Volume 6, Issue 12
First, I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year. It is amazing we are getting ready to put another year in the books! We had a wonderful season on so many accounts. The year always culminates into one of my favorite evenings – the Gateway PGA Awards Dinner. I would like to personally congratulate all of our award winners for their tremendous accomplishments and commitment to golf. We have so many talented men and women serving the game so it is neat to get to know them on a closer level. Please take a moment to see some of the pictures from Forest Hills below. I would like to also congratulate and recognize, as a whole, the membership of the Gateway PGA. The engagement level at the Annual Meeting (Fall Membership Meeting) was something we should all be proud of. I was moved as the counsel of the past presidents, led by Mike Miller, formally conducted our awards process as dictated by our by-laws. It was equally neat to see several of our member’s step-up to serve. I am thankful to Joe Schwent and his service to the section and I greatly look forward to the leadership of Nathan Charnes. Please take a moment to read the re-cap for the 2014 Annual Meeting and Election. Last, but not least, if you haven’t seen the email survey sent out on behalf of Nathan Charnes, please contact us at the office. Nathan is asking for your feedback on serving a committee for the benefit of our membership. He is right in thinking that active committees are the fuel that powers a successful board. We recently sent out a survey asking for your thoughts and potential involvement on a committee. Again, we would love to have your involvement so please feel free to reach out. Have a wonderful Holiday Season and we look forward to all that 2015 will bring us.
December 2014
From the Officers Desk
P2
Gateway PGA Awards Dinner Recap
P3
Growth of the Game
P4
Assistants’ Corner
P5
Rules Corner
P5
Gateway PGA Annual Meeting Recap
P6
Employment Chips
P7
PGA HQ News
P8
Fitness Tips Tournament News
P9 P 10-11
Shout Outs
P 12
Upcoming Events
P 13
Member Updates & Birthdays
P 14
Section Officers Joe Schwent, PGA President
Nathan Charnes, PGA Vice-President
Benjiman Kent, PGA Secretary
Gateway PGA Staff Josh Riley, PGA Executive Director
Steve Finn, PGA Assistant Executive Director
Michael Brown, PGA Director or Junior Golf
Ali Wells, PGA
All the best, Josh Riley, PGA
Director of Foundation Operations
Lindsay Riley Foundation Admin Assistant
Susan Bender Membership 1
FROM THE OFFICERS DESK The Fall Meeting and Awards Dinner on December 8th at Forest Hills was a highlight in my 10 years as a Gateway PGA Member. Congratulations to the staff for a great meeting and congratulations to our 2014 award winners for the great accomplishments! 2014 was a great year for the Section; from Tournaments, Foundation Programs, Junior Golf, and much more. I am excited for 2015 and wish you all a happy and healthy off season. We have already started planning for 2015, and I sincerely appreciate the support all of you have in me and my fellow officers to lead the Section over the next 2 years. My first task at hand will be to identify committee chairs and members. If you haven’t already, please take the time to fill out the survey that was just sent out to the membership. Other topics we plan to address are, and in no particular order: education and town hall opportunities over the next 6 months as we end the current MSR cycle, planning for the 2018 PGA Championship and what the Section’s role is with that event, the officers are looking to offer Josh Riley a long term contract, the current status of the Gateway PGA Hall of Fame, and much more. If there is anything you would like the Board to review, or if you simply want to share your thoughts, please call me any time. My work number is 636-561-9464 and my cell phone is 636-485-3807. Save the date for our 2015 Spring Meeting, which is March 30th. Additionally, for the first time, we are hosting a Past Presidents Dinner the night before on March 29th. More details to come.
Happy Holidays, Nathan Charnes, PGA
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Jeffrey Field, Fox Run Golf Club, headlined an incredible cast of award winners at the 2014 Gateway PGA Awards Dinner. KMOX, and Cardinal broadcaster, Mike Claiborne, kicked off the evening as the 2014 Awards Dinner emcee. Claiborne began by thanking all of the PGA Professionals for what they do for the game. He set the tone for a evening that culminated into the honoring of Jeffrey Field. Field was nominated and voted as the Joe Dodich, PGA Professional of the Year by his fellow PGA Professionals. This award embraces a wide range of services executed by the club professional. Joe Dodich exemplified what it meant to be a working professional in the PGA of America. When asking his peers to describe him, it often gets brought up that Joe was the true gentlemen unlike ever seen in the Gateway PGA. The recipient of this award is a reflection of Joe through their well-rounded and unselfish pursuit to be the best possible PGA Professional they can be. Field matched those same qualities and was referred to by his peers as the consummate professional all throughout the awards process. Field is a board member of the Gateway PGA REACH Foundation, A PGA Travel Ambassador, a father, a husband, and a mentor to a host of PGA Professionals. Congratulations all of our PGA Professionals on their wonderful accomplishments. Below are a few pictures from the evening and the entire list of award winners can be found by clicking HERE.
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GROWTH OF THE GAME PGA REACH Player Development Partner Program Every Gateway PGA Facility should have received (last week) the informational sheet and selection invoice for the PGA REACH Player Development Partner Program. If you did not receive this, please call the office and we will get you the info. Every Gateway PGA facility now has the opportunity to partner with the PGA REACH Foundation, at your choice of three different levels, to receive Player Development and Equipment Rental benefits. Always searching for ways to provide valuable resources and assistance to facilities, the PGA REACH Player Development Partner Program offers guaranteed equipment rentals, access for Professionals to multiple education events throughout the year, membership discounts for YOUR junior golfers to the Gateway Junior PGA Program, help-for-hire, and other Player Development resources. The quantity of benefits varies based on the level of partnership: $1,000, $500, or $150 annual partner levels are available. The mailing you received lists all details pertaining to each partner level as well as a form for you to fill out and return to the GPGA Section Office accompanied by a check. These can be returned to the office prior to January 1st but MUST be sent prior to February 15th for the $1000 and $500 partner levels. As President Joe Schwent stated at the Annual Fall Meeting, the PGA REACH PD Partner Program is a great asset to any facility that helps grow your Player Development offerings as well as ensures you are registered for Annual Meetings and Summits. Please feel free to contact Ali Wells at Awells@pgahq.com with any questions. Thank You To all the Members and Apprentices who attended the Annual Fall Meeting and Awards Dinner, thank you! What a great day to celebrate our Professionals who earned recognition among their peers and to provide a meaningful and valuable Fall Meeting and Education Breakouts – a day dedicated to you! If you missed the Education Breakouts, you can still catch up on the information presented. Dedicated to information about your Gateway PGA REACH Foundation (what it is, what is does, and how is benefits you), each breakout was led by a duo of Professionals who will welcome a phone call from you to hear about what you missed. For information on the Foundation’s Youth Golf Pillar, contact Michael Brown or Mike Suhre. For information on the Foundation’s Military or Diversity Pillars, contact Ali Wells or Joe Schwent. And for general information about the Foundation, contact Josh Riley, Ali Wells, Nathan Charnes, or Joe Schwent. PGA REACH Hope Education Christmas Party On Thursday December 11th, a group of PGA Professionals and PGA REACH supporters spent some quality time at one of PGA REACH’s partner organizations, Hope Education, for some fun and games. Hope Education works with North St. Louis middle and high-school youth to provide needed academic and life skill programming outside the classroom. Through financial and volunteer support from PGA REACH, Hope Education is able to see more kids on a weekly basis and pour into their lives with the ultimate goal of giving them education and tools to keep them in school through graduation while preparing them for a productive life after school. This second annual Christmas Party is an opportunity for REACH supporters to meet some of the kids they work so hard for. Kids introduced themselves, prepared a meet-the-class presentation, and had games and treats for all in attendance. Merry Christmas! Ali Wells, PGA Foundation Operations Director
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ASSISTANTS CORNER It is a little shocking that we are already writing our final newsletter of 2014. This past year had a lot of highlights for the assistants of our section. I’d like to thank all the section staff and all of our committee members for their work this year. Looking forward to an even better 2015. Congratulations again go out to Nic Bunning of Greenbriar Hills Country Club and George Schrage of Quincy Country Club. Both were recently awarded the 2014 Gateway PGA Assistant Professional of the Year at our annual awards celebration. These are two well deserving individuals and congrats again to them! The turn of the calendar to 2015 will bring some changes to the Assitants Committee. Brandon Coffey will take over as Chairman and George Schrage will take over as Vice-Chairman. The committee will be meeting in the next month to set the schedule and the details for the 2015 season. If you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions for the coming year please feel free to reach out to us. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you!
RULES CORNER
Check out the 2015 USGA Rules of Golf Workshop Schedule.
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Gateway PGA Annual Meeting Recap Charnes Elected as next President of the Gateway PGA. Nathan Charnes was elected at the 2014 Gateway PGA Annual Meeting as Gateway PGA Section President for a term that starts in 2015 and run through 2016. Nathan serves WingHaven Country Club as the PGA General Manager and Head Professional. Nathan addressed the membership, during his report, and promised that his time will be spent as an ambassador for the members as well as the staff of the Gateway PGA. He is looking forward to taking a large role in what he hopes will be active committees and members who focus on serving the game and the Gateway PGA membership. Charnes will be joined by Benjiman Kent and Michael Suhre who were elected by acclimation. Kent, PGA General Manager and Director of Golf at Persimmon Woods Golf Club, will finish his service as section Secretary and become Vice-President for a two year term. Kent looks to continue the momentum and the positive perception that has been built as of late. He believes the PGA Professional can and will continue to lead the industry in efforts of growing the game and business of golf. Mike Suhre, PGA Head Professional at Oak Brook Golf Course, will serve as the sections next Secretary and really feels drawn to growing the game and focusing a major part of his time on Junior Golf. Suhre is already working towards building out a Junior Golf Board in concert with Gateway PGA Junior Director, Michael Brown. The Annual Meeting also featured elections by acclimation for the positions of Out-State Director (Paul Leahy, Tan-Tar-A Golf Resort) and Northern Illinois/Northern Missouri Director (Gideon Smith, Quincy Country Club). A close election for the position of Metro St Louis Director was won by Shawn Barnes, Gateway National Golf Links over Ty Zimmerman of the The Missouri Bluffs. Mark Faulkner stepped down after serving the board for 18 years. Marks will be replaced by Brian Laur, Rend Lake, who was nominated from the floor by Steve Heckel, Crab Orchard, and ultimately affirmed by acclimation.
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Employment “Chips” Please enjoy this “Gateway Employment Chips” section of your email newsletter. Every month I will be adding to the subjects of these “brief” articles and hoping to inspire your thought process regarding your employment and/or your facility. Please use and expand on the information to make your employment more successful!
Hopefully, 2014 was a great year for you professionally and personally! The end of a year is a great time to take stock of your career and evaluate your needs, wants, and aspirations of how you want to move forward from where you are now. You may be a young assistant looking for a first Head Professional position or a seasoned veteran looking to retire. Here are some things to think about when evaluating your current and future plans.
What Is The Difference Between A Job And a Career? Job – Getting paid for work performed Career – A chosen profession; a life work; success in one’s profession Is your current employment a job or career? If you were to draw a map of your career moving forward, what would it look like? What specifically do you have to offer a future employer? What have you accomplished in your career so far? How have you made the facility you work at now better? If there is little immediate future opportunity in your area how are you networking in areas that you may be interested in relocating to? How will you find out about these opportunities? How will you capitalize on them? If you are currently a Head Professional or Director of Golf, where do you go from here? General Management? Upward movement in your current title?What affords the greatest opportunity for
increased compensation and challenge? How are you separating yourself from other PGA members who are trying to elevate their careers and are competing for jobs? How are you continuing to educate yourself? If you are looking at retiring or slowing down in your career, how will you supplement your income? How will you stay involved? How will you be a champion for golf? How would you rate your current career status? How would you rate your future career plan?
Here is a great quote by Earl Nightingale (personal development pioneer and radio legend) - “The biggest mistake that you can make is to believe that you are working for somebody else. Job security is gone. The driving force of a career must come from the individual. Remember: Jobs are owned by the company, you own your career!” Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions about this information or any other employment related matters. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Tim
Tim Marks, PGA Employment Consultant 269-221-6009 – office tmarks@pgahq.com
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PGA HQ NEWS 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 hotels 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 will be live on the homepage of PGALinks.com beginning Monday, November 17th, 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
The Conrad Rehling Award, first presented in 2005, honors the late PGA Master Professional who followed a successful collegiate coaching career at Florida and Alabama by transforming his retirement into inspiring PGA Professionals to give back to those with intellectual and physical disabilities. Rehling died in April 2007 at age 87. The founding father of the Special Olympics Golf movement in 1988, Rehling spearheaded The PGA of America’s efforts to introduce golf to Special Olympics. The Association and its more than 28,000 men and women professionals have dedicated countless hours, services and funding to the growth of Special Olympics Golf. Nominations for the Conrad Rehling Award, which recognizes PGA members for their outstanding contributions to the Special Olympics can be submitted until January 15, 2015. Click here for the nomination form which includes eligibility and criteria.
Online registration for a 2015 PGA/USGA Rules of Golf Workshop begins Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2014. You can register via phone beginning Monday, Oct. 27. More information
ARE YOU ON TRACK? MSR Cycle Ends 06/15/2015
See Where You Stand: Log into PGALinks.com to see your current MSR status
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Brought To You by Optimal Lifestyles, Inc.
The holiday season is a time to watch your weight climb exponentially — or not. We can act as if we have no choice except to gain 5 to 7 pounds during the holidays, or we can be determined to hold the line. Wouldn’t you rather (still) be fit when golf season comes back around? It can be done! Here are a few quick ways to stop the weight gain: Plan ahead for holiday gatherings – don’t leave the house hungry; eat a little something before you go.
Don’t deprive yourself if you really want something, just don’t eat the whole plate of cookies!
Know that you are not going to starve yourself and be reminded that you do not intend to gain weight.
Don’t let other guests and hosts tempt you to eat something you don’t really want.
Stand away from the food table, unless you are specifically there to eat.
Use the 80/20 rule: eat healthy 80 percent of the time – give yourself a break 20 percent of the time. Also, make sure you engage in 30 minutes of exercise daily, three to five times a week. With exercise in mind, here are some Worldwide Fitness Trends for 2015, as compiled in a survey by the American College of Sports Medicine’s Health & Fitness Journal:
Body weight training
High-intensity interval training
Strength training
Yoga
Functional fitness
Core training
Group personal training
The focus on fitness is an important one. If you’re in good physical condition, you’re better able to enjoy whatever you do. Whatever area of fitness you decide to pursue through 2015, remember that anything you try is better than nothing and every little bit helps. It’s time to get off the couch, push away from the table, and try something—anything—that will make you feel better and that will improve your golf fitness. Need help reaching your fitness goals? Optimal Lifestyles, Inc. provides individual, group, and corporate fitness programs, and fitness programs for your golf club. Contact Barb at 314-984-0592 to set up a fitness plan that fits your lifestyle. Happy Holidays! Barb Michael is a health and fitness consultant and fitness education sponsor for the Gateway PGA. Her company, Optimal Lifestyles, Inc. provides general fitness, golf-fitness and yoga for golfers. The information provided by Barb is for education purposes and should not replace care or advice of your physician. Please check with your physician if you are beginning an exercise program or suspect you are ill.
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winning the Golf Car from TNT at Bellerive after the Players Championship. We also will again feature the "no entry fee" Players Championship for As the 2014 Gateway PGA Touranment Season has our top POY Point performers near the end of the come to a close, we would like to take a brief look season and guaranteed payout over $10,000. back to the great year we had. Special thanks to Scott Brauer and the Tournament First, we would like to thank all of the facilities that Committee again for their vision and leadership hosted our events this year. I am continually throughout the year. Heres to 2015 being just as amazed at the support and pride that our Gateway exciting! PGA Members show in welcoming our tournament players and the first class service provided by the staff's of the clubs. Next, we had a wonderful Awards Dinner at Forest Hills on December 8th and congratulated our Players of the Year. Mike Suhre, Bob Gaus, Barbara Blanchar, Adam Betz, and Mike Brengard, were all presented their custom timepieces compliments of Craig Betz and Betz Jewelers. I have listed some of the impressive numbers that were generated from this past season. 1. Tournament Participation was up over 40% fro the previous year. 13% of that number was represented in an increase in comparable events from 2013. 2. Touranment Payouts were increased by 48%. The GPGA Touranment Purse total for the year was $175,000, up from $115,000 in 2013. If we include the outside Pro Am's that we do, the Slice of Life, ACG, & Applefest events, the total surpasses $200,000. 3. Our field size average for 2014 by event type were as follows:
Pro-Opens/Stroke Play Events 60 players
Pro-Ams(not including REACH Pro AM) 76 players
Team Events (Quad Pro, Lake Team, etc) 78 players
Majors (Match Play, PNCs, etc) 42 players
The PGA of America Playing Ability Test schedule within the Gateway Section has been completed. All players who attempt the tests, are required to complete their registrations at www.pgalinks.com. Deadline for each test is 14 days in advance of event date and are $100 per attempt. We have scheduled one test per month throughout the season and while most are in the Metro St. Louis area, we will be doing one at Osage National Golf Resort in the Lake of the Ozarks on June 16th. Here is the schedule:
4/15/15 Eagle Springs GC
5/13/15 Arlington Greens GC
6/16/15 Osage National GR
7/28/15 Gateway National GL
8/19/15 Eagle Springs GC
9/15/15 Gateway National GL
10/14/15 Arlington Greens GC
Several factors contributed to the success of the season but increased funding from the PGA Tour, AB/NBEV, and National Car Rental, seemed to lead the way. We welcome them all back next year as well. The National Car Rental Pro Am Series will return again in 2015 again culminating with the NCR Pro Am Championship. Our partners at TNT Yamaha will again return with the TNT Shootout season long contest. Congrats to Scott Bess 10
2015 Gateway PGA Tournament Schedule As we approach the holiday season, the Tournament Committee is hard at work on the 2015 Schedule of Events. We know that many of you are working on your club schedules and would like the dates as soon as possible so we have listed the dates of those events that have been confirmed below. Please keep in mind that this is tentative and could change before the schedule is finalized.
DATE MARCH Monday, March 30 APRIL Mon-Wed April 6-8th Sun-Mon April 12-13 Monday, April 20 Monday April 27th MAY Mon-Wed May 4-6th Monday, May 11th Monday, May 19th Tuesday, May 26th JUNE Monday, June 1st Monday, June 8th Tues-Wed, June 9-10th Monday, June 15th Sun-Wed, June 28-July 1 Monday, June 29th JULY Monday, July 6th Monday, July 13th Monday, July 20th Thursday, July 3oth Monday, July 27th AUGUST Monday, August 3rd Sunday August 9th Monday, August 10th Thurs-Sun, August 13-16th Friday, August 21st Mon-Tues August 17-18 Mon-Tues, August 24-25th Monday, August 31st SEPTEMBER Tuesday, September 8th Monday, September 14th Monday, September 21st Monday, September 28-29th OCTOBER Monday, October 5th Monday, October 12th Monday, October 19-21st
EVENT
SITE
Spring Meeting/Quad Pro
TBD
Prairie Cup Gateway Cup Matches Pro-Open #1 Pro-Senior Pro-Am
Firekeeper GC Topeka, KS TBD Norwood Hills CC Lake Forest CC
Match Play Championship Pro-Open #2 Pro Assistant Championship Pro-Open #3
Annbriar GC Meramec Lakes CC TBD Tapawingo National GC
Tower Tee Invitational Pro Ladies Pro AM Senior Match Play Championship Southern Illinois Open National PNC REACH Pro Am
Tower Tee GC WingHaven CC Sunset Hills CC (T) Rend Lake GC Philadelphia Cricket Club Bellerive CC
Team Championship
St. Ablans CC
Pro-Open #4 Pro-Junior Pro-Am Scratch Pro Am
TBD TBD Persimmon Woods GC
Gateway Section Pro-Am Beautification Pro Am
TBD Lake Forest CC
PGA Championship Slice of Life Pro-Am PNC/Sr PNC/Sect Champ PNC/Sr PNC/Sect Champ ACG Pro-Am
Whistling Straits Crab Orchard GC TBD TBD Meadowbrook CC
National Car Rental Asst Championship Pro Open #5 NCR Pro AM Championship Section Championship/PNC
TBD TBD TBD TBD
Players Championship Lake Team Event
TBD Porto Cima, Osage Natl, Kinderhook
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40 Days of Non-Violence Dan Polites of DP Golf Center is taking golf to new places and making an impact while doing so. On Monday December 15, Dan was one of three keynote speakers at a press conference in the East St. Louis City Building announcing the PGA’s participation in the second-annual 40 Days on Non-Violence initiative targeted at East St. Louis residents of all ages. Started last year, this initiative provides programming every day of the week to residents for 40 straight days starting January 24th which focus on education, physical activity, black history, financial literacy, conflict resolution, and more. A joint initiative between ESL community leaders, churches, civic organizations, the USTA (US Tennis Association) and PGA REACH, 40 Days on Nonviolence will feature golf programming each Saturday at the Jackie Joyner Kersee Center led by Dan Polites. Currently, over 450 kids are registered with an anticipated 600 scheduled to participate by January. Please join me in recognizing and thanking Dan for his work in East St. Louis using golf to improve lives. If you’d like to get involved or help Dan, please contact Ali Wells @ AWells@pgahq.com or Dan Polites @ danpolites@aol.com.
Congratulations Nic Bunning for becoming a finalist for Junior League Golf Captain of the Year. The announcement will be coming at the 2015 PGA Merchandise Show. Nic also won Gateway PGA Assistant of the Year as well as the Junior Golf Leader Award for the Gateway Section.
Former Missouri golf Coach Poe inducted into GCAA Hall of Fame Richard Poe first left an imprint on the Missouri men’s golf program as a player, tying for fifth individually at the 1963 NCAA Championship in what remains the best finish in school history. But his real legacy is tied to the work that he did over 21 years as MU’s coach. Click here to continue reading. 12
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December 15 - January 15 Birthdays Christopher Bivens, PGA John S. Spray, PGA Matthew E. Burry, PGA Bill R. Proctor, PGA Brandon L. Veld, PGA Catherine M. Brennan, PGA Michael J. Buschhorn, PGA Ryan P Roy, PGA Dan K. Buffington, PGA Tom Loyd, PGA Dennis P. Walters, PGA Ronald S. Kosmatka, PGA JC Anderson, PGA Nicholas W. Doelling Thomas A. Linard, PGA Bruce T. Phillips, PGA Jonathan A. Stockton Terry A. Grosch, PGA James L. Martin, PGA Wesley R McVey Martin A. Chiarodo, PGA Jason M Cooper, PGA Tracy J. Valvo, PGA Ty G. Zimmerman, PGA Perry C. Leslie, PGA Matthew T. Schuerman, PGA Matthew C Wood
12/16 12/16 12/17 12/17 12/17 12/18 12/18 12/19 12/22 12/22 12/22 12/24 12/26 12/26 12/26 12/26 12/26 12/28 12/28 12/28 12/29 12/30 12/30 12/30 12/31 12/31 12/31
Stanley Shaver, PGA 1/1 Shane J. Blankenship, PGA 1/5 Randy J. Phillips, PGA 1/6 Gary Fee, PGA 1/10 Michael J Girse, PGA 1/10 George E. Schrage IV, PGA 1/10 Mark A. Leroux, PGA 1/11 Joshua T. Riley, PGA 1/13 Terry Houser, PGA 1/14
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