Dylan Galvan- People You Should Know

Cover photo-Dylan Galvan. Inside photo- Dylan displays his golf swing, which is fundamentally sound.

The Golf Prodigy Is Simply Unbelievable

By Buddy Sampson

We’ve been blessed to see young icons and prodigies turn into huge stars. Those stars started with raw and unbelievable talent, but honed their skills to arrive at the pinnacle, or at the summit of the historical icons that preceded them. Many of those prodigies will surpass the lofty standard or bar placed before them. Young Dylan Galvan, 8, is one of those prodigies that have that potential.  The young golf pro has already started making noise in the Junior Professional Golf Association (JPGA).

“My dad would always go out and golf and I wondered how it would be to play,” he said. “So I tried it out and I really liked it. I liked the challenge of it and its very fun to play with your friends and have a blast.” Golf, however, takes a lot of discipline and there’s a lot to learn about the sport. “If you’re doing a practice swing and you accidently hit the ball, it can cost you a stroke, and that means you have to add an extra point and you get a lower score,” the young prodigy explained. He even took time to explain to me some of the safety rules of golf. “If someone accidently hits a ball towards someone you must yell the word ‘fore’,” he explained.

Dylan lists Tiger Woods and Bubba Watson as two of his favorite golfers. “I really like Bubba Watson because he’s my favorite left-handed player,” he explained. “I really like Tiger because whenever I see him play, he’s always under par.” He lists his father George and Reggie Pinuelas, his golfing instructor, who teaches at Van Nuys Golf Course,  as the two most influential people in his young career. Like most kids his age, Dylan has some of the normal interests that many kids have. He loves video games and wasn’t shy to say what his favorite game is. “Mindcraft,” he laughed. “You get to build anything you want and fly around and mess with your friends.” Most people that excel in professional sports are very competitive in everything they do, including video games. Dylan is no exception. “It just makes me feel good to know I’m good at a sport or a game,” he said.

However, Dylan is no average kid. His innate intelligence has placed him at a high academic level, which has him, a 3^rd grader, with the intelligence of a 7^th grader.  As a student at St. Genevieve Elementary School, his favorite subjects are art, physical education and math. ”It’s very challenging and I usually finish first in my class,” said Dylan about math.  When asked if he would choose another profession, outside of professional golf, he was quite candid. “I’d want to be a doctor,” said Dylan, who’d like to attend UCLA. When asked why he had a simple, but concise response. “Because you can make a whole lot of money,” he laughed. He and his sister Katelan, who plays the trumpet, are both avid book readers.

His golf instructor, Reggie Pinuelas, who is in a potential series, “Chasing The Green” thinks very highly of him and works with him often to improve his game. “We practice a lot on the putting green and on my swing,” said Dylan.”Sometimes, I’ll hit the ball to the right or the left and Reggie helps me to straighten it out,” said Dylan of Reggie, who is a professional golfer.  “As a coach, for me to be able to coach Dylan is a dream come true,” said Reggie Pinuelas. “ I’ve seen a lot of swings and I’ve seen a lot of kids and I see something in this kid. He’s got the heart, the drive and the ambition.”

On the JPGA: “It’s a really great honor, because I didn’t think I’d get this far to really compete against all these great players in golf,” he said. “Competing lets me know that I’m good at what I do.” His growing skill on the greens will soon be tested. Dylan will compete in Pico Rivera on February 23^rd in a JPGA golf event.  His game has evolved so much, that he sometimes attracts a bit of attention. “A lot of times he’ll attract an older crowd that stands around just to watch him,” said George “Jorge” Galvan, his father. “They’ll ask, ‘how old is this kid?’ and Reggie (his golfing instructor) will say all proud, 8 years old,”said George. “They walk away and say ‘unbelievable!’”

Unbelievable is a great word to describe this young golf prodigy. With his intelligence, skill at golf and winning spirit of competition, Dylan Galvan is one of the People You Should Know.

Dylan and golfing pro and instructor Reggie Pinuelas.