One of the Most Recognized Golf Instructors in NoVA
For most of us, golf is a distant, unapproachable sport. But Tiffany Faucette, a Northern Virginia local and a golf professional, hopes to make the game more accessible.
Faucette, 37, from Ormond Beach, Florida, has been a teacher at 1757 Golf Course since May 2009, but before that she spent 11 years playing professional golf in some of the most prestigious competitions both in the United States and abroad.
Most recently, she was awarded “Teacher of the Year for the Northeast Section of the LPGA” in 2014 as well as the “2014 GRAA Top 50 Growth of the Game Teaching Professional.”
How did you get involved in golf?
I didn’t start until I was 17 years old. My dad introduced me to the game. One day I was at home and bored and he was going out to hit balls at the driving range, and I said, “I thought you wanted me to learn how to play golf.” He said, “OK, but once you start, you’re never going to stop.” I went to the golf course that first day, and I’ve been hooked ever since.
How do you think the sport has shaped you as a person?
One of my mantras is that anything you can do to improve your golf game will also improve your life. Many of the things that make a person a good golfer are transferable skills: You have to be able to concentrate for long periods of time, have to be able to make a quick decision, those kinds of things. So I think that golf has helped me tremendously. Those are the kind of things that I try and translate to my students. We aren’t just here hitting golf balls.
Do you think your career as a professional has made you a better teacher?
I think it is invaluable to my teaching because I have been through every aspect of what my student wants. I have learned from some of the best teachers in the game, and I understand that it is all about communication. I have a very diverse book of students, and I like that. Some teachers will only take accomplished players. It doesn’t matter to me; I want to help them. I can teach from beginner to professional because I have been both of those things. I find the variety keeps it interesting.
What do your recent awards for teaching mean to you?
It is very rewarding because golf has this stigma of elitism, so it is a passion for me to make the game more approachable and more welcoming. I was honored to get those awards because I do my best to attract people who are too apprehensive to begin.
Do you have any tips as to how to get involved in the sport in Northern Virginia?
Northern Virginia has some of the best golf courses in the country. I’d say just go try. Go to a local driving range, some place that you feel anonymous, and try and hit a ball. Experience it a few times and then go get a lesson. I’d say just go try before anything else. —Sophia Rutti
(April 2015)
