Whether on the golf course as the head professional of the Atlantic Golf Club in Bridgehampton or in the clubhouses, restaurants and public events he strode, Rick Hartmann left an indelible impression wherever he went.
“He could talk to a tree and get an answer from it,” said his wife of 37 years, Claudette, on Thursday. “He was very friendly, very talkative, he was very entertaining. When I first met him he was the funniest person I ever met in my life, I had never heard humor like that. I was so attracted to that. His wit was unbelievable.”
Hartmann died of complications of cancer at the Kanas Center for Hospice Care in Westhampton Beach on Tuesday, his wife said. He was 66.
Hartmann was one of the most accomplished pros in the history of the Metropolitan PGA Section. He won four Long Island Opens, four Long Island PGA Championships, two Met Opens (a runner-up five times), a New York State Open and many other local events in the 1990s and early 2000s. He also played in three British Opens and the 2000 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, where he made the cut and finished 46th.
Born in Huntington in 1958, Hartmann moved with his family to Florida, where developed his love for the game. He tried unsuccessfully several times to qualify for the PGA Tour, and in the 1980s he played on the Sunshine Tour in South Africa (where he met Claudette in 1984) and then gave the European Tour a shot, winning once before abandoning tour golf in 1993 to return to the U.S., where he embarked on the life of a club pro. Hartmann landed an assistant’s job at the Fresh Meadow Country Club in 1994. He got the head pro job at Atlantic in 1996 and was retiring at the end of this season.
Charlie Robson was the executive director of the Met PGA at the time.
“The thing I loved about Rick is that when he got the job at Atlantic, it was typical Hartmann,” Robson said. “He said, ‘I don’t know why I got this job. I’m not the best person.’ I don’t remember the exact wording, but it was like are these guys crazy, they are hiring me to be the head professional.
“For a guy who was qualified and such a quality man he never took himself too seriously.”
“Everybody has their own Rick Hartmann story,” said Jeff Voorheis, the current Met PGA executive director. “The number of highly successful golf professionals in the Met Section who credit Rick, one way or the other and they didn’t have to be his assistants or worked with him, it was ‘he helped me with my game, he gave me advice, he asked me how I was doing all the time.’ He really cared about people.”
Ray Floyd, the winner of the 1986 U.S. Open at Shinnecock, is an honorary member at Atlantic and remembers Hartmann fondly.
“Rick was just the greatest,” Floyd said. “In my opinion, he was just the classic start of the modern era golf pro, the era after the Scottish, English type of pro, the classic American top-quality golf pro. A really good player, really, really good teacher.”
Atlantic Golf Club president Thomas J. Hughes issued a letter of tribute to the members, which said in part:
“Rick was so much more than our Head Pro — he was the heart and soul of Atlantic Golf Club. For over three decades, he embodied the spirit of this club, setting a standard not only for Atlantic, but for the greater golfing community. His presence brought a unique grace, warmth, and ease to the club — allowing each of you to enjoy the game of golf in the way Rick always envisioned: with joy, camaraderie, and excellence.
“When Rick and Claudette joined Atlantic 30 years ago, they quickly became part of the very fabric of our community. Rick’s energy, passion, and style shaped Atlantic into what it is today. His leadership was never more evident than during the height of the pandemic — a time of uncertainty for all of us. Through thoughtful planning and steady guidance, Rick helped turn Atlantic into a place of refuge, calm, and connection. The path he created during those challenging days reminded us all that there was light ahead.
“We are deeply shaken by the loss of our “Big Pro.” His absence leaves a tremendous void, but knowing Rick, he would want us to carry on — to find strength in one another, and to honor his legacy not with sorrow, but with gratitude for the moments we shared.”
“He always had a great sense of humor, make fun of people and get away with it,” said his friend for more than 40 years Darrell Kestner, head pro at Deepdale. “He did it with such a smile and such humor. He could tease anybody and they would walk away thinking it was a compliment.”
There will be no funeral. A celebration of his life will be arranged in Florida in the winter. He is survived by his wife and a brother, Jack, of Largo, Florida.
