Daniel Regan (’08)-Sales Manager for Golf Channel, GolfNow, NBC Sports
Q: What do you currently do as your job? –
A: I am the Market Sales Manager for Golf Channel, GolfNow and NBC Sports in the St. Louis and Mid Missouri area. I work with over 100 public golf courses to help them expand their digital marketing footprint.
Q: Did your Parkway South High experience influence you at all for this job? If so how?
A: Absolutely. I knew I wanted to study journalism in college after taking Mr. Brady’s newspaper classes. My two favorite things about high school were writing sports stories for the Treaty and then playing high school golf. My current role is a combination of those two things.
Q: What were your favorite memories from South High?
A: My favorite memory from high school is probably the 2006-2008 Parkway South boys basketball team. That two-year stretch was the best in school history and as fans, we didn’t miss any games. We traveled all over the city and state.
Q: Were you into sports in high school? What were your favorites?
A: I loved sports in high school and still do. I went to state as a member of the golf team. I also served as Sports Editor for the Treaty which made me a frequent attendee at a lot of Parkway South sports games.
Q: Did you attend sporting events at your school? What were your favorite sports memories from Parkway South high?
A: Oh yea. I didn’t miss a basketball or football game in high school. Many of my really good friends played on both teams so I was heavily invested. For basketball, I liked to think I was one of the ring leaders for our student section, the Patriot Posse. Although not a school-sponsored sport, hockey games were another sporting event I attended frequently.
Q: Did you ever play golf at all?
A: Yes, I played golf in high school. I was on the varsity team for my junior and senior years, qualifying for the State tournament my senior year.
Q: Have you met any professional golfers while working for the Golf Channel?
A: I have had the opportunity to meet a handful of current and former professional golfers. Some of those include Gary Player, John Daly, Jordan Spieth and a handful of others.
Q: What are some of your responsibilities working with the Golf Channel?
A: I run our digital brand, GolfNow, for the St. Louis, Mid Missouri and Central Illinois markets. Our company is based out of Orlando, FL so I am remote in St. Louis and run my area like a small business. My job is to help public golf courses sell rounds of golf online through our digital property. Think of us like an OpenTable in the golf world.
Q: What year did you graduate from South?
A: 2008
Q: What do you like about your job?
A: I love the entrepreneurial spirit within the role where I am essentially running my own small business. I love the freedom and flexibility of the job and how I am able to make decisions on my own.
Q: Did you have an idea of what you wanted to be right after high school?
A: I had no clue. When I went to Mizzou for J School, I figured I’d go into newspaper writing or TV and video. I learned very quickly that those two areas were very competitive and I still wasn’t sure I wanted to be a “traditional journalist.” The journalist school has a specific facet called Strategic Communications which dives deeper into the advertising and marketing realm.
Q: Did you have any jobs prior to the one at the Golf Channel?
A: I had a handful of jobs before landing in this one. I interned for Nike Golf, I worked for an Ad Agency called 3Interactive and I worked for a property management company called RPM.
Q: What are some challenges with working for the Golf Channel?
A: A lot of my job requires cooperation and communication from my golf course operators and because they have so much on their plate, it is sometimes hard to get what we need from them. In addition, while the freedom of the job is nice, sometimes it can be difficult being thousands of miles away from your colleagues and peers when it comes time to get answers for things.
Q: Who were your favorite teachers at Parkway South?
A: Mr. Brady, Mrs. Gehm, Mr. Jauss, Mr. Nichols, Mr. Jennings
Q: What do you miss about Parkway South?
A: One thing I miss about South is the school spirit. I miss the pride that comes with being a part of a school. I miss that about Mizzou as well.
Q: What clubs were you involved in at South?
A: I was in DECA, Fishing Club, Newspaper, NHS.
Q: What subjects/ classes interested you in high school?
A: My absolute favorite class in high school was Newspaper and I’m not sure it was even close. Some others I enjoyed were History and Biology but nothing compared to Newspaper for me.
Q: Any advice for people who would want a job like yours?
A: Building connections and garnering experience in that field would be the piece of advice I have for anyone looking to break into any field. Recruiters today are constantly looking for people who stand out therefore it is important to differentiate yourself.
Q: Anything else you would like to add?
A: When it comes time to start applying for jobs, internships, fellowships, make sure you are thinking outside the box. Whenever I applied for a job or an internship, I would always use social media to try and connect with the hiring manager. I knew that he/she would be sifting through piles of resumes therefore if I could do something to differentiate myself from the beginning, I thought I had a better shot. This won’t work every time but these are the things to start thinking about as you venture into the competitive job market.