. At the highest level, it’s not just about knowing how to play golf, it’s about all the little things like learning to be a good teammate, knowing how to travel correctly. It’s about learning to watch what you eat, working out and all this stuff that almost has nothing to do with how well you hit the ball. I didn’t have someone that could teach me those things growing up.”

Despite that, Davis did well for himself. Since turning pro in 1994, he played in 386 total events — making the cut in 219 of them — and earning his spot in the PGA in 2005. According to the PGA website, Davis earned more than $13 million in prize money and recorded two international wins, five runners-up, 11 top-five finishes and 28 top-10 finishes. 

Now 50, Davis wants to take all the experience he’s gained and be the resource he would have loved to lean on as a young golfer. That’s where the Brian Davis Golf Academy comes into play. 

Giving back

Under the leadership of Rocky Hodge, the driving force behind the reopening of Stoneybrook West Golf Club, Davis joined the team and became the face of the course’s new golf school — the Brian Davis Golf Academy. In the build-up to the reopening of the legendary West Orange course, both men believed helping young golfers needed to be a core value of the club and academy.

“One thing (Rocky) was very adamant about was getting the West Orange High team here to Stoneybrook,” Davis said. “A lot of those kids work here, and he was like, ‘I want to bring the West Orange High golf team in and make this their home course.’ I was all in … and we made it happen.”

The result: a three-day camp for both the team and prospective West Orange High players.

“Obviously, I don’t want to step on the coaches’ toes, regarding the team, but I also see a massive opportunity for these kids to learn from us,” Davis said. “We’re still getting to know the coaches, but we just thought hosting the teams for a camp was a great opportunity for the kids to come out and see what we have to offer.”

From the West Orange High perspective, having Davis and his team available to the coaches and golfers is priceless.

“We’re so excited to be partnered up with them and have this opportunity to have our players learn from these guys,” Michelle Head, West Orange High girls golf coach said. “This partnership is going to be a big help for our players. Just having Brian and his team be here to help them improve is amazing. They’ll be able to see things that maybe I might miss or even some specialty things that I might not be equipped to give our team the correct information on.”

Win-win

The partnership between the groups is mutually beneficial. For Davis and the golf club, they get to make good on their desire to give back to the next generation of golfers while stitching themselves further into the fabric of the West Orange community. In turn, the hope is Stoneybrook West and the Brian Davis Golf Academy become the go-to resource for young golfers interested in taking up or improving their game. 

“Our overall goal is to not just help this group of golfers but eventually reach the next generation, too,” Davis said. “We want to help the golfers on the team now — but also help those who want to maybe be on the team next year. … We think that’s a great way to help grow the next generation of winning golfers for West Orange High School and hopefully grow the program more. We see that as a massive opportunity for them but also a massive opportunity for us as an academy.”

That opportunity isn’t being overlooked by the Warriors coaches. In fact, having this type of resource at their disposal could be the leg up West Orange needs to start bringing home the hardware. 

“The idea behind this was just to continue to partner up with Rocky and the team at Stonybrook West,” Head said. “They’ve been great to us, allowing us to use these resources and opening up the course to welcome us from West Orange. (Boys coach Jason Thorndill and I) were able to meet with the team from Stoneybrook this summer, and their desire to do more for us and our school was kind of what started it all. … The hope for us is that this partnership can help take our programs to the next level and help increase the numbers of players coming out, increase the skills of our players and ultimately bring some championships home.”

Davis is enjoying the opportunity he’s having to help these golfers grow. The longtime pro’s favorite part of hosting the teams for the three-day camp has been the chance he has had to build genuine relationships with the young Warriors and begin to make an impact on their paths. 

“When they first came in, obviously, they were very shy — they didn’t want to ask any questions, they didn’t want to step out of their shell,” Davis said. “That’s part of our job, though, getting these kids to open up, right? If they don’t open up to you, you’re not going to find out what they need. Whether it’s off-the-course help, something specific on the course, prep work, dealing with the pressure or a number of things that go along with playing competitive golf. … Seeing these kids open up to us and building their trust over this camp was probably the best part of what we got to do.”