L.A. Golf Academy
Heroes Golf Course (West LA Veterans Administration property), 11301 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90073
About
L.A. Golf Academy offers golf lessons, junior golf lessons, adult golf lessons, a junior golf camp, a golf development after-school program, and a golf therapy program. All students are taught by PGA Teaching Professional Carlos R. Rodriguez, and all equipment is provided, including clubs if needed. Junior lessons are tailored to the student’s golf experience and cover grip, swing, stance, balance, teeing off, fairway play, pitching and chipping, putting out, club selection, course management, rules, and golf etiquette.
• Ages: 7–18 years old
• Schedule: Private lessons are available every day from 9:00am until sunset, with 60-minute junior lessons for 7–8 year olds, 90-minute junior lessons for ages 9 and over, 90-minute adult lessons, a Junior Golf Camp running Monday to Friday from 9:30am–1:00pm during school breaks, and a co-ed Golf Development After-School Program held on Thursdays from 3:30pm–5:00pm (currently paused).
• Price: $150/day (includes green fee) for Junior Golf Camp.
PGA Teaching Professional Carlos R. Rodriguez is a Class A PGA Certified and Trained Professional with over 30 years of experience, many years of study and passing golf playing qualifications, and experience as an instructor at First Tee of Los Angeles. He is a U.S. Marine, an Aikido practitioner for many years, and studied Aikido in Tokyo at the Hombu Dojo. His teaching philosophy centers on harmony between the mental and physical aspects of the golf game, and he believes a teacher should break down barriers and preconceptions that may have blocked students from learning skills and concepts. The academy is led by PGA Teaching Professional Carlos R. Rodriguez and Manager Pamela Kratochvil.
Carlos Rodriguez received the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge The George Washington Honor Medal for his service to disabled veterans in teaching them golf and Aikido. He is a U.S. Marine who volunteers teaching veterans in the Greater Los Angeles VA domiciliary Golf Therapy program and at his Four Corners Veterans Foundation, and he is an instructor at First Tee of Los Angeles, a youth development organization that integrates the game of golf into its programs. Junior students at L.A. Golf Academy have gone on to win city golf tournaments and join school golf teams. Gift certificates are available.
Junior Golf Camp is offered during Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter school breaks and costs $150 per day, including green fees. The Golf Development After-School Program is a co-ed group class held on Thursdays from 3:30pm–5:00pm and is currently paused until further notice. Lessons are course play, while most other instructors teach on the driving range, not the golf course.
One Yelp review from Adam S. states that “Carlos is a gifted coach and has been an absolute pleasure to learn from,” and notes that Carlos “approaches each lesson with confidence and positivity and has the patience to ensure your swing fundamentals are trending in the right direction,” ending with “10 stars for Carlos.” Another Yelp review from Nicole describes Carlos as a “wonderful teacher and person,” explains that she had never golfed before and that he taught her to golf in one hour the day before a charity event where she had to play 18 holes, and adds that Pamela, who schedules lessons, “is also lovely” and that she would “10/10 would take lessons again.”
Last updated March 31, 2026.
• Ages: 7–18 years old
• Schedule: Private lessons are available every day from 9:00am until sunset, with 60-minute junior lessons for 7–8 year olds, 90-minute junior lessons for ages 9 and over, 90-minute adult lessons, a Junior Golf Camp running Monday to Friday from 9:30am–1:00pm during school breaks, and a co-ed Golf Development After-School Program held on Thursdays from 3:30pm–5:00pm (currently paused).
• Price: $150/day (includes green fee) for Junior Golf Camp.
PGA Teaching Professional Carlos R. Rodriguez is a Class A PGA Certified and Trained Professional with over 30 years of experience, many years of study and passing golf playing qualifications, and experience as an instructor at First Tee of Los Angeles. He is a U.S. Marine, an Aikido practitioner for many years, and studied Aikido in Tokyo at the Hombu Dojo. His teaching philosophy centers on harmony between the mental and physical aspects of the golf game, and he believes a teacher should break down barriers and preconceptions that may have blocked students from learning skills and concepts. The academy is led by PGA Teaching Professional Carlos R. Rodriguez and Manager Pamela Kratochvil.
Carlos Rodriguez received the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge The George Washington Honor Medal for his service to disabled veterans in teaching them golf and Aikido. He is a U.S. Marine who volunteers teaching veterans in the Greater Los Angeles VA domiciliary Golf Therapy program and at his Four Corners Veterans Foundation, and he is an instructor at First Tee of Los Angeles, a youth development organization that integrates the game of golf into its programs. Junior students at L.A. Golf Academy have gone on to win city golf tournaments and join school golf teams. Gift certificates are available.
Junior Golf Camp is offered during Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter school breaks and costs $150 per day, including green fees. The Golf Development After-School Program is a co-ed group class held on Thursdays from 3:30pm–5:00pm and is currently paused until further notice. Lessons are course play, while most other instructors teach on the driving range, not the golf course.
One Yelp review from Adam S. states that “Carlos is a gifted coach and has been an absolute pleasure to learn from,” and notes that Carlos “approaches each lesson with confidence and positivity and has the patience to ensure your swing fundamentals are trending in the right direction,” ending with “10 stars for Carlos.” Another Yelp review from Nicole describes Carlos as a “wonderful teacher and person,” explains that she had never golfed before and that he taught her to golf in one hour the day before a charity event where she had to play 18 holes, and adds that Pamela, who schedules lessons, “is also lovely” and that she would “10/10 would take lessons again.”
Last updated March 31, 2026.
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