Luiz’s Official Bio

Born: December 11, 1962 (Age 61)
Weight: 152 lbs (66Kg; 9St)
Spouse: Ione Morales
Children: Renah, Renata, Rafaela e Rulian
College: UFRGS
Turned Professional: 1988
Current Tour(s): National BRATOUR, South America Tour, Asian and European Tour
Professional Wins: 45

About Luiz

Luiz Martins (born December 11, 1962) is a Brazilian professional golfer who has more than 45 career victories, including participation in 4 World Cups. Luiz was captain and player of the WGT Cup winning team in 2015.
In 2000, Luiz founded his own Golf School and since then spread his know-how throughout South America and trained more than 10,000 junior players.
The son of a bricklayer and cook, Luiz was born in Porto Alegre, capital of South of Brazil, and was raised in that city, one of the youngest of the 12 children of Pedro Machado and Leonida Martins Machado. Playing many sports as a young man (basketball, volleyball, swimming, and soccer), Luiz started playing golf at the age of 11 and developed his skills as a Caddie at Porto Alegre Country Club. He received all the experience and knowledge from his older brother Edson whom he has as a career mirror. Luiz won a caddies tournament at the club, and it was then that he began to think about playing professional golf and for this, he had the help of Joseh Bertazo (who paid for his studies until college), Roberto Sfoggia (who paid for a typing course) and Roberto Davis (who paid his Caddie in an open tournament of the club), attitudes that spurred him to take flight in his future career.
After graduating from high school in 1980, Luiz took the entrance exam for Physical Education at UFRGS in Porto Alegre. Luiz admitted to not being the best at everything, did not have the best school, the best notebook, the best book, the best clothes, the best teacher, the best equipment, the best food, but he had good friends, and always kept his speech saying: “I tried to improve every year.” Luiz turned professional in 1988 and played on Brazil’s PGA national circuit, including the now-defunct Gira Sudamericana, European Tour and Asian Tour.
Luiz Martins never took the game too seriously until 12 years later while earning an PhD degree in Physical Education at Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. Luiz played soccer at International Sport Clube and Cruzeiro Sport Clube as a professional from 1981 until 1985 when he decided to switch careers and ball size. He attended the Professional Golfers Program at PGA of Brazil, where he earned a specialized golf tour player in 1988. Before joining the golf tour at South American, Luiz worked for Gramado Golf Club at Gramado city where he coached juniors and adults the game of golf in 1990.
Luiz’s passion is coaching golf. “His philosophy is that no matter what level of golfer, “having fun” should be the #1 priority while learning and playing. Luiz views each golfer as a unique individual and then creates the swing that is best for them based on each golfer’s individual goals and abilities. Regardless of whether you are a rank beginner, aspiring amateur or professional Luiz will help you reach your full potential.”
Luiz developed the ¨elite¨ program and golf fitness for advanced junior players. This program was intended for junior players willing to pursue a career in golf.

Coached, advised, and placed students in NCAA and NAIA universities with golf scholarships. Luiz has over 20 years of experience as a tour player. Through his experience Luiz offers top quality instruction to golfers of all ages and abilities. Trained over 1000 professionals to teach golf and conducted over 50,000 hours of golf lessons and instructional advisor to several organizations. Over his 50-year golf career, Luiz has taken a diverse path and earned a reputation as one of the most knowledgeable professionals in the golf industry of Brazil and South America.

Highlights include:

• PGA of Canada Member since 2018.
• Named Director of Instruction for PGA Sudamericana since 2018.
• PGA Sudamericana Founder and Member since 2010.
• Named Top 60th Teacher of the World (WGTF 2006).
• Brazilian Golf Teacher Federation Founder and Member since 2005.
• Named 5-Time Brazil PGA Professional of the Year – 1998/99/00/01/02.
• Creator and founder of LM Golf School in 2000.
• Placed over 500 students in universities with golf scholarships.
• Golf Professional Manual Writer 1998.
• Introduce in the PGA of Brazil School of Teachers and Professional’s in 1997.
• National record braking golf courses – Gramado Golf Club 31-29 = 60 (Par 70 – 1990)
• Ponta Grossa Golf Club 29-31= 60 (Par 72 – 1992)
• Guarapiranga Golf & Country Club 32- • 28 = 60 (Par 70 -1994)
• Graciosa Country Club 30-32 = 62 (Par 71-1999)
• Paradise Village Golf & Lake 32-31 = 63 (Par 72-2000)
• Winner of the South America Tour Long-Drive, 1994/95/96.
• PGA Brazil Member since 1988.

Important people who are part of Luiz’s career.

Edson Martins Machado (In memory) – Jose Bertaso (In memory) and Family – Armando Flores (In memory) – Wilmar Charao – Roberto Sfoggia – Manoel Dias – Daniel Dias – Gilberto dos Santos (In memory) – Pedro Marino Rodrigues (In memory) – Roberto Davis – Jose Ferreira de Lima (In memory) – Osvaldo Saito – Antonio Nascimento – Acacio Jorge Pedro – José Maria Gonzales (In memory) – Luís Boaventura – Yoshiake Okita (In memory) – Hiroshi Tsuruda – Fumiu Sumikawa (in memory).

Kids in Golf
Kids no Golfe is a non-profit program of the Luiz Martins Foundation, in cooperation with some private companies and individuals. Kids in Golf provides tutoring, enrichment, parent engagement strategies, and technical support to prepare students to play and compete on the golf course.
The LM Golf Foundation is committed to creating a financially stable and sustainable program that ensures that children and their families in the community have a path to a brighter future and a chance to achieve success in golf, previously unattainable in our country.

Kids in Golf
Kids no Golfe is a non-profit program of the Luiz Martins Foundation, in cooperation with some private companies and individuals. Kids in Golf provides tutoring, enrichment, parent engagement strategies, and technical support to prepare students to play and compete on the golf course.
The LM Golf Foundation is committed to creating a financially stable and sustainable program that ensures that children and their families in the community have a path to a brighter future and a chance to achieve success in golf, previously unattainable in our country.

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Kids in Golf is committed to cultivating a culture of inclusion because we grow and learn more together. Our individual differences, life experiences, knowledge, self-expression, and talent are what each of us brings to our program. These differences represent not only part of our culture, but also of our reputation and our success. When recruiting to our team, we welcome unique input in terms of education, opinions, culture, ethnicity, race, sex, gender identity and expression, nation, origin, age, languages spoken, veteran status, color, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and beliefs.
Our students come from all walks of life, and we strive for that too. At Kids in Golf, our goal is to close the opportunity gap because all children should have the chance to achieve their dreams, find their place in the world, and pursue their passions. We continually celebrate the diverse community we are a part of, and our goal is to stay true to our mission while ensuring that playing golf can be anyone’s privilege.

Luiz Martins Foundation

Join us for the annual Luiz Martins Foundation Classic on Friday, November 24, 2023, at Guarapiranga Golf Club in São Paulo, SP. This is our biggest fundraiser of the year, and we can’t wait to welcome professionals and celebrities to this great event. All proceeds benefit our programs, including Kids on the Golf Course.

Programming

Monday, July 31, 2023
07:30 Gates open to all Guests, Sponsors/GGCC Members/General Public.
8:15 Clinic to the Public – Driving-Range.
9:15 Shotgun start.
14:00 Prize Giving — Scoreboard.

Tickets

General admission tickets are free and not required in advance. Tickets will be handed out at the entrance to the tournament.
Parking lot
Participants, artists, and professionals will be able to access the tournament through the main entrance of the Guarapiranga Golf & Country Club and will be redirected to the Club House.
Donations
General admission is free, but donations will be accepted at the entrance gate, merchandise stall, or online.
To become a sponsor, contact Renah Morales at fundacao@lmgolfschool.com. To volunteer and for more information, please contact kidsnogolfe@lmgolfschool.com.