Mark Wagner
Special to ICT
Jason Montoya remembers a moment from 2002 that he sees as a moment of transformation in his life.
At the time, the Santa Ana Pueblo citizen was about the age of some of the junior champions he has coached as a PGA of America golf professional and was in the practice sand bunker at Twin Warriors, hitting shot after shot.
“Some better than others,” he remembers.
Notah Begay III came over to watch him. Twin Warriors was Begay’s practice course during those years when he was a two-time NCAA Champion and four-time winner on the Professional Golf Association Tour.
“He said there was a sound I should hear,” Jason recalls. “I’d never thought of it that way, in terms of sound, but he told me I should hear the clunk of the club on the sand in a certain way.”
Today, along with being a golf professional, Montoya is a recent inductee of the 2025 class to the North American Indigenous Athletics Hall of Fame.
There’s another way in which sound influenced Montoya. As a young boy on the Santa Ana Pueblo, Jason loved sports, and — like many of us — he was coached by his father and uncles, who were skilled, Montoya says with a grin, “at yelling and screaming.”
At the age of eight, Jason began to find refuge on the driving range at Santa Ana Golf Club.
“Listen,” he says, pointing to the area where he honed his skills. “It’s quiet. I would spend hours there to get away from the yelling.”
If peace and quiet and a mentor like Begay led Jason to golf, he also received a boost from the University of Nevada Las Vegas and its Professional Golf Management program. The program is one of only 18 PGA-accredited college programs in the United States and is situated in UNLV’s Harrah College of Hospitality.
Montoya arrived at the school when it was still developing a hands-on approach through internships, community service and career opportunities in the golf industry.
“The great thing for me,” said Montoya, “was choosing a school that was just beginning its PGA curriculum rather than one that was established. We were starting on the foundation. We were all learning together, using our brains to build a program.”
No surprise that after achieving his degree he returned to teach at Twin Warriors and Santa Ana Golf Club, a hive of activity of Native Golf — the site of the NB3 Foundation and host of the Native American Open each year. Chair of the Santa Ana Golf Club Jay Garcia has been at this for going on a decade.
“He’s a’ight,” Mr. Garcia teases, but then comes back with this. “Jason is a legitimate and true champion for predominantly Native American Golf growth and initiatives. He has coached, mentored and inspired over 300 youth athletes while 20 of them have earned scholarships to college. While predominantly working with youth, he has covered a range of ages from 4 years to 70 years old. In addition the numerous camps, clinics and corporate outings he has provided instruction, tips and inspiration. He also is a Nike N7 Ambassador promoting the Native essence within the sports realm. The Pueblo of Santa Ana is proud of Jason and celebrates his induction into the Native American Sports Hall of Fame.”
The list of Jason’s students who have gone on to play in college is long. The junior championships as well. He creates opportunities for Native golfers. It would be hard to express how excellent he has been for so many.”
Skyler Woods is in his first year at Florida A&M. A Navajo from Kirkland, New Mexico, he received a scholarship to FAMU after winning the New Mexico State Championship in 2024. About his coach, Skyler says, “He is fun to be around. He makes you want to come back.”
Woods devoted himself to the game during Covid, and then his parents heard about Jason.
“We were looking for coaches in 2021. Ever since then, he was my coach and also my captain for New Mexico Junior America’s Cup. He’s created a lot of students into great golfers. A lot of his students have gone on to play collegiate golf. And as a Native, It’s great for our Native community. A lot of people think golf is too expensive, but Jason creates a lot of opportunities for Native golfers.“
Aidan Thomas is in his last semester and a standout at New Mexico State University. In October, Thomas won The Notah Begay Collegiate Match Play, also held at Twin Warriors, which featured teams from four major universities.
Begay and his business partner Ryan Burr invited participants from the University of New Mexico, New Mexico State University, University of Texas, and Begay’s alma mater, Stanford University. At this year’s Native American Open, which he also won, Thomas announced he was turning pro after college.
Kristi Daniels Long is the mother of Olivia and Maddison. The Long sisters also have full trophy cases, with Maddison Long being in the number one slot in her first year at the University of Maryland.
“It’s hard to overstate how important Jason was to the girls’ development. His school stresses the development of the healthy mind and body through golf,” Daniels Long says. “That they are excellent golfers is almost beside the point.”
A lot of golfers are familiar with the phrase, “it’s a humbling game.” But why is humility a good thing, if it is? Many have a clear and stinging memory of having high expectations — for a love, or a game, or a movie.
The dashing of these expectations teaches us and this is a common theme in Native cultures. One of the wisest characteristics one can bring into the world is a natural humility of spirit. This allows to avoid the disappointment following high expectations and to live with an appreciative spirit.
When one is humbled by golf, it is part of the process of learning these difficult lessons. For Montoya, the results of humility and appreciation speak for themselves.
A 2025 induction into The North American Indigenous Athletics Hall of Fame can now be added to his resumé, which includes being the first Pueblo Native to become a certified PGA teacher. He also received a PGA Section’s Youth Player Development Award in 2019.
The Induction Ceremony will take place June 7th, 2025 in Oneida, WI.
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