PGA Pro brings golf success to Cambria County Students
Derek Leach’s golf academy teaches skills of the short game with long game success. Photo: Provided.
PGA-level golf training is now available in Johnstown, thanks to lifelong resident Derek Leach. His passion for the sport and his heart for students combine to create the new cutting-edge Laurel Highlands Golf Academy that operates exclusively out of the Windber Country Club. Here’s how he’s teaching the skills of the short game, with long game success, right in his hometown.
He shared, “I have been golfing for as long as I can remember. I started as a club pro, then joined the PGA in 2014. This membership gave me the highest level of training in the game.”
After several years as a golf pro, Leach decided to start his own business, offering coaching at his Academy for students ages 5-18 during the summer and individuals ages 5-85 year round. He said, “Johnstown was an untapped market for a business like this. I took a risk in pouring my years of experience into coaching and it paid off.”
He said that major metro areas are typically the only place you will find this caliber of coaching and technology. He continued, “I did something out of the box for this area. Our swing studio is not something you would expect to see here. People often must travel to Pittsburgh to get something like this.”
With help from Johnstown High School golf coach, Chad Cordek, the Academy offers 6–8-week programs throughout the summer, and lessons build incrementally allowing each student to build up their endurance for the game. “We offer the fundamentals in lessons focused on full swing, chipping and putting. Then we slowly build up competition play starting with 3 holes, then 5 and then 7,” Leach said.
He said that he focuses on the short game and how to hit those shots better. He shared, “When a kid signs up for one of our programs, they also get five private lessons. In the clinics and the private lessons, we really focus on working hard, techniques and repetition to improve the overall skillset.”
Luscious greens and blue skies can be seen from the Academy’s unique teaching studio. Photo: Provided.
Growing up in the area, Leach is invested in this community. He said that he is spending a lot of time with individuals. He noted, “A lot of my time is spent with the students on the course and during their lessons. But I also have to keep them on their toes by building and changing the curriculum, so they don’t go to sleep on the game.”
As with any business, Leach said he has to be looking forward to what is next. He revealed, “We are going to jump into online coaching and lessons. With the help of Startup Alleghenies, we are working on a video series that will spread my training beyond Johnstown.”
Coach Blake Fleegle has been an integral component of the success Laurel Highlands Golf Academy has seen so far. Leach said, “I went to high school with Blake. He is a smart business minded individual and is an expert with startups. He has connected me with other entrepreneurs and helped me get grant money to start my video series.”
Fleegle added, “Combining Derek’s expertise in golf with Startup Alleghenies expertise in business is the recipe for success.”
Leach said that he has benefited from Fleegle’s coaching just like every golfer will benefit from his coaching. He continued, “I work with everybody at every level of skill. Thousands of dollars in golf scholarships go unused every year. When you put that into perspective, you can treat it like a business. To be successful… You need coaching.”
Startup Alleghenies helps startup and emerging small businesses succeed by providing free coaching to entrepreneurs in Bedford, Blair, Cambria, Fulton, Huntingdon and Somerset counties. To access personal, one-on-one support from a coach in your county, including guidance, resources, tools and networking opportunities, sign up at startupalleghenies.com.
