Brian Jankowsk

Interview With Brian Jankowski Director of Instruction GolfTEC-Wauwatosa

A Light Hearted Golf Q & A Interview

By Brian Weis

Below is an interview with Brian Jankowski, the Director of Instruction at GolfTEC-Wauwatosa. The following are a few traditional and non traditional golf centric questions that I love to ask influential people in the golf industry.

Can you provide our readers a brief biography?
I have been with GolfTEC since 2006 and in that time I have taught just over 14,000 lessons. I have taught all ages and skill levels and in my time I have helped over 350 students shoot career low scores. I was nominated in 2014 and 2016 for Wisconsin PGA Teacher of the Year. I am versed in many styles and methods of teaching which allows me to give custom advise to all of my students based on their physical abilities and goals. I have been playing golf since I was younger and love to play the game when I can. With my busy schedule, I still carry a low single digit handicap.

When did you start golfing and who introduced you to the game?
I have been playing golf "seriously" since age 19. Technically my parents introduced me to the game but I would say my biggest influence in golf was Mary Beth Nienhaus, former owner of Winagamie Golf Course in Neenah, WI. Mary Beth gave me my first job in golf when I was a student at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. I taught junior lessons to kids age 3-13 during the summer. Seeing the enjoyment the game brought to other people made me realize this was something I wanted to continue to share with others. Mary Beth was a mentor and a huge influence in my decision to pursue golf as a career path.

What is your current home course?
I live in Menasha and work in Wauwatosa (96 mile drive), so I don't really have a home course. I generally play all over the place and ultimately I play where my students want to play golf! We are very lucky in Wisconsin to have so many wonderful courses.

To date, what is your proudest golf accomplishment?
What gives me the most satisfaction is when I am able to help a golfer who is on the brink of quitting the game and not only being able to help them get better, but help them become the best golfer they've ever become.

What is your biggest golf pet peeve on or off the course?
When golfers call the forward tees the "women's tees". They are the forward tees. Tee boxes are designated based on handicap. The higher the handicap, the closer to the hole you should play!

What is your favorite club in your bag and why?
My 2-iron. My driver and I have an "on again, off again" relationship. The 2-iron is my go-to if my driver is misbehaving.

What is your favorite golf destination?
I lived in Southern California for 2 years so I'm a little biased. But I'd play courses out there over any other destination.

What course is on your bucket list that you have not played yet?
Probably the same answer everyone gives, but it has to be Augusta.

If you woke up tomorrow and could play one course you played before, where would you play?
Encinitas Ranch in Southern California. Absolutely breathtaking views of the ocean. Played quite a few tournaments there and definitely in my top 3.

If you could change one aspect, rule or thing about golf, what would it be and why?
Every golf course needs to add another set of tee boxes in front of the forward tees. For higher handicap golfers and golfers who hit their driver around 150 yards, the forward tees are generally still too long.

Why should these golfers have to hit woods or hybrids into every green? That would be like a tour player playing from 10,000 yards!

Dream foursome (living)?
I'd love to play with Rory McIlroy, Jason Day, and Jordan Spieth. I'd love to see how good they are in person and would love to out-drive them as well ;)

Dream foursome (living or dead)?
These guys aren't dead but would be fun to play with: John Daly, Adam Sandler (playing as Happy Gilmore), and Aaron Rodgers.

18 Rapid Fire, Off The Cuff Questions

1) Hitting Long Drive OR Sinking Long Putt?
Long drive.

2) Having Round of Life OR Hole in One?
Round of life.

3) Golfing at the crack of dawn OR twilight?
Crack of dawn.

4) Hit a power fade OR power draw?
Draw.

5) Beverage cart OR halfway house?
Beverage cart.

6) Bathroom OR bushes?
Bushes.

7) Hot dog OR wrap?
Wrap.

8) Around the green, being in sand OR thick rough?
Thick Rough.

9) Walking OR riding?
Riding.

10) Do you carry traditional 3 iron OR hybrid?
2-iron.

11) Do you prefer long par 3 OR long par 5?
Long par 5.

12) Pants OR Shorts?
Shorts.

13) Palmer OR Nicklaus?
Nicklaus.

14) Beatles OR Elvis?
Pink Floyd.

15) Play for fun OR play for money?
Money.

16) Bump and run OR flop shot?
Flop.

17) Lay up OR gamble?
Gamble.

18) 18 holes OR 36?
36.

Revised: 04/25/2016 - Article Viewed 37,116 Times

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.