Johnny Gonzales Loves the Game of Golf

The road to achievement is not always the straight one and rarely an easy one, but a road with unusual turns, key crossroads, and many detours. Johnny Gonzales, PGA Professional the Golf Operations Manager and Academy Director for the Singing Hills Country Club at Sycuan has traveled a unique and interesting path thus far in his golf career. Gonzales is a husband, father, teacher, and businessman with great passion and love for all of the fore mentioned.

The position at Singing Hills is only the last one added to an already chalk full resume which currently lists him as part owner in three other interesting and exciting businesses within the golf world. Before telling you about all of these exciting business ventures that Gonzales has helped start and continues to serve, let’s go back thirty-three years to where his love affair with the game of golf really began.

Johnny Gonzales was born in New Mexico to Juan and Toni Gonzales. He is one of three children and wasn’t introduced to the game until he was ten years old. “My Dad and uncles played a bit. Conrad Hilton had a tournament every year at the course where they played. Back then there was a caddy system and my dad talked them into hiring me as a “C” caddy. Of course the “A” and “B” caddies were always chosen first, but one time a young man from the military service couldn’t afford one and, unknown to me, Dad told the guy that if he would hire me, Dad would pay the $10 fee. I was only 10 when I got that first caddy job. That job changed my life because I fell in love with the game,” said Gonzales. “My Dad didn’t tell me until I was 33 that he paid for those services!” he laughed.

Gonzales grew up on a farm and developed a strong bulldog mentality early on. “He has always been small in stature, but the more someone told him he couldn’t do something, the more determined he became to prove them wrong. He was always told by high school teachers and counselors to never consider college because he wouldn’t make it. They said he better pick a trade,” says Mary Jane, his wife of nineteen years.

Gonzales worked real hard on his golf game, and attended the New Mexico Military Institute and then proved he had different aspirations as he earned a scholarship to United States International University (USIU) in San Diego. He never had a golf lesson until he got to USIU.
He golfed at USIU in 1981 and 1982 and it was in the last part of his senior year that he met Mary Jane. She was taking 24 units that semester – so it seems to reason that he is not the only go-getter in the family. “Actually, Mary Jane has been so instrumental in my success. She really helps me, directs me, and is a great support in all that I do.” Gonzales said.

The two married in April 1985 and right away Gonzales was in he PGA of America. He worked at Chula Vista Golf Course as a first assistant initially. He then became the General Manager and Head Professional for nine years. In that time however, he may have learned more about business operations, people and teaching, but his aspirations of playing the tour were still too strong to deny giving it a chance. In 1992 he walked away from the security of his PGA job and put a partnership together with some sponsors so that he could try to make it out on tour. After three years and seventeen professional tournaments he didn’t qualify for the PGA tour. He and Mary Jane had two small children by now, so they decided that he now needed to go back to his career with the PGA. This time, however, he decided to become a full time teacher at Stadium Golf Center. “ My time at Chula Vista had been great, but I realized after playing tournament golf for three years my true love was teaching,” Gonzales said. Not only was he teaching avid golfers at Stadium at this point in his life, he was also in the process of introducing his own small children to the game he loved so much. He and Mary Jane have two children – Elizabeth (who is now 16) and Steve (who is now 15).

An incident when they were just learning he game may have yet been another one of those defining decisions that affects your life’s path. “I had taken the kids to a small course near our home in La Mesa to teach them more about the game. We went to Sun Valley for a fun day of golf, but the day turned out to be a disaster. I remember stepping over a dog to pay our green fees and then there were balls whizzing over our heads as we played and no one yelled ‘fore’. I thought the course had real potential and probably at one time had been a real fun course for beginner golfers and for families,” Gonzales recalled.

What happened next probably best describes why Gonzales has been so fortunate to have success in all of his business ventures. Although he was extremely frustrated with his family’s experience at Sun Valley, he calmly phoned the city of La Mesa, explained his experiences and then asked if the Sun Valley Golf Course was for sale. “I was told it wasn’t, but that if it ever came up for lease my name could be added to a list of people who would bid for it. I told them to put me on that list!” Gonzales said.

Barry Mahlberg, a successful businessman who was instrumental in developing Stadium Golf partnered with Gonzales and helped them acquire Sun Valley. “When we took over Sun Valley I knew it would be a great fit for Johnny. He loved kids and we both wanted to make it a family atmosphere,” Mary Jane said.

Mike and Johnny’s was born not too long after that. Gonzales partnered with his friend and fellow PGA professional Mike Nokes to form an organization for youngsters just taking up the game. Sun Valley was the perfect place for the mostly 12 and under crowd to test their skills and learn about tournament golf. Sun Valley had new life and Mike and Johnny’s continues to grow. After several years of Mike and Johnny’s, Gonzales realized that his now older kids and other talented youngsters 13-17 needed quality events to play in during the school year. “I was giving lessons to some students and was shocked to find out some parents were spending $10,000-$20,000 a year traveling around the country playing in National events and on the AJGA,” said Gonzales.

Here was yet another need and Gonzales quickly formed the California Junior Tour with partner Bernie O’Brian. “The California Tour is a weekend tour that holds events September through April during what is usually a down time for the competitive player,” Gonzales said. “ When we first started, we were not sure we would have enough quality players to make it work, but it has been amazing to see how many good players the tour is attracting,” O’Brian said. He continued, “We do not get a real good deal at most of the courses. We usually pay an adult tournament rate because we are playing on the weekends, but we are still providing competitive fields at a much lower cost than most of the national tours. Also, our players like the fact they are much closer to home when they have to be back in school Monday morning.” O’Brian said that it is easy to be partners with Gonzales “because everybody likes Johnny!” Both men are thrilled with the success and the level of play out on their California Junior Tour after three full seasons and are excited to see six more events in Northern California added to their schedule next year. “It is great to be able to provide this opportunity for these talented players. We fill a void between the expensive national tours and the summertime local tournaments- we are more regional,” said Gonzales.

Creating a new successful tournament tour for developing golfers is just one more stepping stone along this already diverse golf career. His main dream is now being realized as he starts an Academy at the Singing Hills Country Club at Sycuan. He is officially the Golf Operations Manager and will oversee all golf operations. The Academy is still in the developmental process, but he has a ton of ideas from his years of experiences. Mary Jane said, “We have been so blessed because people believe in him. He wants to make people life long lovers of golf. Johnny enjoys every level of teaching and his students are very important to him. This game has been very good to him- and he wants to give back.”

Those teachers many years ago didn’t realize two very important qualities about young Johnny Gonzales- attitude is everything and although he may have been little in stature, he was big in heart.

Jacqui McSorley is co-author of Golf Guide for Parents and Players, along with Johnny Gonzales. She played professionally on the Japan LPGA Tour and currently is an avid supporter of the golf community in northern San Diego county, as she started an LPGA-USGA Girls Golf site.