Who is Felix Lechner?
Felix Lechner is a native of Munich, a family man and has been with the PGA of Germany for over 15 years. Officially he is Head of Marketing, markets the association internally and externally, develops new marketing and licensing models and looks after the association's long-time partners. Add the topics of infrastructure, digitalisation and, since the GDPR, data protection for the entire group. Exciting for everyone who wants to get into the industry: Lechner himself came to the PGA with little golf experience. The passion, he says, is more important than the finished ability, it just has to be allowed to arise.
What is the PGA of Germany actually?
Here Lechner clears up a widespread misunderstanding. Almost every amateur thinks they know what the PGA is and is almost always wrong. The PGA of Germany is the professional association of golf professionals. This includes two groups:
- Teaching professionals (golf instructors): they earn their money with instruction. They form the clear majority.
- Playing professionals: they earn their money through tournaments and prize money. They usually may not give any instruction at all, because they lack the training for it.
The PGA of Germany in figures
- Just under 2,000 members, of whom around 80% golf instructors, about 12% assistants and around 7% playing professionals.
- Founded 1927, originally as the "German Golf Instructors' Association", only later aligned internationally to the PGA brand.
- Second-largest PGA in Europe (after Great Britain & Ireland) and around the sixth-largest worldwide.
- Office in Munich, around 8 to 12 permanent staff, plus about 25 coaches in the teaching team and seven volunteer board members.
Important: there is no international PGA as an umbrella organisation. Unlike in football with FIFA and UEFA, every national PGA is independent. The PGA of Germany is thus responsible for Germany but subordinate to no one. It sees itself as a representation of interests, service provider and trainer, and as a complement to the German Golf Association (DGV), where the amateurs are organised.
May I teach golf even without the PGA?
Yes. Golf instructor is not a state-protected profession in Germany like ski or tennis instructor. So you may give instruction for money even without a PGA exam. The catch: as soon as you earn money with golf, your amateur status is gone, you may then no longer play amateur tournaments. That is not punishable, as long as the tax things are right. In practice, however, around 1,600 fully trained golf instructors are organised in the PGA, plus a few hundred who belong to another recognised PGA. The membership is effectively the industry standard.
How do I become a golf pro? The training path step by step
That is the core question, and Lechner structures it clearly. Unlike in many trades, you do not learn the actual craft (playing golf) during the training. A certain playing level is a requirement, not a learning goal.
1. The pre-course (preparatory year)
The training begins with the pre-course in the year before the actual start. It concludes with the C-coach exam (youth training, modelled on the DGV's C-coach) and an entrance test. The point behind it: the participants are very different, some 16, some over 50, from a secondary-school leaving certificate to a doctorate-holding physician. The pre-course brings everyone to a common professional basis. You can enter with a handicap of 18.4.
2. The assistant training (1st year)
For the start of the actual training you need a handicap of 12.4. The first year ends with the PGA assistant exam. If you pass, you become an extraordinary member and may give youth and beginner training as a PGA assistant. Anyone who wants to stay at this level may do so, but then limited to beginner and youth training.
3. Module training 2 and the full qualification
After that follows, over around two years, module training 2 with advanced instruction and a very broad range of topics: sports science, commercial knowledge, even greenkeeping and of course deeper swing technique. At the end stands the exam to become a Fully Qualified PGA Golf Professional. Requirement to take part: a handicap of 6.4, proven in a playability test (stroke play, at the PGA from the white tees). Anyone who plays themselves knows how demanding that is, here really good golfers come through.
4. Further training up to Master Professional
With the qualification it is not over. "Standstill is a step backwards", so the credo. Through graduation levels you can develop yourself up to Master Professional of the PGA of Germany, the highest qualification level. That is not mandatory, but is lived nonetheless.
Good to know: the training exists work-accompanying and in the dual system at a golf facility, plus career-change options and the crediting of content if you already have a professionally overlapping training. So anyone in the middle of life still has realistic routes.
How many manage the training?
Per year around 50 to 60 trainees start, in the end after about three years 30 to 40 come out as fully qualified pros. Some drop out, some deliberately remain assistants and yes, the exam is demanding. The association's aspiration: get as many through as possible, but no compromises on quality. This quality is internationally recognised and certified via the ILS procedure of the European association.
Why the job prospects as a golf pro are so good
That is perhaps the most important point for those interested in a career. The association calculates: every year around 60 to 70 golf instructors reach the age of 65 and gradually withdraw, but only 30 to 40 come up behind. On balance, net, pros are lost year after year. With around 700 to 750 golf facilities in Germany, a noticeable gap arises this way.
Lechner confirms: the PGA's job board "is bursting at the seams", many facilities are looking and get too few or not the right applications. Increasingly in demand are pros who not only teach well but are also strong in acquisition, marketing and sales, the job profile is changing.
We would have more need for young golf instructors than we train, the market is searching desperately.
What does a golf pro earn?
The salary depends strongly on whether you are employed or self-employed, where you work and which additional services (courses, clinics, golf trips) you offer. The concrete ranges and influencing factors I have broken down in a separate article: what a golf pro / instructor earns.
Frequently asked questions
Which handicap do I need to become a golf pro?
Tiered: 18.4 for the pre-course, 12.4 for the start of the assistant training and 6.4 for the final exam to become a Fully Qualified PGA Golf Professional, the latter proven in stroke play.
How long does the training to become a golf pro take?
With the preceding pre-course you reckon roughly with around three to four years to the full qualification, depending on the route and prior qualification. It is built work-accompanying or dual.
Can I become a golf pro as a career changer too?
Yes. There are work-accompanying routes, career-change options and the crediting of suitable prior training. What remains important is the playing hurdle, you have to be able to play golf at a good level.
Do I have to be in the PGA for golf instruction?
Legally no, because golf instructor is not a protected profession. In practice, though, PGA membership is the recognised standard, and as soon as you earn money with golf, you lose your amateur status.
