PGA Of Alberta Golf Report - July-August Issue

TOP STORIES 10.

16.

Gender Equality In Golf

The 2019 Buying Show will be heading to CALGARY!

Follow Us On Social Media

24.

Lot s To See And Do In Fort McMurray

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28.

Common Tips The Arm Chair Golf Coach May Have Given You

46.

Bearspaw closes? and Re-opens

54.

Risdon Triumphant at PGA Nat ional Championship

Cont ent s JULY2019 08

Image Of The Month

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12

Fort Mcmurray well worth the trip

The Ranch G&CC Updates Their Bunkering

44

Top 100 Program

Water Buffalo Running Loose On Sir Nick?s Vietnam Course

50

Stony Plain Golf Course ?Back on Track?

20

Taking A lot More Kids TO The Course

51

Alberta Corrections Officer Develops New Ball Reriever

26

PGA Of Alberta Championships

52

PGA of Alberta Bursary Program

32

Fleming Low Pro At Ope

56

36

New Crowsnest Pass Looking Very Good

PGA Champions Tour Qualifying

58

Parting Shot

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40

Alberta Golf Is Thinking Outside The Box To Grow The Game

The

t op

image CRED IT: A LBERTA GO LF/ CA LGA RY GO LF FESTIVA L

What was really important according to Berube was the involvement of the PGA professionals

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ALBERTA

FOLLOW THE PGA OF ALBERTA ON SOCIAL MEDIA

PG 10 | JUL 2019

Fort McMurray isn?t really all that far away and what you find when you arrive in this northern Alberta community is way more than enough to make the journey worth your while.

Once seen as remote, this community of 65,000 plus another 40,000 or so in the surrounding area, is easily accessible by land or air. Now well on the road to recovery after the devastating fires of 2016 that forced the evacuation of nearly 90,000 people from Fort McMurray PG 12 | JUL 2019

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proper, there is lots to see, and do, for visitors to this friendly, clean community.

Topping the list, are three golf courses that are distinctly different from one another. The oldest of the group is the Fort McMurray Golf & Country Club, a tight, tree-lined layout featuring 27 holes. This course was a strong enough layout to host the PGA CANADA/Mackenzie Tour?s Boreal Open for several years. It?s followed off the tee by the Miskanaw GC, which sits on MacDonald Island Park in the heart of the city and features player-friendly fairways. The baby of the trio, Rotary Links, came on-stream just after the fire and features a unique, and fun, links style of play.

As for the granddaddy, Fort McMurray Golf Club, new General Manager Dave Callum said theclub has rebounded well after the 2016 blaze destroyed their maintenance shed, clubhouse, and many of the old growth trees that made this layout so intimidating. Asked how the club has rebounded from those PG 14 | JUL 2019

terrible times, Callum said, ?The best answer is that we are back to the business of golf. It was tough on the people here not having these amenities, so we want to get back to the customer service we had.?And with the launch of their new multi-million dollar clubhouse this year, they?re well on their way toward that end. Interestingly enough, plans were already on the books to expand the old clubhouse in the beautiful Athabasca River valley when the firestorm struck.

Those renovation plans were scrapped and new ones drawn up to build the amazing facility that now blends in nicely with the landscape. In fact, the boreal forest area is filling back in quickly where it was burned as the undergrowth is thick and healthy, returning the once-charred areas back to their vibrant shades of green.

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If men are thinking their home course or club is gender neutral, they may want to ask some women members what they think.

That's what Inside Golf did in the month leading up to Women's Golf Day in early June. In partnership with British Columbia Golf, iG conducted a survey on gender equality issues in golf.

More than 1700 golfers took the survey and women were clearly engaged. While making up less than 25% of golfers, they accounted for 45% of responses. The picture that emerged showed at the least there is a disconnect between the genders' perceptions.

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GENDER EQUALITY

In Golf More than one-in-three women (36%) see their "home" club or course as not being gender neutral while for men it is only one-in-eight (13%).

One-in-four men (23%) think there is no gender discrimination in golf whatsoever as compared to only around one-in-twenty women (6%).

GOLFING A MILE IN THEIR SHOES

Gender Equality - 1 Thisisthe first in a seriesof articlesto follow-up the Gender Equality Survey

Want to find out how poorly your course may be laid out for women?

Try playing the forward teesusing only the clubsthat you hit 130 yardsor less(e.g. 9-iron for tee shotsand PW through 60?wedge for all shotsthereafter). Thiswill give you some understanding of what golf islike for a woman, what penal partsof the course that you likely have never seen before all of sudden come into play. Any forced carry of more than 130 yards must be played around or laid up. Bunkersthat are 260 yards off a tee now are right in the landing area of your second shot! And remember, you are hitting short ironsover which you have much greater directional and distance control.

If you really want to test thisout, do thisusing your driver and three-wood for all shots over 130 yards but swing at a slower speed where the ball only goesthat distance. Good luck.

PG 17 | JUL 2019

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Fr inge

BY PRESS RELEA SE

Water Buffalo Running Loose On Sir Nick?s Vietnam Course At Sir Nick Faldo's signature design, Laguna Golf Lang CĂ™ located in Hue, Vietnam, it is not the traditional sheep that aid in greenskeeping, it is water buffalos. A bovine threesome act as bio-mowers helping to manage rice fields that located in the middle of the golf course by eating excess weeds and crops in an area that would otherwise require machinery and manpower to maintain.

The rice paddies are not just for show. Harvested twice a year, PG 18 | JUL 2019

they yield up to 20 tons of rice that are used to support the Club's organic farm and are also donated to families and seniors in the area.

Faldo, said, ?We knew that having the holes weave through the rice fields would be a unique and memorable experience for golfers. And there would be potential to give back to the community in a sustainable and regenerative fashion."

For more information, visit lagunagolf.com

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gr owing t he

game

BY BRA D ZIEM ER/ IG

Taking A lot More Kids TO The Course The 17th annual Take a Kid to the Course Week ran July 2-9 and once again the list of participating courses has grown and so has the number of kids taking advantage of the free golf offer.

The promotion, which allows a child under the age of 16 a free round of golf with an adult who pays a green fee, is sponsored by the National Golf Course Owners Association Canada. ?It is absolutely one of our most important grow-the-game initiatives,? says Erica Beck, regional director of NGCOA Canada?s British Columbia and Alberta PG 20 | JUL 2019

chapters. ?We have been doing it for 17 years and every year it just keeps growing and growing. ?And there has been a huge uptick in sponsorship for the program the last few years, so it is something we are definitely hoping to keep going for many years to come.?

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The 2019 Buying Show will be heading to CALGARY! The PGA of Alberta is proud to present the largest Buying Show in Canada each year. The purpose of this show is to bring Golf Professionals and Equipment Manufacturers together in order to prepare their inventories for the following season. We are very excited to announce that the PGA of Alberta Buying Show will be heading South in 2019 to the BMO Centre in Calgary, Alberta. The dates of this years Buying Show will be Oct ober 22-24, 2019, one week after the Thanksgiving holiday.

The BMO Centre is the largest convention centre in Calgary and is a world-class facility PG 22 | JUL 2019

located in the heart of the city.

By moving the Show to this venue located on the Stampede Grounds, attendees will have better access to hotels, transportation, restaurants, entertainment, etc., all within walking distance from the venue, helping make for a better overall experience.

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BY GO RD M O N TGO M ERY/ IG

Lots To See And Do In Fort McMurray Okay, I?ll admit it, not even I can golf all day, every day. So, when in Rome, do as the Romans do. Or in this case, when in Fort McMurray, do what the McMurrayites do ? visit their amazing community in its entirety.

From understanding what the Athabasca Oil Sands are really PG 24 | JUL 2019

all about at the Oil Sands Discovery Centre; to the history of early transportation displayed at the Heritage Shipyard; to the Shell Place recreation complex on MacDonald Island Park; or perhaps hiking or quadding around the amazing Athabasca Sand Dunes, there CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

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is something for everyone here to see, and do, after you put the sticks down for the day.

regular season games, numerous provincial championships and many awaiting the upcoming 2022 Arctic Winter Games.

Oh, did we mention water And of course, there are those sports? No? With five rivers amazing Northern Lights, easily flowing through the Wood visible from just outside the Buffalo area, there are urban area and a sight to monsters waiting to be pulled out of the northern waters with behold if you ve never had the chance to see them up close hook and line. Or, you can and personal. kayak or boat up and down So while I love to golf, I also these wide-ranging, fast love the opportunity to taste moving tributaries that flow what a community has to offer, northward toward the Arctic.

This northern area also has the and Fort McMurray and the Wood Buffalo Region, provide highest rate of volunteers you with more than you can almost 50 per cent of the population - of anywhere in the consume at one sitting. country. As such, they love to host major sporting events, For more on the area, check out with over 8,000 visitors over fortmcmurraytourism.com, the past three years taking in follow them on Instagram sports tourism events including @FortMcMurrayTourism, the Baseball Canada 18U or search for Fort McMurray National Championships, the Tourism on Facebook.

2018 Alberta Winter Games, two CFL pre-season and PG 25 | JUL 2019

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PGA of Alberta Championship

al ber t a

Event Information Event Date:

August 19 - 20, 2019

Host Venue:

River Bend G&RA

Waiting List:

0 players

Entry Fee:

$280.96

Draw Type:

Tee Times

Scoring Type:

Individual

Course Par:

72

Rounds:

2

Event Eligibility Members:

Category I, Category II

Gender:

Both

Age:

All

Event Deadlines Withdrawal Deadline:

August 5, 2019 @4:00PM Deadline to withdraw before penalty

Registration Deadline:

August 15, 2019 @4:00PM

PG 26 | JUL 2019

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Golf tipscan be so easily misunderstood because they may not be applicable to the person reading, listening or watching them. Here are a few common misconceptions that may have hurt your golf swing... #1 DON?T SW ING LIKE A BASEBALL BAT! All of my golf lessons start with

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me trying to get an understanding of what activities the student has been involved in.

I love the lessons when I get a baseball player who has been told she/he shouldn?t swing a golf club like a baseball bat. Often these individuals are trying to take the golf club straight back and straight through on the imaginary target line through the ball, this completely ruins the golf swing.

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I will tell these students to set the golf club parallel to the ground as if they were going to take a swing with a baseball bat, then I ask them to take a swing by following the imaginary line straight back and straight through.

It usually takes about one of these swings and this short explanation for these athletes to loathe whoever told him/her not to swing it like a baseball bat. Swing the club with the freedom of a baseball swing; now gradually begin to angle the club down toward by changing your spine angle by bending at the waist until you are swinging where the ball will be? . just think of it as being a low pitch.

The baseball swinger needs to learn to change their swing plane by changing their posture at the start and maintain this golf posture during the swing.

The common mistake is to stand up in the backswing (figure 2) causing the club to follow an outside in path. Your starting posture requires a PG 30 | JUL 2019

bend at the waist with a straight spine angle (figure 1).

Your goal is to maintain this spine angle from the start to the top of the backswing and through impact.

These are very gratifying lessons to give because the results are immediate. #2 KEEP YOUR HEAD STILL. This can be a very good tip if you understand what it is you are trying to perform. However, most golfers restrict their athletic movement and their natural ability to restrict the movement of their head by keeping too still. The point to be taken from this old adage is to minimize the up and down movement in your backswing and through the impact zone.

Learn to swing without the up

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Fleming Low Pro At Open

Call it a working man?s vacation, as Riley Fleming stepped away from his day job to work on winning the major golf championship sponsored by Alberta Golf and SVR Lawyers.

Playing in the 2019 Alberta Open, Fleming, a golf instructor in Calgary, had to put in a bit of overtime on the last day of this job, needing one extra hole to claim the win, with a birdie, over Red Deer?s Mat t hew Codd.

Fleming either led, or was tied PG 32 | JUL 2019

for the professional lead throughout the three-day, 54-hole tournament, played at the lush, and challenging par-72 Trestle Creek Golf Resort west of Edmonton.

The winner said afterwards that being a pro is all about taking on unknown challenges part of which he, and others, faced at this rural course. He did get a taste of it the day before things kicked off.

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?That?s what a practice round is for. You hit a bunch of extra shots. It is tough, but that?s what pro golf is all about.?

rolled his putt in first, putting pressure on his opponent to stay tied, who missed.

Asked if he had any nervousness Tied going into the final round, on that short shot, Fleming said, Fleming was tied for the lead ?No. You just gotta hit your with Pat rick Murphy, whom he spot,?which he did. ?Matt had a was paired with on the final day closer putt than I did, so I had to and who he was keeping an eye make it.? on. But, Codd came out of So despite having to work while nowhere with a course record away from work, don?t feel bad to finish at 8-under and tie for Fleming. He got in a bit of Fleming who just missed a birdie fishing at Wabamun Lake when putt to win outright on the last his work at the golf course was official hole of the tourney. done and while he didn?t land ?I was just trying to stay ahead anything there, he did pull in a of Patrick,?Fleming noted after cheque for $5,000 for winning taking a late lead over Murphy, the pro side of the tournament. not knowing that Codd had The overall title was won by finished with a flourish to tie for amateur Andrew Harrison, the lead. who set a course record the first The playoff was a short event. ?I day with a 5-under 67 and then hit it pretty decent on the matched that the second day. playoff hole,?the winner He finished with a 68, for a understated. After striping his 14-under total, six clear of tee shot on the par-4 ninth, he Fleming and Matt Cod. Matt put his second shot to within six though set the new course feet. Codd, not to be outdone, record on the final day, carding put his approach to about four a 64, including an ace on the feet from the cup. Fleming third hole.

PG 34 | JUL 2019

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Pass facel if t XXXXX

New Crowsnest Pass Looking Very Good Gary Browning, best known for his 36-hole rebuild of Kananaskis and design of the popular Stewart Creek GC, was tasked with giving the Crowsnest Pass G&CC a new look.

And from what PGA Golf Professional Jason Rot h said, he?s done an extraordinary job. ?I?m liking our golf course better than Stewart Creek, and that says a lot,?stated PG 36 | JUL 2019

Roth. ?Stewart Creek was my favourite golf course in Canada. Obviously, I?m a little biased, but this new course, to me, is better. It?s beautiful up here!?

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ALBERTA

Awards Program Each year the PGA of Alberta recognizes several Members and Industry Representatives for their achievements throughout the season and their career, as well as for their contributions to the Association and the Game of Golf.

Members and Industry Partners are given the opportunity to vote for deserving individuals in the following categories of Awards, presented to recipients at the Annual Awards Banquet in the fall.

Awards are also presented to Championship Winners and Player of the Year.

PGA of Alberta Awards Criteria

PGA of Albert a Awards Process Based on application forms received by each Member who has been nominated by one of their peers or industry affiliates, PG 37 | JUL 2019

PGA of Alberta Awards their application is graded by an Awards sub-committee.

The sub-committees for each Award are comprised of past winners of that particular Award.

The 5 Nominees whose application ranks the highest from Members of the sub-committee are presented to the Selection Committee as Finalists.

The Selection Committee is comprised of ten of the past Club Professional of the Year Award recipients.

The Selection Committee reviews all Award Finalists & submits confidential votes based on a point system.

Awards are presented to the recipients with the most total accumulated points. *Once a Member winsan award nationally, they cannot win in the same category again provincially Click To Learn More

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gol f PRESS RELEA SE

Alberta Golf Is Thinking Outside The Box To Grow The Game

2019 has seen the people at the province's amateur organization implementing some very innovative ideas.

It was at River Bend Golf and Recreation Area in late May during their annual Spring Launch that Alberta Golf announced an impressive list of new initiatives. As well as continuing to put on the competitive championships, it is clear much of the future focus of the Association will be on junior golfers and families.

From the Rec Series (see story on page 8) to the Youth On Course program to

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community-based Golf Festivals, it's clear Alberta Golf is on the move.

Phil Berube is the Executive Director of the association and intends this to meet the needs of the vast majority of their members - and potential members - a bottom-up approach that something that's been in their planning for the

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past four years.

Says Berube, "We've been looking expressly for ways to serve and provide support for the other 98% of golfers (those who don't play competition at an elite level). That is kind of how we landed on recreational golf and junior golf... So, the idea is, 'Let's fill the bottom of the pyramid and get people into the game'."

The idea with the new initiatives is to test new them and see which ones work.

THE YOUTH ON COURSE PROGRAM This concept got its start in Northern California nearly a decade ago and has since expanded to more than 1100 courses across 41 states.

Basically, juniors aged 6-18, who become members with a unique I.D. number, get to play courses for only $5 a round.

The rounds are subsidized so the course is not losing any revenue. The course simply posts the player's I.D. to the PG 41 | JUL 2019

program's and gets a monthly cheque for all rounds submitted.

Golf Alberta became aware of the program and went to Golf Canada to see what they thought about it. It turned out that Golf Canada had already been in conversation with the U.S. Youth On Course administrators who coincidentally had been already be thinking about expanding into Canada.

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news about

cour se

r enovat ion

BY GO RD M O N TGO M ERY/ IG

The Ranch G&CC Updates Their Bunkering After 30 years, the original bunkering done on the property just minutes west of Edmonton, had served its purpose and it was time to update the landscape.

As a result, a large percentage of the traps scattered about on the popular public track have been removed and/or renovated, said executive pro Murray McCourt .

starters, was that The Ranch has been well known for years and years as one of the best public golf courses in Alberta. The knock on it though, if you will, is that the bunkers weren?t the best. Now we?re going from not having the greatest bunkers to right up there having the best bunkers that you?ll play.?

?Every single bunker on the golf course has either been removed or renovated ? and we had a lot of bunkers out

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here! We probably got rid of about 60 per cent of the square footage of bunkers on the golf course. The strategy, for PG 42 | JUL 2019

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t hePGA of

ALBERTA

Top 100 Program The Top 100 Program (formerly known as the Professional Development Program) is based on pre-defined measurable criteria and is designed to recognize PGA of Alberta Members who dedicate their time and demonstrate proven abilities in advancing the Association?s interests for the benefit of all Golf Professionals.

The yearly award given out at the Awards Banquet during the

PGA of Alberta Buying Show will be for the most points accumulated from October 2018 to October 2019. Every Buying Show begins a new year for the Top 100 Program. Please find below some exciting new initiatives for the Top 100 Program.

Click t o see Top 100 Program St andings

Top 100 Professional As part of this new program, the PGA of Alberta will acknowledge the Top 100 Professionals which will be the top 100-point earners for that given year of the program. These members will be recognized as a ?Top 100 Professional?for that year and PG 44 | JUL 2019

will receive a custom Top 100 logo in which they can use to further promote themselves as Golf Professionals to further advance their careers.

Click here t o see where you current ly rank in t he st andings.

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ar ound t he

Pr ov ince CO M PILED BY IG ED ITO RS

Bearspaw closes? and Re-opens In somewhat of a shock to the Calgary golf community, on May 1st the gates to the highly regarded Bearspaw GC were chained shut.

It turns out the private course's closure was the result of cost overruns related to the building of a new clubhouse... a build originally budgeted at $15 million dollars which had subsequently ballooned to a projected $25 million.

According to an article on globaltv.com, a number of liens had been filed against PG 46 | JUL 2019

Bearspaw Country Club Ltd. including one by TD Bank that likely led to the closure.

In an email to members, the Bearspaw board of directors stated, ?Given that at present the club does not have a viable go forward operation and no funds on hand to operate, we are ceasing active operations immediately. Discussions with CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

WESTERN CANADA TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION 47

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TD are ongoing and will be communicated to shareholders, in due course as appropriate.?

as quickly as possible to provide their course back to them."

Then, in early June, in a surprise move, Barry Ehlert of the Windmill Golf Group announced they had struck a deal with the receiver to operate the facility over the remainder of the season. In an interview with CTV, Ehlert said, "We felt like it was a great opportunity to step up, do the right thing, engage with the members and try to get it open

far as I'm concerned just because of the level of experience, the culture, the atmosphere and what we want to deliver as a private golfing experience."

While the relationship may Evidently, the Club had been mean members can now play trying to get 250 members to their course by paying dues, it put up $10,000 each but had will also mean that the public come up approximately 20% can now access the exclusive short. In the same email, they course. Ehlert continued, "... said, "... shareholder Certainly, there's a lot of participation in proposed people that are golfers that financing did not achieve the haven't had an opportunity to ?necessary criteria to proceed.? play that will really relish that It went on to say that the club opportunity now. would be returning funds to We will encourage outside play the shareholders that had been and outside guests to come but put into trust. it's still a private golf course as

PG 48 | JUL 2019

2019 annual memberships are still available and public green fees posted on the website are $89 (Mon ? Thurs) and $99 (Fri ? Sun).

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ar ea gol f

BY GO RD M O N TGO M ERY/ IG

Stony Plain Golf Course ?Back on Track?

After two years of temperamental winter weather and finicky putting surfaces, the Stony Plain Golf Course has gotten things back on track ... in a big way.

The municipally-owned 18-hole golf course has undergone some major changes in the past few months, both outside and in.

The major one involved installing brand new turf, T1 Bentgrass, on all its greens. In addition to that, a brand new executive chef has been put in PG 50 | JUL 2019

place to oversee the restaurant operation.

Explained the course?s Executive Professional Jeff Cut hbert son of the updates, ?The big thing is that the golf course used to be recognized

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news about

innovat iv egol f

equipment

BY PRESS RELEA SE

Alberta Corrections Officer Develops New Ball Retriever

Don Tamashiro's day job has not stopped the inventor from re-inventing the (ball-retriever) wheel.

The Red Deer based product developer says, "Size really does matter. Our retriever works very well; the unique ball carrier allows you to skim a larger area of a water hazard quickly and you don't have to see the balls in the water in order to retrieve them either. Once the ball is in the carrier, it will not fall out until you flip the rake over. You can also retrieve more than one ball out at a time.

Patented in the USA, they are looking to either license the product named "My Flipping Rake", or possibly even sell it.

It's a very durable and elegant design, continues Tamashiro.

"There are no moving parts on the rake head that is made of PG 51 | JUL 2019

ABS plastic, and nylon, and can be made by injection molding thus making it cheap to produce."

For those of us who may have contributed more than our fair share of balls to the pond gods, this may be a way to rebalance the inequity.

For more information contact Don Tamashiro / terr.donn Designs via email at don_tamashiro@yahoo.com.

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The PGA of Alberta is pleased to present 4 bursaries of $750 each year to deserving Candidates for Membership and/or Class A Assistant Professionals who meet or exceed the Bursary criteria as outlined below. The bursaries are awarded annually at the Association?s Awards Banquet in October.

All seasonal and year-round Candidates for Membership and Class A Professionals (who are not employed as Head/Executive Professionals) are eligible and encouraged to apply. A minimum of two of the bursaries will be reserved for seasonal Candidates for Membership (working 9-months or less for their employer). All Information to be held in strict confidence.

Please review the Bursary criteria below and submit the online application form by the deadline date addressing each of the following: PG 52| JUL 2019

PGA of Alberta Bursary Program Crit eria 1. Part icipat ion in Associat ion & Indust ry Event s Please outline the commitment you have made to participate in programs and events offered by the Association, within the Golf Industry and/or outside the Golf Industry (Tournaments, Education, Professional Development, etc.).

2. Volunt eer Experience Please outline the commitment you have made to volunteer within the Association, within the Golf Industry and/or outside the Golf Industry.

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Alberta's Risdon Triumphant at PGA National Championship Nine Albertans were in the field for the 98th playing of the PGA Championship of Canada at Whistle Bear Golf Club in Cambridge, Ontario in late June.

After 36 holes of stroke play, the top 16 players from 72 qualifiers advanced to match play with the winner earning $10,000.

Going into the match play portion, Alberta was well represented with Wes Heffernan from the Dynamic PG 54 | JUL 2019

Motion Golf Performance Centre and Dust in Risdon (The Players Shack / Harvest Hills Golf Centre) being seeded #6.

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WESTERN CANADA TURFGRASS ASSOCIATION 55

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pga champions

t our

PGA Champions Tour Qualifying

Welcome to the 2019 Shaw Charity Classic Champions Tour Qualifying Tournament!

For tickets, please visit www.shawcharit yclassic.com Qualifying Informat ion Package & Regist rat ion

created a profile, you can proceed to the next step.

(Player Information) - Click here

St ep 3: Log into the PGA of Alberta website (top right corner), register online for Qualifier by clicking ?Register Now?on PGA Champions Tour Qualifying page under the Tournaments tab. Follow the prompts on the registration page to pay for Qualifier.

We appreciate your support for this event and want you to enjoy a very successful day during your qualifying round. Herein contained you will find the necessary supporting information to assist you with the registration and participation process.

St ep 1: Determine your eligibility status (click here).

St ep 2: Register for the Qualifier by scrolling to the bottom of page and click ?Register Now?under ?Creat e a Player Profile?(PGA of Alberta Members do NOT need to create a Player Profile). Once you have PG 58 | JUL 2019

St ep 4: Contact the Pro Shop to arrange for your practice round.

St ep 5: Click Here to view your assigned qualifying tournament tee time when posted.

St ep 6: Check in with tournament officials prior to your tee time on tournament day.

Click To Learn More

The

par t ing

shot

After holing a clutch birdie putt on 18 to force a playoff at the Club Pro Championship, Scott Allred of Elbow Springs GC was unable to get this eagle chip from a tough lie up and down, allowing Scott Borsa to take the title with a two-putt birdie.

PG 58 | JUL 2019

THIS IS THE

ENDOFTHE MAGAZINE Remaining Pages Are Cont inuat ions Of Art icles St art ed Previously In The Magazine.

D O UBLE CLICK H ERE TO

SEE THE TABLE OF CONTENTS

PROUDLY POW ERED BY

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A couple of the keys to running almost any successful business are serving your customers well and devoting considerable time and energy into developing new ones. Golf courses are no different.

Baby-boomers are into golf in a big way, but that generation is aging and it?s never been more important for golf courses to develop new players.

The Take a Kid to the Course Week initiative is one way of getting children out onto the course. The hope is some of them will take up the game, perhaps enroll in a junior program at a course near their home and become players for life. The NGCOA also sees the program being something of a family day promotion. Most of the kids who come out to take advantage of the program are visiting the golf course with their parents, grandparents or other relatives. ?The kids are out of school and this is a good way for families PG 22 | JUL 2019

to get out and play together,?

Beck says. ?And that is how we are encouraging it, to be a family day to get out on the course early in the summer and play as a family and hopefully encourage them to come back throughout the rest of the summer break and the rest of the year.?

The Take a Kid to the Course promotion seems to be particularly popular in both B.C. and Alberta. In 2018, B.C. had 135 courses signed up for the program, while 101 courses in Alberta participated.

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Beck expects more than 700 courses across the country will be involved this year.

Last year, there were 173,817 participants (a blend of juniors and adults) in the program.

That?s nearly triple the 63,000 that participated in 2015.

Beck credits the growth to golf courses buying into the program.?The golf courses have become much more engaged in the program,?she says ?Some golf courses run it for the first week. Some are opting to run it for the entire month of July and some right through the

| JUL 2019

summertime.?

In addition to free golf, many courses offer additional programs such as junior clinics, free range balls and free junior club rentals.

Participants can also register to win some great prizes. Eight full sets of junior clubs will be given away, as well as an adult TaylorMade golf package and four all-inclusive hotel packages to Cuba (airfare not included). A list of participating courses and more information on the program can be found at kidsgolffree.ca.

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Previous Championship Winners - Click Here Sch edu le of Even t s Day 1: Regist r at ion Open s:

6:30am

Fir st Tee Tim e:

7:30am

M eal:

After conclusion of your round

Sch edu le of Even t s Day 2: Regist r at ion Open s:

6:30am

Fir st Tee Tim e:

7:30am

M eal:

After conclusion of your round

Aw ar d Pr esen t at ion :

TBA

Terms of t he Compet it ion: Open to all Category I and II PGA of Alberta Membersin good standing.

Canada Championship isnot included in the restrictionsstated above.

Eligible MembersMUST NOT have played in more than two Canadian or foreign tour eventsin the period June 20, 2019 to August 19, 2019 (60-days). Toursunder thisclause include all toursused in the Official World Golf Rankingsplusthe ChampionsTour, European Senior Tour and Symetra Tour. The Canadian Open or any PGA of

PGA of Alberta Championship will have yardage for female professionalsset at 85-90% of the male yardages.

| JUL 2019

36-hole stroke play competition.

Payout: 33%of field Maximum field per event: 144 players Entry Fee: $295 (includesGST)

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and down body movement many golfers have, as illustrated by the black dotted line in the three images above right. #3 HIT UNDER THE BALL. Terrible golf tip. If you?re hitting under the ball then you?re hitting the ground and the result is a fat golf shot. It is very important to understand that a well struck golf shot actually consists of the golf club hitting the ball first and then the ground, so the divot actually occurs just in front of the golf ball. If you?re telling yourself to hit behind it or to get under it, then you are accomplishing what you had asked yourself to do. Unfortunately, this doesn?t match the result you had hoped for. Understand what a proper divot should look like and work toward that goal. #4 GRIP THE CLUB TO IMPROVE YOUR SLICE. I often see golfers trying to improve their slice by rotating their right hand counterclockwise (for a right hand golfer) on their grip. It is | JUL 2019

very important to understand that when you rotate your hand counterclockwise, you?re actually promoting an open clubface which will cause a slice.

This also promotes an outside-in swing because now your subconscious is trying to create a swing that comes across the target line in an effort to move the ball left, fighting the open clubface which moves the ball right. If you?re rotating your right hand counterclockwise and you?re slicing the ball, you probably have gone too far.

Have a great golf season and be sure to visit your local PGA of Alberta Golf Professional to help you better understand your own personal golf swing and game.

Scot t Orban is a PGA of Canada Executive Professional and the Chief Operating Officer at McKenzie Meadows Golf Club in Calgary. He can be reached at scott.orban @mckenziemeadows.com.

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3. Educat ion

6. Declarat ion

Please include your educational background, along with current education plans and ambitions.

Please indicate what your intentions would be with the funds if you were awarded one of the Bursaries.

4. Work Experience & Responsibilit ies Please outline the steps you have made along your career path as well as the scope of responsibilities you currently have at your facility.

5. Reference Let t er Please include one reference letter from your current employer.

| JUL 2019

Deadline Bursary application forms and accompanying information must be sent to the PGA of Alberta Office by September 27, 2019 by 4pm. If you have any questions please email or call Marlene Sanderson at the PGA of Alberta office: marlene.sanderson @pgaofalberta.com or 403-256-8894.

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McCourt noted that by simply looking at the new sand, players won?t notice much difference.

Step in and take a swing though, that?s when the metamorphosis becomes apparent.

Interestingly enough, even though The Ranch is hosting the Ladies Amateur this summer , McCourt said these renos have nothing to do with that. ?These are being done simply to help keep his course in the upper ?It?s still going to be a brown echelon of places to play, not sand, but a very high quality only in the greater-Edmonton brown sand... As well, the issue was that none of our bunkers had market but across Alberta.? drainage when the course was As a side note, all the tee boxes built years ago. The bunkers on the par-3 holes are also being we?ve kept and renovated, and renovated as years of wear and many have a new shape to them, tear had affected them. They will now they all have drainage. all be levelled giving players a That?s a huge key in this project.? better stance for tee shots. ?The bunkers that have disappeared, for the most part, were ones that affected newer players or higher handicap players. With some fairway bunkers for example, we?ve made those so they?re a bit farther out so the longer hitter can still reach them (off the tee) but the shorter hitter can?t. So when this project?s done, it?s going to be the same, very difficult Ranch golf club for the better players but newer golfers and higher handicappers are going to find it more user friendly.? | JUL 2019

?It?s not as big an improvement and change as the bunkers, but it?s still a very needed and significant change,?said McCourt about The Ranch upping its game for the playing public.

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Over the course of the three-day show, close to 1200 people gather from across the country and beyond for a look at what?s new and exciting in the golf industry. The Buying Show is an event restricted to Members of the PGA of Canada, Non-PGA of Canada Golf Facilities and Golf Industry Equipment Manufacturers.

Exhibitor registration for the 2019 Buying Show at the BMO Centre in Calgary will open in June. If your company would like to attend the Show, please contact Quinn Logan (quinn.logan@pgaofalberta.com) to request a registration package once available.

REGISTER NOW

Click HERE for the 2019 Exhibitor Information Package Last Year?s (2018) Floor Plan and Exhibitor Booth Numbers | JUL 2019

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as one of the premier green fee facilities, not just in the Stony Plain and Spruce Grove area, but in the Edmonton market.

We need to get back to that. ?The renovation on the golf course is designed to bring the greens back to some of the best first-class greens, not just in our area but in Edmonton. And with the food and beverage operation, the idea is to bring it in-house (rather than | JUL 2019

sub-contracting) so we have full control over what we?re trying to create, and that?s an atmosphere that?s just not for golfers, it?s for our community.

It?s a spot hopefully people will feel comfortable coming to after work, to have a bite to eat, enjoy the view and the setting.

Click to Read the Full Story

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Asked about creating this mountain masterpiece, Browning, who owns Browning Design, had this to say, ?... it?s a spectacular piece of property, right on the side of a mountain in the Crowsnest Pass. It couldn?t get much better. It?s just a stunning piece of property with views of the valley, views of Crow Mountain, and I was honestly blessed to work on this piece of real estate.?

The architect added there ?... were all sorts of little design features as we worked through it that helped give each hole its

| JUL 2019

own character.?

In addition to the new course is a new clubhouse. It?s a monster of a building covering almost 6,500 square-feet on the main floor featuring a restaurant and a patio outside. The level below that is for locker rooms, storage areas and underground cart parking space, adding close to another 10,000-square-feet of usable space.

The members at the Crowsnest Pass G&CC have to be pleased with what could soon be ranked one of the top ?must play?golf courses in the country.

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Kent Fukushima from Redwood Meadows Golf & CC was #12.

By the time they played down to the semis, it was clear it was going to be an all western Friday at the PGA Championship of Canada presented by TaylorMade & adidas Golf and one bracket would feature a pair of Alberta boys ? Heffernan and Risdon.

Said Heffernan before the match, ?I?ve never actually played Dustin in match play, but we?ve played together so many times over the years,?Heffernan said. ?Our games are completely different? Dustin has a great short game and mine isn?t such a strength. Where as, I?m pretty long off the tee and Dustin is definitely shorter and more precise.?

When the dust settled, Risdon had taken out Heffernan 1-up.

In the afternoon, BC?S Oliver Tubb, playing in his second PGA of Canada Championship final, threw everything he had at the 38-year-old from The Players Shack in Alberta but Risdon didn?t waver in his ultimate goal | JUL 2019

of etching his name on the historic P.D. Ross Trophy. ?This is the one trophy in Canadian golf that I really wanted to win,?Risdon said after his 3&1 win. ?If you look at the names on the trophy, it?s amazing and now my name will be on there too for the rest of time.?

Risdon joins the likes of golf legends Arnold Palmer, Moe Norman, George Knudson, Al Balding, Bob Panasik, Lanny Wadkins, Jim Rutledge, Wilf Homenuik, Stan Leonard and Lee Trevino as winners of the PGA Championship of Canada.?I had so much determination out there and I knew I just had to keep fighting,?Risdon said. ?I didn?t have my best swing, didn?t have my best putting stroke but it all kind of came together at the end when it had to and I can?t even begin to tell you how good this feels.?

In the consolation match, past PGA Championship of Canada winner Bryn Parry winner bested Wes Heffernan 2&1.

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