Pro getting into the swing

KEVIN BIRDSELL/DAILY FORUM
Kyle Easter took over as the teaching pro at the Mozingo Lake Golf Course on Jan. 1. As the pro, he helps organize tournaments, manage the course on a day-to-day basis and hire seasonal help — in addition to helping players fine tune their swings.

Mozingo Lake Golf Course at city-owned Mozingo Lake Recreation Park is fast winning a reputation as one of the top courses in this part of the state.

And aside for the course’s natural beauty and challenging layout, one reason for that is Kyle Easter, who took over this year as the course’s new teaching pro.

Easter’s No. 1 mission is to make Mozingo as enjoyable as possible for everyone from experienced players to novice players picking up a club for the first time.

But the job has many other aspects as well, and Easter plays a big role in terms of keeping the 18-hole course running smoothly for visitors and Mozingo regulars alike.

“I run the day-to-day operations here at the clubhouse, manage all the seasonal staff, facilitate all the tournaments and all that kind of good stuff,” he said.

As the resident golf professional, Easter works hand-in-hand with the Maryville City Council and Assistant City Manager Ryan Heiland to make sure everything at the course is satisfactory for the paying customers.

“Basically, they’re the boss,” Easter said. “Everything kind of goes through them. Being city owned that’s how it should be.”

Teaching others to get the most out of their game is one of things Easter enjoys the most.

“I do a lot of teaching,” he said. “So that takes a certain knowledge of the game. It just comes from me playing for most of my life. I had some really good teachers growing up, and I learned from them. I worked with the Southern California teacher of the year for about six months, which was very beneficial. I also had a really good college coach at William Jewell.”

Easter graduated form Kearney High School in 2007 and attended William Jewell College to play golf before transferring to Northwest Missouri State University.

“I played my college golf at William Jewell then transferred to Northwest,” Easter said. “I was a double major in business management and marketing. Then I went to California, lived in San Diego, and played a bit out there but came back.”

One big reason for his return was Easter’s affections for the 18-hole Mozingo course.

“This golf course (brought me back),” Easter said. “I had worked here for a couple of years in college and after I graduated. It’s a really unique course with a really unique customer base that makes it really enjoyable.

“The golf course is top of the line, as far as how it’s maintained. It’s just a beautiful facility in general. And the customer base is made up if good Midwestern people that you don’t find everywhere.”

Easter knew he wanted to make a living in golf from an early age.

“When you’re growing up, people ask you what you want to be, and you say astronaut or firefighter,” he said. “But I just said golf pro, and it just worked out. I really enjoy teaching. I just really enjoy that part of it. Working with kids and the high school golf team is really fun for me.”

As required in his profession, Easter is associated with the Professional Golf Association.

“I’m actually in the PGA program right now,” Easter said. “You have to pass a playing ability test by shooting a certain score over 36 holes to get into the program. Then you take a number of tests just to continue that process.”

Among those taking advantage of Easter’s expertise with a club are the Maryville High School golf teams.

“I’ve just done anything and everything they need,” Easter said. “I’ve worked a lot with their swings. They’re really young this year, and they’re going to be young for a couple of years, so they have a ton of potential. I’m just helping them improve their game.”

Since becoming a pro, Easter has helped organize several tournaments.

“This year we’re going to have a couple new tournaments,” he said. “We had one last Saturday. … That’s always something that’s important, and that gets people excited.”

One of the new tournaments was an “angels and demons” tournament.

“The odd holes were a big eight-inch cup with an easy pin position,” Easter s said, “and the even-numbered holes were a tiny three-inch cup and a hard pin position. It was a four-man scramble. We had a full field for the first time, which was pretty awesome. People had a lot of fun.”

Also planned this year are demonstration days featuring name-brand golf gear companies.

“We are going to have a demo day from Ping and Titleist on May 21,” Easter said. “That’ll be something new that people should be excited about. It’s a great experience, and it’s a great opportunity to get to know your swing and get to know what equipment works better for you.”

Easter is also working on the new junior course planned for Mozingo.

“From what I’ve heard the ball is rolling, and everything is moving in the right direction,” Easter said. “I’m just really here for anything they need. They’ve got a really good group with Bruce Twaddle and all those guys handling it. They’re doing a great job.”

Once the new course is in, it will present a layout with fewer challenges than the main 18-hole course.

“It’s just a little more friendly to a player who is younger or who has not played much,” Easter said. “The shorter course will help and give people a little less intimidating place to get started.”