TEMECULA, Calif. -- Jared Agnetti, one of many graduates who attended Professional Golfers Career College commencement ceremony, proudly accepted the esteemed Valedictorian award for earning the highest GPA in his class. Three years ago, Jared would not have pictured himself in front of a room of golfers accepting such an award, as he was busy fighting for our country in Iraq.

While most people worry about the possibility of death, Jared spent over 36 months looking right into the face of it. Jared shared his story during his Valedictorian speech, and how his life took an unexpected twist during his last tour of duty a few years ago. On August 2nd, 2006, around 10:30 am Iraqi time, Jared was shot in the chest by a sniper in the An Bar Province, and was meant to die on impact. Jared never saw the shot coming, and had it not been for him turning at the last second, the bullet that pierced his body armor and exploded in his chest would have ended his life.

Jared was hospitalized for months and of all the things he mentally endured while trying to re-cooperate in his hospital bed, the hardest for him was the reality that he would not be returning to his platoon and the incredible men he left behind. Whereas most people would focus on their crippling injury, Jared could only focus on the men he left behind to fight without him. With this type of selfless attitude and commitment, it's not surprising that PGCC's Valedictorian honor is not the first high honor that Jared has received in his career; in fact he has earned one of the most respected medals a soldier can attain for his time in service to our country: the esteemed Purple Heart.

Jared found the game of golf as he was recovering from his injury, and it quickly became one of his great motivations to get out of bed every day. The bullet to his chest had shattered his spleen and rib cage, so he was not able to support his upper body to walk for the better part of a year. Once he began to grow stronger, Jared had to use a cane to get around. Over the course of that year, as Jared began to heal and regain his muscle strength through daily therapy, he slowly began to try the game golf. Jared quickly fell in love with the challenge of the game, and began searching around for a golf camp on the internet. He came across the website for PGCC, and after discovering the exVA assistance PGCC was able to provide him with, Jared applied immediately. Jared enrolled the following semester and began to integrate back into the civilian world.

Coming from an environment where he was trained to always look out for and protect those on his team, it took him the better part of his first year to acclimate to his individual responsibilities as a student and aspiring golf professional. For Jared, learning how to become the captain of his own mental game both in the classroom and on the course is one of the life lessons that had the most positive impact on him as a person. He attributes much of his success in the classroom and his overall game to the incredible faculty at PGCC. Not only was Jared able to obtain the highest GPA in his class, he was also one of the most improved golfers, shaving 30 strokes off his game while attending PGCC.

Jared is excited to begin the next stage of his career and looks forward to taking on a more involved role in the Minnesota-based charity called, "Tee it Up for Our Troops." Jared has been an active guest speaker for the non-profit organization, and hopes that he can be an example for helping our military take a positive step forward in their dream career upon retirement.

To learn more about Professional Golfers Career College, visit www.golfcollege.edu or call 1-800-877-4380

Interview Contact: Mark Bland
mark@golfcollege.edu
Professional Golfers Career College
26109 Ynez Road
Temecula, CA 92591