Brandywine Country Club - Meet the Staff

Brandywine Country Club

George McNamara :: PGA Master Professional
After working as an Assistant Golf Professional at Chester Valley, Whitemarsh, Cedarbrook and Aronimink, George was named Director of Golf at the Ramada Downingtown Inn Resort which was located in Downingtown, Pennsylvania. He served in that position for 13 years. He has been the Head Professional at Brandywine Country Club for the past 24 years. He developed, owned and operated Mac's Golf Center, a full service driving range, miniature golf and teaching facility. He has been a member of the PGA for 39 years and he became the 50th PGA Master Professional in the country in 1988. George has served the Philadelphia Section PGA for 15 years and served as President of the Section from 1998 to 1999. He is a three time winner of the PGA Merchandiser of the Year award and was named Golf Professional of the Year in 1989. He was recently named the 2008 PING Club Fitter of the year. George has attended every PGA Teaching and Coaching Summit and has worked with some of the most renown teachers in the country, including Hank Haney, Jim Flick, Dave Petz, Paul Runyon and Manuel de la Torre. He has worked with Fred Shoemaker the founder of Extraordinary Golf. Extraordinary Golf is an environment for learning--an environment so powerful, it awakens a hidden process that is natural to each of us. Through this process, your instincts and awareness lead the way to the true sourse of your power and proficiency. Extraordinary Golf returns you to the wonder of learning and the results are nearly unimaginable. Extraordinary Golf's principals are committed to shifting the culture of golf from one of tips, techiques, formulas and answers to one of exploration, discovery and freedom. www.swingwithfreedom.com


Sarah J. Obee :: Director of Sales
Sarah has been in Customer Service her entire working career, beginning as a Cake Decorator and Pharmacy Technician with Acme Markets in her teens. Displaying an eye for detail and creativity, at age 20, she was recommended for the Manager In Training program for Acme and was accepted. For several years, Sarah worked her way through the ranks from Assistant Manager to Store Manager while being recruited to launch several corporate wide programs and participate in Grand Openings frequently. In 2003, Sarah accepted a promotion which landed her in the corporate offices for Acme Markets as a Six Sigma Black Belt. After six months of vigorous training, Sarah became a certified Six Sigma Black Belt Project Manager and lead multiple teams in cost saving projects for the company through in depth statistical analysis and Six Sigma Lean Methodology. In December of 2007, Sarah accepted a job working for the Delaware ShopRites as the CEO & Executive Staff's Administrative Assistant. Sarah quickly became much more than an Administrative Assistant, excelling in statistical analysis, process driven solutions for the company, training and development and acting Director for the company's Foundation. While coordinating her most recent Golf Outing for ShopRite, Sarah grew a love for Event Planning/Coordinating, as well as the staff at Brandywine Country Club. Taking a large leap from Supermarket Retail for the better part of 20 years, Sarah accepted the position at Brandywine Country Club as Sales Director and is excited to be a part of the Clubs bright future.


Michael Zerra :: Associate Golf Professional
Michael graduated from Vineland High School in 1990. He then graduated from Florida State in 1996 with a B.S. in economics. He received his golf training at the Golf Academy of the South and received extensive training in teaching, golf shop operations, rules, merchandising and club fitting. Michael has worked at Brandywine as an Associate Professional since 2003. His responsibilities include overseeing all operations of the golf shop, customer service, staffing and teaching. Michael has organized and administered the very successful Brandywine reciprocal play program during construction of the new golf course. His immediate goals are to become a member of the PGA and a Head Professional at a private country club. Michael and his wife, Jennifer and their children Maximus and Vivienne reside in Millville, New Jersey.


Ryan Howard :: Golf Course Superintendent
Ryan Howard is a graduate of the University of Maryland turfgrass program. Over the last 16 years Ryan has maintained clubs of every level from military to upscale private clubs. Some of the more notable clubs are Wyncote, Bulle Rock, Hartefeld National, Deerfield, and Burning Tree. Ryan served as Superintendent for the last 6 years at Hartefeld National. For 3 of those years Ryan also acted as a Regional Superintendent consulting with Broad Run, Inniscrone, Mountain Branch, and Deerfield. Ryan volunteers annually at Augusta National for the Masters and has been a bunker crew leader there since 2003. Also, Ryan has been a volunteer since 2006 for the McDonald’s LPGA event at Bulle Rock, in Havre de Grace, MD. When not at work Ryan enjoys spending his time with his family and friends playing softball, fishing, hunting, and grilling out on his deck.