AT&T Brings “Fan’s Eye View” to Pebble Beach National Pro-Am

This February 12th through 15th, the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am will once again return to the historic, rugged, coastline links referred to by many as simply “Pebble.”

Throughout its 30-year sponsorship history the AT&T Pro-Am has been the site of some of the PGA TOUR’s most memorable moments.  From Jack Lemmon, Clint Eastwood, Peter Jacobsen and Greg Norman forming a “human chain” along the cliffs of the 16th hole at Cypress Point club to help retrieve Lemmon’s errant shot into the ice plant, to Bill Murray’s 2011 “Cinderella Story” come true, and even Donald Trump’s 1993 ace at Spyglass Hill No. 12, the #ATTPROAM has left us with plenty of enduring memories.

But it’s not just the celebrity attendees who have captured the spotlight over the years.  PGA TOUR stars have had their moments here too.  We’re still talking about Robert Streb’s masterful tap-in Eagle here at Pebble Beach in 2014:

Robert Streb’s second shot yields eagle at AT&T Pebble Beach

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AT&T’s “Fan’s Eye View”

As if all of this history and 30 years of AT&T’s sponsorship excitement isn’t enough to keep us glued to our TV sets for four days in February, this year AT&T will be bringing us its “Fan’s Eye View,” which includes a group of four lucky fans who will use the AT&T Network and HTC devices to document and share their journey.

The foursome will include Tim Lang- Military Veteran, Katie Horsford- First Tee Mentor, Dan McLaughlin of The Dan Plan, and Tiffany Fitzgerald of Black Girls Golf.  Together they will be granted a first-hand view as familiar faces such as Bill Murray, Don Cheadle, Jake Owen, Josh Duhamel, Andy Garcia, Chris O’Donnell, Kelly Slater and many others take to the tees.  The best part for fans such as ourselves is that the foursome will be sharing every detail of their one of a kind experience through their respective social networks—we’ll include more links and info on how to follow each participate in a moment.

In addition to participating in the event itself, Tim, Katie, Dan, and Tiffany will also be attending a series of exclusive experiences throughout the week, including a Video Swing Analysis session, Robotic Swing Training, and a Science and Motion PuttLab experience, all with top PGA Instructors.  Since each will be sharing these experiences on their HTC devices, we have the good fortune of having a front row seat for all of the cutting edge golf tech and instruction they will be receiving.  Plus, when the tournament rolls around on Thursday, the group will be lighting up their social networks documenting their exclusive inside the ropes access to the event.

You can find out more about the #ATTProAm via their website, Twitter, and Facebook pages.

Meet the Foursome

So who are these lucky four who were selected to participate in AT&T’s “Fan’s Eye View” at this year’s Pro-Am?  Given their incredible stories and growing social media followings, chances are you’ve already heard a few of their names, but in case you haven’t here are their stories:

Tim Lang

U.S. Marine and Iraq war veteran Tim Lang is not the kind of guy to sit on the sideline, so when an IED explosion led to the eventual amputation of his right leg Tim sunk into a deep depression.  Faced with the prospect of having his active life cut short, Tim began looking for a solution.  He began to find his answers when he took up the game of golf.

“Golf pretty much finished what doctors were able to start,” Lang says.  “It made a world of difference mentally, emotionally physically.  It became my satisfaction.  I was able to feel like a human being again. It gave me the self confidence that I missed for so long.”

Tim has since moved past his depression and now has a growing career as a motivational speaker, where he helps others learn the benefits of never giving up.  He now looks forward to his trip to Pebble as an opportunity to learn more about exciting new golf technology that will help him even further improve his game.

You can follow Tim’s journey via his Twitter account at @TimLangGolf.

Tiffany Fitzgerald

Growing up in Oakland, CA Tiffany Fitzgerald had very little, if any exposure to the game of golf.  Later in life, as she climbed the corporate ladder she realized that many deals and relationships were made on the golf course, a world that up until that point had been completely foreign to her.  Rather than let that stop her, Tiffany purchased a $100 bag of clubs and set out to make things happen.

Tiffany spent a few months brushing up on her game and then took the next big step, inviting a few of her coworkers to join her for a round.  By the time they left the 18th green “Tiff,” as they now referred to her, was no longer an outsider.

It’s true that at first Tiffany had only picked up the game as a way to grow her network and (hopefully) advance her career, but after playing a season or two all that changed.  Tiffany realized that like so many of us, she soon became hooked (no pun intended).  Seeing a need to make a difference for others like her, she took a huge gamble to leave the corporate job she worked so hard to advance so that she could start Black Girls Golf, an organization dedicated to teaching the sport to black women.  The organization’s mission is to help other African American women become “insiders” in corporate America and build confidence in themselves by learning the game of golf.

Follow along as Tiffany takes on her next big challenge, Pebble Beach, on Twitter at @BlackGirlsGolf or via her Facebook page.

Dan McLaughlin

The average age of today’s PGA TOUR golfer consistently falls somewhere between 30-33 years of age.  What’s more, current World No. 1 Rory McIlroy won three majors by the time he turned 25.  So when Dan McLaughlin of “The Dan Plan” decided to quit his full-time job at age 30 and pick up a golf club for the first time in an attempt to master the game most of his friends and family were left shaking their heads.

Dan’s mission is to prove that it’s never too late in life to start a new pursuit by committing to 10,000 hours of practice, a number widely considered to be the requirement to achieve mastery.  Recently reaching the 5,000 hour milestone—documenting each step along the way in photos, blogs, and videos—Dan continues with a single-minded focus on achieving his dream of a PGA career.  Whether or not he reaches that goal still remains to be seen, but regardless of where his journey brings him, Dan’s path has been an inspiration to countless others who, like Dan, dream of pursing their passion.

You can follow Dan’s progress, and his Pebble Beach adventure on Twitter at @TheDanPlan or via his Facebook page.

Katie Horsford

Katie first began taking golf lessons at age 12, but her shy and unassuming personality often caused her to be overlooked, even by her own golf coach.  Secretly however, Katie dreamed of one day played in the PGA, so she stuck at it.  Over the years Katie’s skills improved and so did her confidence, and as the two grew Katie’s personality and social circle blossomed.

Starting with a spot on the varsity golf team and building to a recent second place finish at the Nature Valley First Tee Open at Pebble Beach; Katie is slowly beginning to see the prospect of her PGA dream becoming a reality.

At just 17 years old, this promising young golfer has already become in inspiration to other aspiring athletes, and has even began mentoring younger girls in The First Tee program.  She hopes that her experiences at the #ATTPROAM will help her get a better sense of what her future PGA could be like and we’re excited to follow along as she shares that once in a lifetime journey.

You can follow along as well via Katie’s Twitter account at @kthorsford as well as on Instagram at @katietaylor15.

As amateur golfers, not only can many of us relate Tim, Katie, Dan, and Tiffany’s stories, we also can’t help but be inspired by their journey that has lead them to this year’s #ATTPROAM, as they show us what is truly possible when you commit yourself to making a difference.  It is truly stories, events, and experiences like these that will help us all grow the game of golf so that future generations can enjoy the sport we love as much as we do.

We’re looking forward to seeing how their “Fan’s Eye View” experiences at this year’s AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am continue to shape each of their personal and professional progress.  Remember that you can follow along as well via the social media links and join the conversation by using #ATTPROAM on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

This post is brought to you by AT&T, celebrating 30 years of the #ATTPROAM.  All opinions are our own.