nebraska pga november 2014 newsletter

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Dear Nebraska PGA Members & Apprentices:

I wanted to take a few moments and share with you some highlights from

the 98th PGA Annual Meeting. The theme of this year’s annual meeting

was “Driving the Game Forward” which highlighted the proud history of

the automobile racing tradition in Indianapolis and the continued efforts of

PGA Professionals to grow the game in our ever-changing society.

The first day of the Annual Meeting highlighted the extensive review of

PGA’s Long-Term Strategic Plan that will guide our Association through

2017. Peter Bevacqua, Chief Executive Officer of the PGA of America

reminded the delegation that the mission statement of this Long-Term

Plan is simply "Serving the Members and Growing the Game." Although simplistic in nature, I can tell you

first-hand that this Long-Term Plan and its core components will truly elevate our Association while also

increasing the level of service to us the PGA Member. Darrell Crall, Chief Operating Officer of the PGA of

America briefly touched on some of these components at the Nebraska Golf Summit this past month, but more

detailed information will be shared with you in 2015.

On the second day, we heard from our esteemed Past Presidents. This was a great

opportunity to hear from them how many of the decisions that were made over the

course of their terms have effected who and what we are today as an Associa-

tion. It was also a privilege to hear from the Keynote Speaker, Donald Trump. Mr.

Trump owns many PGA recognized facilities across the country and we appreciate

his passion and continued support to our Association.

The final day was truly historic for many reasons. The Deacon Palmer Award was formally established. The

Deacon Palmer Award is named after Arnold Palmer's late father who over-

came personal obstacles to succeed as a PGA Professional. The Deacon Palmer

Award bestows special recognition upon a PGA Professional who personally

displays outstanding integrity, character and leadership in the effort to over-

come a major obstacle in his/her life. The inaugural award, presented at the

98th PGA Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, was bestowed upon Deacon Palm-

er. The award was accepted by Arnold Palmer, whose only coach was his late

father.

Another historic event on Saturday was the election of the first ever woman officer, Suzy

Whaley, PGA. As a Section, we supported her nomination and election. We are very excited to

have Suzy as our new Secretary and are looking forward to seeing how she can help our

Association move forward.

Also, on the final day, we were able to vote on some resolutions that will be highlighted in the

days ahead in emails that you will receive from the PGA of America.

I realize that many of you continue to face difficult times at your facility and please know your Section Offic-

ers and Section Staff are here to help you. However, I can tell you with sincere conviction that our Associa-

tion is truly moving forward and is led by some outstanding

individuals who have our best interests at heart.

Sincerely,

Mike Antonio, PGA Nebraska Section PGA President


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Golf Professional of the Year - The highest award our Section presents. This award is based on overall performance as a PGA golf professional, including leadership, service and promotion of the game. Nominees: Mike Antonio, PGA, Happy Hollow Club; Wade Foreman, PGA, Firethorn GC; Don Germer, PGA, Players Club

at Deer Creek; Tony Pesavento, PGA, Omaha CC; Mike Schuchart, PGA, Wilderness Ridge GC and Matt Shaner, PGA, Kearney CC.

Teacher of the Year - Awarded for excellence in golf instruction along with overall performance as a golf professional. Nominees: Cory Fletcher, PGA, GolfTEC Omaha; Jeff Henry, PGA, Country Club of Lincoln; James Kinney, PGA, GolfTEC Omaha; Jonathan Mielke, PGA, Oak Hills CC; Jon Petersen, PGA, Tiburon; Mike Schuchart, PGA, Wilderness Ridge; James Sieckmann, PGA, Shadow Ridge CC and Shane Zywiec, PGA, Highlands GC.

Horton Smith Award - Bestows special recognition for outstanding service and contributions to developing and improving educational opportunities for the PGA golf professional. Nominees: Mark Christensen, PGA, Jackrabbit Run GC; Tom Hearn, PGA, PGA Tour and Bruce Lubach, PGA, PGA of America.

Bill Strausbaugh Award - Awarded to an individual who by their day-to-day efforts have distinguished themselves in the areas that truly reflect the characteristics and qualities that Bill Strausbaugh possessed during his lifetime – service to his Association, service to his fellow PGA professionals in helping them improve their employment situations and service to the community. Nominees: Bob Baber, PGA, City of Omaha; Joe Canny, PGA, Nebraska Section PGA; Nathan Kalin, PGA, Fremont GC; Greg Neujahr, PGA, Champions Run; Jeff Porter, PGA, ArborLinks and Matt Shaner, PGA, Kearney CC.

Junior Golf Leader - Awarded to the PGA golf professional who is a leader in junior golf, reflects the image and qualities that juniors can emulate, and provides opportunities for juniors to learn and play golf. Nominees: Bob Baber, PGA, City of Omaha; Adam Coates, PGA, Spencer G&CC; Hank McFarland, PGA, Lochland CC;

Jonathan Mielke, PGA, Oak Hills CC; Ryan Norman, PGA, GolfTEC Omaha; Rodd Slater, PGA, Two Rivers GC; Jim White, PGA, MP, West Nine Golf & Learning Center and Chris Wiemers, PGA, Happy Hollow Club.

Merchandiser of the Year/Private Facility - Recognizes the PGA golf professional that has demonstrated superior skills as a merchandiser in the promotion of golf. Nominees: Mike Brown, PGA, Hillcrest CC; Mitch Merrill, PGA, Sioux City CC; Nick Muller, PGA, Country Club of Lincoln; Dawn Neujahr, PGA, Champions Run and Carly Ulrich, PGA, Omaha CC.

Merchandiser of the Year/Public Facility - Recognizes the PGA golf professional that has demonstrated superior skills as a merchandiser in the promotion of golf. Nominees: Scott Harmelink, PGA, Green Valley GC; Joe Sutter, PGA, Quarry Oaks GC, Chris Thomson, PGA, Wilderness Ridge and Denis Vontz, PGA, Highlands GC.

Facility of the Year - Recognizes the golf facility that has played an important role in Section activities, as well as promotion of the game of the golf for men, ladies and juniors. Nominees: ArborLinks, Nebraska City; Champions Run, Omaha; Fremont GC, Fremont; Happy Hollow Club, Omaha; Hillcrest CC, Lincoln; Oak Hills CC, Omaha; Pacific Springs GC, Omaha; Players Club at Deer Creek, Omaha; Riverside GC, Grand Island and Shadow Ridge CC, Omaha.

Sales Representative of the Year - Based on overall performance as a sales representative including product knowledge, service, professionalism, and involvement in Section activities. Nominees: Craig Cozby, PING; Mark Crowther, Titleist; Marc Cruse, Laser Link Golf; Mike Long, adidas/Ashworth; Stan Sheffield, Foot-Joy; John Sheridan, Under Armour and Brian Winge, Callaway Golf. Assistant Professional of the Year - This award is based on overall performance as an assistant professional, including leadership, service and promotion of the game. Nominees: Jon Benson, PGA, Mahoney GC; Tony Driscoll, PGA, Bent Tree GC; Jeff Henry, PGA, Country Club of Lincoln; Tim McAndrew, PGA, Omaha CC; Ky Molholm, PGA, Lochland CC; Tad Petersen, PGA, Happy Hollow Club and Gil Russell, PGA, ArborLinks.

Player Development – Based on the PGA golf professional’s growth of the game leadership commitment at the Section and National levels and the impact made at the facility. Nominees: Bob Baber, PGA, City of Omaha; Michael Fauver, PGA, Miracle Golf & Tennis; James Kinney, PGA, GolfTEC

Omaha; Jon Petersen, PGA, Tiburon and Chris Thomson, PGA, Wilderness Ridge.

Congratulations to the 2014 Nebraska Section PGA Special Award Nominees

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http://www.allstarprogolf.com/

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The Nebraska Section PGA recently worked in collaboration with the local chapters of the Golf Course

Superintendents Association, The Club Manager’s Association and Amateur bodies to host the inaugural

Nebraska Golf Summit. The summit served as an opportunity for key local stakeholders, various department

heads at facilities and committees to come together and discuss various topics in our industry. In addition to

local representatives, national representatives were on hand to help discuss how we could collectively work

together to grow our game. We would like to thank Darrell Crall, Chief Operations Officer, PGA of America,

Mark Passey, Director of Regional Affairs of the USGA, Steve Randall, GCSAA Associate Director and Jill

Philmon, CMAA Board Secretary.

Lastly, we are extremely appreciative of VGM Club for sponsoring this historic summit. Since 1994, VGM

Club has been recognized as one of the nation’s premier member service and marketing organization for

member-based clubs, including golf, tennis, yacht, city and athletic clubs. Current membership exceeds 3,500

facilities in all 50 states and Canada. Collectively, VGM Club members possess purchasing power in excess of

$2 billion annually.

Darrell Crall Mark Passey Steve Randall Jill Philmon

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Nebraska Section PGA | 610 J Street, Ste 10 | Lincoln, NE 68508 | Ph: (402) 489-7760 | Fx: (402) 489-1785 | www.nebraskapga.com

As the “Experts in the Game and Business of Golf” the power of education is the single most important way to help enhance and transform our industry. Many of today’s thriving industries outside of the golf industry have alluded to the fact that there is a strong correlation between the economic viability of an industry and its education attained by those who work in it.

The current MSR cycle is roughly 8 months away from coming to a close and it is a priority of the Section to provide meaningful educational opportunities for you to meet these requirements. To review your current MSR status, please go to www.pgalinks.com and login. Under “your membership data” will be your current credits earned and what is still required.

To receive MSR’s for your Player Development Program, please complete the “MSR Report Form” and submit it to Nebraska Section Player Development Coordinator, Joe Canny, PGA at [email protected] or by fax 402-489-1785.

WHAT: Complimentary Online Education

WHERE: Click here for Log In

MSRs: 1 or 2 MSRs for each Video

http://www.nebraskapga.com

mailto:%[email protected]

http://apps.pgalinks.com/professionals/apps/education/video_education/index.cfm?ems_event=141

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mailto:%20%[email protected]

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Attracting Potential Customers Online With Pictures and Videos Spencer Golf & Country Club is a member-owned facility that is always working hard to attract new members, but we also rely heavily on green fee revenue generated from public golfers who come from out of the area to play our course. We are fortunate to be located just 20 minutes from the Lake Okoboji area, which provides a constant opportunity to reach out to many golfers visiting the area on vacation.

We are very confident that if they do visit our golf course they will enjoy it and become a repeat customer in the future, so the key is attracting them the first time. Aside from my challenge of spreading the word to them that they are welcome to golf here even though we are a “Country Club”, I also need to convince them to choose our course instead of other quality courses in the area. If we don’t do a great job of selling the reasons to make the short drive to Spencer, it is likely they will choose one of the three courses that are located closer to them in the Okoboji area. Having impressive pictures displayed on an attractive website and Facebook page is the first step to get their attention when they find us online.

Finding Great Pictures Like many other courses in the Nebraska Section, our golf course is exceptionally flat. I felt that to take the best pictures of our golf course, I needed to get up in the air. To do this, I rented a small and lightweight cherry picker lift for a few hours that I was able to drive around with on the golf course to where I felt were ideal locations (cost was about $150.00). The lift could go as high as 35 feet in the air to get a great bird’s eye view of several different locations on the course. These images have been useful in many different ways to promote a reputation of a high quality golf course.

Creating a Video This past year I called upon the help of one of my members who is in the business of video editing to create a short video to use on the website showing what we have to offer. He used a remote control drone helicopter with a Go Pro attached to it that he was able to do flyovers with on the golf course to further show off the golf course in an impressive way. The video also gave us the opportunity to use the audio to drive the message of “Your Invited, Please Come!” to both potential members and potential public golfers.

In recent months, I have been using a Go Pro video camera with junior golfers to create a unique and entertaining video to encourage local parents to get their kids active in golf. There are so many creative opportunities when shooting a video with a Go Pro. This video also runs through the schedule of all of our various junior golf activities and opportunities. There are so many potential ways to create interest with pictures and videos…. I’d love to hear about what others are doing as well! You can view our pictures and video at spencergolfcc.com.

Adam Coates, PGA Spencer G&CC Head Golf Professional

http://www.spencergolfcc.com

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ARE YOU ON TRACK?ARE YOU ON TRACK?ARE YOU ON TRACK? MSR Cycle Ends 06/15/2015

See Where You Stand:See Where You Stand:See Where You Stand: Log into PGALinks.com to

see your current MSR status

PGA Professionals, golf buyers and industry leaders can now register to attend the 2015 PGA Merchandise Show, January 20-23, in Orlando, Fla., online at PGAShow.com. Housing reservations

also are available online for PGA Show official ho-tels at PGAShow.com/hotel-travel.

The PGA Merchandise Show, the international golf industry's annual business gathering for more than 60 years, will begin with the 15th annual PGA Show Outdoor Demo Day at Orange County National Golf Center on Tuesday, Jan. 20, with PGA Show exhibits, demonstrations, education seminars, special events and industry presentations at the Orange County Convention Center being held Wednesday through Friday, Jan. 21–23. Click here to continue reading.

The PGA Financial Assistance Scholarship application is live on the homepage of PGALinks.com

with a submission deadline of Monday, March 16, 2015. Graduating high school seniors and college students who are the children or grandchildren of PGA members are encouraged to apply. Click here to view more information. Scholarship Resources: Click here to view Scholarship Search Tips Click here to view Additional Scholarship Suggestions

Online registration for a 2015 PGA/USGA Rules of Golf Workshop is now open. You can register via phone. More information

Our friends in the Northern Florida PGA Section have been kind enough to share this section benefit with all of the 41 PGA Sections and membership!

Limited Time of Ordering: This ordering window of time on PGA Member/Family Disney Discounts is from October 15 – and closing on DECEMBER 15th (NO EXCEPTIONS) for any of you considering attending the PGA Show this January. Benefit: PGA Members in good standing, may purchase tickets for themselves and their immediate family (e.g., spouse/domestic partner and minor children) in any direction (as listed) that these discounted tickets are prescribed in the Disney approved documents. Special PGA Member pricing for the four theme parks of WALT DISNEY WORLD RESORT (Magic Kingdom Park, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park – and more, water parks, etc.). Benefit Time Period to USE During: Must be used from January 14, 2015 through February 1, 2015 in connection with the PGA Merchandise Show. Click HERE for How to Purchase Tickets & Discounted Ticket Pricing Details.

PGA Winter Championships PGA Golf Club – Port St. Lucie, FL January-February 2015

2015 Schedule & Entry Deadlines Deadline - 5:00 p.m., EST- Wednesday, December 17, 2014 Quarter Century Championship - January 7-8, 2015 Senior Stroke Play Championship - January 13-15, 2015 Deadline - 5:00 p.m., EST - Wednesday, January 14, 2015 Senior-Junior Team Championship - January 27-30, 2015 Deadline - 5:00 p.m., EST - Wednesday, January 21, 2015 Women's Stroke Play Championship - February 3-5, 2015 Stroke Play Championship - February 3-6, 2015 Deadline - 5:00 p.m., EST - Wednesday, January 28, 2015 Match Play Championship Qualifying - February 9, 2015 Match Play Championship - February 10-13, 2015


http://www.pgalinks.com

http://www.pgashow.com

http://www.pgashow.com/hotel-travel

http://www.pgalinks.com/professionals/content/index.cfm?ctc=7298


http://www.pgalinks.com/index.cfm?ctc=5633

http://www.pgalinks.com/index.cfm?ctc=5634


http://nfpga.com/pgashow/

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STAFF

Joe Canny, PGA Junior Golf Director/

Player Development Coordinator

[email protected]

Renee Tyson Operations Manager

[email protected]

David Honnens, PGA

Executive Director

[email protected]

Sean O’Neill, PGA

Tournament Director

[email protected]

Russell Jensen, PGA 12/1

Larry Wheeler, PGA 12/1

Dennis Chandler 12/2

Chad Lydiatt, PGA 12/5

Dave Malone, PGA 12/5

Alex Carper 12/9

Mike Fiddelke, PGA 12/10

Jared Frost, PGA 12/13

Douglas Becker, PGA 12/15

Ricky Reynoldson, PGA 12/15

Jason Shock, PGA 12/17

Gerald Fisher, PGA 12/22

Mel Baker, PGA 12/23

Paul Swirzinski, PGA 12/28

Brett Morgan, PGA 12/29

Dawn Neujahr, PGA 12/30





mailto:[email protected]

nebraska pga november 2014 newsletter

Documents

pga of america

nebraska section pga

pga annual meeting

deacon palmer award

game forward

longterm plan

years annual meeting

section staff