First Tee – Connecticut lost a dear friend and coach in Walter Shelton in early 2022. Walter epitomized what it means to be a valuable coach and mentor to an extraordinary amount of participants in his tenure with First Tee – Connecticut. He embodied all of the qualities that make a good coach – compassion, empathy, kindness – and instilled those attributes in his young students alongside the nine core values that are the foundation of First Tee.
In 2023, First Tee – Connecticut established the Walter Shelton Coach of the Year Award and we are proud to have Warren Beardow as the second person honored with this distinction. Warren’s qualities are similar to Coach Walter in so many ways. Warren strives to connect with each young individual he is teaching to find the right words to ignite that “AHA” moment in their golf journey. Warren attests that in every class there is always some knowledge imparted, or a way of helping and relating to a child that makes him love coaching. Golf is a difficult sport demanding many types of clubs and shots and it can become overwhelming to a youngster as they are learning the game.
For over a dozen years, Warren Beardow has been coaching kids from ages 7-18 at First Tee – Connecticut primarily at our flagship location in Cromwell CT, and various other facilities around the state. While attending Tufts University in the late 50s, Warren studied English Language and Literature; his vocabulary and way with words is evident in his interactions with the young people at First Tee – Connecticut. Coach Warren is always there on the practice tee, putting green or the golf course with the right words of encouragement, a gentle arm around a shoulder, and a smile doing his best to engage, inspire and motivate the kids looking for their next great shot. At 86 years young, Warren is asked frequently by his friends why he is spending his time teaching young kids? His response is quite simply because he has so much fun! Warren goes on to explain that it is the kids’ smiles and their excitement that are his great reward. Humble and soft-spoken, Warren is extremely modest about the enormous impact he has made on countless kids in our communities, teaching golf and sharing valuable life lessons to assist in their futures. He knows from parent interactions over the years just how much kids rely on these life skills and incorporate the core values at school, socially and even in their adult careers.
Warren took up the game of golf when he was looking for employment as a young man and had additional time on his hands. Taking a fondness to it, he developed his own golf game during his late twenties practicing with famed teacher, Jim McLean, at Westchester Country Club, and playing in tournaments in the Fairfield and Westchester County area. A job with CBS as a Sales Executive led Warren to Chicago and he took classes in Sports Marketing at the University of Chicago. During those years, Warren honed his golf skills further and took advantage of the wealth of great amateur tournaments in this region. A new job spanning 30+ years as a product license specialist, primarily for the U.S. Olympic Committee, brought Warren back to Connecticut. While he played a lot of golf at various clubs, most often at Lyman Meadows, he began to focus on golf instruction and began teaching for First Tee – Connecticut toward the end of his career. When more time presented itself in retirement, Warren became a Certified Professional Golf Instructor with the United States Golf Teachers Federation in 2006 and offered private instruction at several places. He continues to give private lessons at Indian Springs Golf Club in Middlefield in addition to his volunteer coaching responsibilities with us.
We are beyond grateful for Warren’s many accomplishments and dedication to First Tee – Connecticut representing our organization with grace, intelligence, class, and humor. With no signs of slowing down, we look forward to many more years of having Warren teaching golf and life lessons to our young people. We value his contributions and are honored to recognize Warren with pride as our “Encourager of the Year” as he refers to the award.