Women's Golf Celebration: An Interview with Stephanie Vanderpas
This interview feature is part of the PGA of BC's Women's Golf Celebration presented by adidas Golf Canada. Running throughout the month of June, the Women’s Golf Celebration serves to highlight the incredible women in the Association and to promote the visibility and empowerment of women and girls in golf. To learn more about the Women's Golf Celebration, please click here.
June 26, 2025
Richmond, BC (PGA of BC) -
A rising leader in the PGA of BC, Stephanie Vanderpas is the Director of Instruction at Point Grey Golf & Country Club, where she champions inclusive, experience-driven programming. With a passion for mentorship and a commitment to authenticity, Vanderpas has become a powerful role model for the next generation of professionals.
Graham Abraham: Could you tell me about your background in golf?
Stephanie Vanderpas: I started golfing when I was probably five or six years old. My dad got my sister [PGA of BC Professional Christine Wong] and I into golf. He's just obsessed with it. We had quite a big backyard, and we would take his clubs and swing them around. Eventually, he took us to the driving range and people started to recognize that these two girls are actually quite good at golf. People started whispering in my dad's ear like, ‘Hey, do you know there's a lot of opportunities for women and girls in golf?’
Both my parents, they worked double shifts all the time, they worked a ton, and college was always a little bit of a daunting financial feat for them. Hearing that we could get scholarships through golf really kind of pushed us in that direction. Luckily, we were good enough to both get scholarships. We started playing tournaments when we were about 10 or 11 and we had relatively successful Junior careers, and I eventually went to UBC.
I found a lot of success at UBC. We won a couple national tournaments at the NAIA level and I won a Division 2 event at Western Washington University. I made the All-American team. I really appreciated my time at UBC because it gave me the tools and the connections to succeed in the industry in the Lower Mainland.
GA: How did those experiences at UBC help prepare you for your career as a Golf Professional?
SV: Being a varsity athlete and also going to school, you have to learn to balance your schedule. You’re waking up at 5:30am for a 6:00am workout, you go to class, you go to practice, and you’re traveling. What I really took out of my experience was how to manage my time and how to stay organized. You have to be at the top of your game, but you also have to make sure you’re doing well in school to stay on the team.
Being in that type of environment, we spent a lot of time at private clubs, at different fundraisers. We had to be professional and were around people that we needed to impress, to make sure the program stayed afloat. During the time that I was there, our program was under review. They almost cut the UBC golf program. It’s crazy to think that the program may not have existed, and now they’re breaking a ton of records and winning national championships.
Prior to joining the PGA of Canada, Vanderpas worked for British Columbia Golf, where she discovered a passion for working with junior golfers and laying the groundwork for the future of the game.
SV: Through my work at BC Golf and at the BC Summer Games, I started to recognize that I had a passion for teaching kids and helping them grow. That’s when I decided to get my PGA of Canada membership. I started applying everywhere, and Point Grey and Dave Zibrik [Director of Golf] took a chance on me back in 2017.
In eight years at the club, Vanderpas has served in various roles that include running junior and women’s programming, teaching lessons, and assisting in the pro shop. Earlier this year, she was promoted to Point Grey Golf & Country Club Director of Instruction.
GA: Congratulations on the new role. What does it mean to you to be named Director of Instruction at Point Grey?
SV: It didn’t really hit me until about a month into it. If I look around across the country, across the Association, there aren’t that many young women in golf in general. To be in this role as Director of Instruction means so much to me. My biggest role model growing up was [LPGA Tour winner and Richmond resident] Jennifer Wyatt. I hope that other young women and girls will be empowered to step into roles like this.
To be able to do this job at Point Grey, one of the more well-known clubs in Canada, I’m proud of myself and of how much work it took to get here, because being a woman in a male-dominated industry is hard enough. You always have to work a little harder, you have to show up a little more polished. I always make sure that I show up being my best self. I never want to waver from who I am as a person. Being true to myself is really important and I think that’s what has gotten me to this point, I never changed who I was.
Vanderpas is well-known for her innovative and inventive programs at Point Grey and her ability to connect with golfers, including junior girls and women, through an approach that resonates across age, gender and skill level.
GA: What are some practical steps that you’ve found effective in keeping women and girls engaged in golf?
SV: I have three junior girls programs that I run on a week-to-week basis and two programs for the women. I recognize there’s a bit of a gap in the industry, and we don’t always know how to tap into that interest. I like to have conversations with my non-golf friends. I ask them, ‘What would interest you? What would gravitate you towards a game you’ve never played before?’ I go outside the golf world, because those are the people that can give you the answers.
I always try to incorporate a social aspect and follow different themes. A couple weeks ago, the girls class I’ve run for about five years now, it was one of their birthdays. We did a golf birthday party with cake, snacks and mocktails. The bottom line is to make it fun. At the end of the day, golf is a skill, but developing the skill doesn’t always have to be the only priority. I want to make sure they enjoy the social aspect and each other’s company.
In 2024, Vanderpas participated in the Women in Coaching Program. Launched in 2021 by Golf Canada and the PGA of Canada, the Women in Coaching program aims to strike a stronger gender balance with high-performance coaches that better reflects the Canadian golf community. Each year approximately eight participants are selected to receive in-depth career development focusing on four main areas: individualized learning plans with monthly one-on-one check-ins, virtual and in-person coaching education and hands-on training experience. The program includes expert guidance from PGA of Canada Professionals Salimah Mussani (Head Coach, Team Canada – Women) and Jennifer Greggain (Associate Coach, Team Canada – Women), as well as Master Coach Developer Beth Barz.
SV: Last year was so influential for me, because I was part of the Women in Coaching program. We went to Phoenix at the beginning of the year and Austin, Texas at the end of the year. We had monthly meeting with Beth [Barz], and we were able to connect on a monthly basis with the women across Canada. Those women who were part of the program really shaped who I am today. They were so strong, they’ve had their own set of challenges and accomplishments and it was such a supportive environment. Without that program, I never would have had the perspectives or the difficult conversations that gave me the courage to land the Director of Instruction position.
GA: You've been a Zone Chair with BC Golf, and I also read that you served as the British Columbia Junior Girls America Cup Team Coach last year in Utah, is that correct? And what do those experiences mean to you?
SV: I was BC Golf’s Zone 4 Junior Girls chair for five years. I was running 4 or 5 junior tournaments throughout the year. I grew up playing in those tournaments, so it really meant a lot to volunteer because it was so important for my junior development. I played these tournaments with my friends, some of them are now my lifelong friends. I can have conversations with these girls, like, ‘I was once in your shoes and this is where I am today. It is possible to do something with golf.’ The friendships that you create, the opportunities that may arise in the future, I tried to pass along that message to them.
With the America Cup, I really enjoyed coaching last year, sharing my experiences with these girls. I'm going to be coaching again this year, we're going to be in Scottsdale in July. It means a lot to me to be around these young girls and spend time with them and help them go through the routine of being in tournament play. Sometimes I forget that I have all that experience, and it’s so easy for me to have these conversations with the girls. It’s so fulfilling for me to give back in that sense.
GA: What is one piece of advice you would offer to a young woman who loves golf but isn’t sure there’s a place for her in the industry?
SV: Just be authentic to who you are. It takes way less energy to just be yourself and people will gravitate towards you because you’re a genuine person. Even if you run into issues or trouble, if you stay true to yourself, you’ll be okay.
