Revered golf instructor Eddie Merrins will be honored with the Humanitarian Award at the 2014 Spirit of Giving Celebration held by Our Lady of the Angels Regional Advisory Board of Catholic Charities of Los Angeles.
Merrins, affectionately known as “The Little Pro,” has been member of the PGA of America for 50 years and was PGA head professional and director of golf at Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles for 42 years. He now serves as Emeritus Professional at Bel-Air.
“It’s been an unbelievable career, as far as people, places and things,” Merrins said.
From 1975-1989, Merrins coached the UCLA men’s golf team and was honored Pacific 10 Coach of the Year in 1982, 1983, and 1984, and he coached future pros such as Corey Pavin, Duffy Waldorf, Steve Pate, Tom Pernice Jr. and Jay Delsing.
Other pros he has coached include Rocco Mediate, Amy Alcott, Jason Gore, and Vijay Singh, to name only a few.
Merrins also has published multiple books including “Swing the Handle, Not the Clubhead,” in 1973, “Golf for the Young,” in 1978, and in 2002 produced a video collection of his first book titled “Swing the Handle Video Collection.”
Merrins was selected 1977 Southern California PGA Golf Professional of the Year and 1987 Southern California PGA Teacher of the Year. He was inducted into the Southern California PGA Hall of Fame in 1989 and the PGA of America Hall of Fame in 2009, in 2013 was made Southern California PGA Honorary Life Member.
In 1980, Merrins founded Friends of Golf, Inc., a non-profit organization to raise money for struggling college golf programs. To date, the organization has donated almost five million dollars to college programs, high school programs, caddie programs and the Evans Scholar Foundation.
Merrins will receive his Humanitarian Award at the 2014 Spirit of Giving Celebration on Nov. 8 at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades.
