Tom Haggerty joined the Queensbury, N.Y. club as an assistant under Al Stein in 1973 before taking the lead role in 1978. The son of Bob Haggerty Sr., longtime head professional at The Edison Club in Rexford, N.Y., Tom has no intentions of leaving his members behind. “I have a motto that I’m always telling my members,” he says. “Where else would you want to be?”
Tom Haggerty is retiring at the end of his 42nd year as the Head Golf Professional and 50th year overall as part of the Glens Falls Country Club staff in Queensbury, N.Y., The Daily Gazette reported. Haggerty is the last member of his legendary golf family to wear the many hats—teacher, club administrator, rules official, tournament organizer and merchandiser, just to name a few—that a head professional needs to follow the PGA of America’s motto of promoting the game of golf.
Haggerty’s late father, Bob Haggerty Sr., was the longtime head professional at The Edison Club in Rexford, N.Y., while Tom’s deceased brother, Bob Haggerty Jr., was the professional at Schenectady (N.Y.) Municipal Golf Course for more than three decades, The Daily Gazette reported. All three are members of the Northeastern New York PGA Hall of Fame.
“I haven’t changed at all,” Tom Haggerty told The Daily Gazette in a phone interview. “I’m the first one to work, and I can’t wait to get here. But at the same time, I’m comfortable with my decision to finally retire. I might start playing golf again. I’ve been so busy here that I haven’t had a chance to play. Many people think that local club pros play a lot of golf, but that’s not necessarily the case at all, especially when you’re at a busy place like mine.”
Haggerty won’t be forgotten, The Daily Gazette reported. In fact, you still may see him helping out or even playing at the club.
“I’ll stay on as Pro Emeritus,” he explained. “I have no intention of moving. I have no reason to. This is a great quality of life here. I came here in 1973, and I’ve never left. I was blessed to have worked under Al Stein, who was a great pro. He mentored me, and between him, my father and my brother, I had a pretty good golf education. I have a motto that I’m always telling my members: Where else would you want to be?”
Haggerty literally grew up at The Edison Club while his father was the Head Golf Professional, The Daily Gazette reported. He was the No. 1 player on the standout Niskayuna High School golf team that earned a berth in the 1970 state tournament.
After graduating from high school, Haggerty attended Miami-Dade College for a year before becoming an assistant under Stein, The Daily Gazette reported. He stayed in that position for eight years before moving up to head pro in 1978.
“The thing I’m most proud of is my longevity,” he said. “Making sure I give 100% to my membership, and my service, between teaching and running tournaments, is what I’m all about. I feel fortunate to be here at Glens Falls CC. My goal is always to give top service. We are in the happiness business.”
During his long run at Glens Falls CC, he was a member of the NENY PGA’s nominating committee (1991-93) and served his first of many stints on the board of directors from 1985-86, when he was also a member of the tournament committee, The Daily Gazette reported. The pinnacle of his career was being named the Professional of the Year in 2006.
Among Haggerty’s other noteworthy achievements was being named the Bill Strasbaugh Award winner in 1988, and he won the section’s Merchandiser of the Year award for private clubs three times, The Daily Gazette reported. Haggerty was also the honorary captain for the NENY PGA in the annual Challenge Cup against the Capital Region Amateur Golf Association.
“About the only thing I’m a little disappointed in with my career is that I used to be a decent player, but with all the time I spent teaching and running our tournaments, and then when my son, Chris, was born, I just didn’t have the time to put into my game,” Haggerty said.
“But I’ve never considered this a job. I never got up and said I’ve got to go to work today. [The golf business] is in my blood. It’s hereditary. I’m very proud of being a PGA professional. When my members say ‘Hi pro,’ that’s an honor to me.”
Perhaps Haggerty’s favorite part of his many duties is giving lessons, The Daily Gazette reported.
“Teaching is a big part of it,” he said. “Once I’m out on the lesson tee, I really get into it. I don’t use the new technology. I’m a dinosaur. I love the basic fundamentals of the game. I went to a clinic by Jim Ballard in 1985 at Doral, and he gave me so much confidence in my teaching. After that, I was never afraid to say this is what you need to do in order to be a better player. There are a lot of teaching techniques out there, but I love Jimmy Ballard’s.”
Haggerty has always been known as an outstanding tournament organizer, The Daily Gazette reported.
“It’s so important to give them a good product when you run a tournament,” he noted. “I’ve spoken at several seminars on this subject. “In my opinion, a head pro has to be at the scoreboard for the club championship, the member-guest and the member-member. The members want to see the No. 1 guy out there. I really get into it. I produce a nice scoreboard and print well. Everything is legible. That’s very important to me and the members. I think it’s even important for our outings when they come here.”
Haggerty has a great deal of experience selling golf equipment, as well, The Daily Gazette reported.
“As I’ve gotten older, the merchandising has become more difficult because of all the new equipment and the constant changes,” he said. “But they updated and remodeled my pro shop a few years ago, and that helped me quite a bit. As a private club, we have to have enough products to satisfy our membership and guests. It’s all part of the deal,” he said. “I always make sure we have enough products and it’s priced at [a] discount for our members. I try to give them what they want.”
For many years, Glens Falls CC has been part of the NENY PGA’s second major of the season, the two-day Donald Ross Classic, The Daily Gazette reported. The local pros play The Sagamore Resort in Bolton Landing, N.Y. for the first round and then conclude the tournament at Glens Falls CC, which has always been one of the favorite stops on the NENY PGA Tour.
“I’m very fortunate to have been at Glens Falls CC all these years,” Haggerty said. “It’s a marvelous place, and Donald Ross was a legendary course designer. We hosted the 1963 NYS Men’s Amateur, two NYS Mid-Amateurs and the U.S. Mid-Amateur qualifier here. We try to give back to the game. In fact, we try to give back as much as we can without tying up the course too much and affecting our members. The members always come first, and we’ve done that.”
Haggerty said there is one description he never tires of hearing from his members, The Daily Gazette reported.
“What they say is that Tom Haggerty is Glens Falls CC, and without degrading anybody, that means a lot to me,” he said. “The course has changed a lot, and so has the membership in terms of demographics. But at the same time, being a PGA club professional has been a great profession for me. I’ve had an unbelievable run. And remember, I’m not going anywhere. You’ll still see me around.”
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