Will Kropp is not exaggerating one bit when he says, "For me, golf is a lifestyle; it's my whole life. It's everything that I love — my community, my friends, my family. It's what I do for fun, it's what I do for work. It's all-encompassing for me. Life without golf? I don't know what I would do."

Growing up in Oklahoma, Will was introduced to the game at the age of six and immediately liked it. In high school, he won four straight state titles and was recruited by the golf coaches at the University of Oklahoma to play for the Bulldogs. After a successful college career during which Will posted 14 rounds with scores in the 60s and led his team as a captain, he decided to turn pro after his graduation in 2013.

He played his way onto the PGA Tour Latinamérica, where he won in only his fifth start on the tour, beating Angel Cabrera at Cordoba Golf Club in 2014. "I played two years on the PGA Tour Latinamérica and three years on the Korn Ferry Tour", he summarises his time as a playing professional on tour. "Now I live in Oceanside, California, and I work at Goat Hill Park."

Needless to say, Will is the reigning club champion at Goat Hill, a legendary muni that was once saved from being turned into a business park in a Herculean effort by John Ashworth and a supporting staff of A-listers like Bill Murray, Mark Wahlberg, and Adam Scott.

But it's not the low scores and the trophies that motivate Will to come out to Goat Hill every day. He found a new calling in golf by teaching kids. "Working with kids and teaching them golf is my favourite thing to do in my job. The reason I love it the most is because it's introducing kids to the game I love. The opportunity for them to get into the game and pick a lifetime sport — for me, that's what it's all about", he says about his golf clinics that regularly attract kids of all ages and skill levels to Goat Hill Park, where they can learn their first steps in golf from a real tour pro — for no more than $20.


But it's not just kids that Will has some well-intentioned advice for. The most important lesson he has learned in his 26 years on golf courses, in and outside the ropes, is as simple as it is valid for all age groups: "If you get to the point where you're frustrated with golf, take a step back and see all the things that golf gives you to be grateful for. Not necessarily the score, but enjoying nature, being with friends, meeting new people. All these things you can refocus on, and then you can be grateful for the game and not constantly be frustrated when you're out on the course." It's advice like this that most golfers need a coach for.