PGA Pro Adds New York Golf Park Purchase to Extensive Resume

Lucas Cohen bought the Greenport, N.Y., PGA-recognized property in March and has installed a 14-by-20-ft. putting green and rebuilt the bunker while also redesigning the miniature golf course.

The New York Golf Park in Greenport, N.Y., has just upped its golf game, the Greene County Daily Mail reported.

Under the ownership of Class A PGA Professional Lucas Cohen, the facility has seen improvements to its driving range, bunker, putting green and 19-hole miniature golf course. Boundary nets are now pristine, the overgrown fairway is properly mowed and the bunker is playable, the Daily Mail reported.

Cohen bought the PGA-recognized facility in March and now uses it to offer a variety of programs such as his Start to Finish Academy to teach proper grip, posture, ball position and other factors. He offers free clinics, paid camps and individual training sessions. Thus far, Cohen said, he teaches roughly 15-20 lessons per week.

Cohen and friends Justin DeBonis, John Hardy and Dean Zito have installed a new 14-by-20-ft. putting green, rebuilt the golf park’s bunker and are redesigning the mini golf course. In the fall, he hopes to excavate the driving range, level it out and install bluegrass, the Daily Mail reported.

Cohen began golfing at the age of 3 and the first course he played was at Columbia Golf & Country Club in Claverack, N.Y. Though Cohen went on to earn a degree in graphic design, a job offer in that field didn’t pique his interest.

“A family friend told me that I should be doing something that I would be doing if I were not getting paid for it,” he said. “My parents were the first ones to suggest a career in golf, and it took me all of a couple seconds to decide that is what I was going to do.”

After attending the Pro Golf Academy in Temecula, Calif., earning a degree in professional golf management, and completing an apprenticeship with the PGA, Cohen began working as the first assistant professional at the Country Club of Pittsfield (Mass.). He later served as tournament director at the Red Sky Ranch and Golf Club in Wolcott, Colo., as a master golf instructor for the PGA Tour Academy, and taught at the Grand Palms Resort in Pembroke Pines, Fla., the Daily Mail reported.

Cohen also served stints as a first assistant professional at Shackamaxon Golf and Country Club in Scotch Plains, N.J., and first assistant professional and academy director at the Poland Spring (Maine) Golf Resort. Cohen has earned honorable mention on the list of Top 50 U.S. Kids Instructors two years in a row.

For the past four years, however, Cohen has had his eye on the New York Golf Park, the Daily Mail reported.

“This was my dream,” Cohen said. “I absolutely love the area and love being my own boss. If I have an idea now, I can just do it and not have to go through levels of management to get it done. When I began looking around for a location, I did my research and noticed that many of the courses in the area don’t have a driving range. I think that we fill a big void.”

Tags: Country Club of Pittsfield Dean Zito grand palms resort greenport n.y. John Hardy Justin DeBonis lucas cohen new york golf park Pembroke pines fla. pga tour academy Pittsfield Mass. pro golf academy red sky ranch and golf club Scotch Plains N.J. Shackamaxon Golf and Country Club Temecula calif. top 50 u.s. kids instructor Wolcott colo.