Golf with Jim Meehan: Kalispel assistant pro Nick McCaslin true student of the game

There is no way to officially categorize Kalispel Golf and Country Club assistant pro Nick McCaslin’s accomplishments.

We’re not talking about winning golf tournaments. We’re talking about winning at his chosen profession.

We can safely say McCaslin’s resume puts him in the top 5 percent of nearly 28,000 PGA pros nationwide. The only reason he isn’t in, say, the top 1 or 2 percent, is because he’s not old enough.

McCaslin has crammed a lot of knowledge into his brain at the young age of 25, beyond the extensive schooling required to be a Class A pro.

In the last two years, McCaslin has achieved certification in all four disciplines – general operations, general management, player development and teaching and coaching – offered in the PGA Certified Professional Program (CPP).

“He’s a pretty special kid,” Kalispel pro Gary Lindeblad said. “I’ve taken to calling him Radar because he anticipates what you’re going to ask, or Freak Show because I can’t imagine processing everything he does.”

Each certification is time-consuming and involves taking on-line courses, passing numerous tests and essentially authoring a thesis that can be implemented at one’s home course.

Why go above and beyond?

“The industry we’re working in is ever-changing and as PGA pros we need to be experts in the game,” said McCaslin, who tipped his cap to the Kalispel Tribe for encouraging his pursuit of advanced education. “If we’re not, we’re not going to be the ones our customers and guests trust regarding instruction or club-fitting or whatever.”

Here’s one way McCaslin applied the classroom to the country club: He wrote a 20-page plus paper on utilizing Kalispel’s two golf simulators. McCaslin designed the simulator room, studied the top simulator companies and how the product would best serve membership and the public while benefiting the country club via increased food and beverage sales.

“We had to extend the golf shop hours over the winter from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.,” McCaslin said. “They were booked the entire day and it was really exciting to see that traffic here throughout the winter. We ran some leagues.

“We expected it to be busy but it was even higher than our projections.”

Pros at your local course wear multiple hats trying to ensure your round is pleasant. They run the pro shop, provide instruction, park carts, organize tournaments and announce the next foursome on the No. 1 tee.

If that sounds easy, it shouldn’t. Some aspects of the job – cranky regulars, irritable members, slow players – simply aren’t much fun. It’s a challenge to find ways to build membership, increase rounds at a public course and improve as an instructor.

“Our industry is evolving and changing so quickly, with changes in consumer behavior, business tactics, how to recruit members and create loyalty,” said Dawes Marlatt, PGA of America’s senior director of education and organizational development. “People have to continue to learn throughout their lives.”

Marlatt, formerly the general manager at the University of Idaho Golf Course, altered the CPP program, combining seven certificates into the current four. That makes it virtually impossible to track where McCaslin ranks among his peers.

McCaslin always thrived in school, from his days on Mead’s golf team to his four years at New Mexico State, where he went through the PGA golf management program while earning his business degree.

“Probably 3.8 (GPA) in high school, 3.9 in college, but it wasn’t something that came easy for me,” he said. “I’m the type that had to study a lot to learn.”

The next step for McCaslin is the Master Professional Program, the PGA of America’s highest designation. The program is available to pros with eight years of experience. He’s just in year four.

“He’s the kind of person, it sounds to me, that is very curious to learn,” said Marlatt, who hasn’t met McCaslin. “How often do you come across a young talent that’s working his butt off every single day in the industry, finding time to acquire knowledge and skill, and balancing their life appropriately?”

Every day, for those who come into contact with McCaslin.