Issuu

In this issue: 2014 Special Awards

Posters coming to you soon!

2014 Special Awards March 23, 2015 Golf Professional of the Year Mike Antonio, PGA Happy Hollow Club

Merchandiser of the Year – Public Denis Vontz, PGA Highlands Golf Course

Assistant Golf Professional of the Year Jeff Henry, PGA The Country Club of Lincoln

Salesperson of the Year Mike Long adidas/Ashworth

Teacher of the Year James Sieckmann, PGA Shadow Ridge Country Club

Horton Smith Tom Hearn, PGA PGA TOUR

Junior Golf Leader Adam Coates, PGA Spencer Golf & Country Club

Bill Strausbaugh Joe Canny, PGA Nebraska Section PGA

Merchandiser of the Year – Private Dawn Neujahr, PGA Champions Run

Player Development James Kinney, PGA GolfTEC – Omaha

Facility of the Year ArborLinks

2014 Players of the Year Shane Zywiec, PGA — Player of the Year Jim White, PGA MP—Senior Player of the Year Ryan Vermeer—Assistant Player of the Year Nebraska Section PGA | 610 J Street., Ste 10 | Lincoln, NE 68508 | Ph: (402) 489-7760 | Fx: (402) 489-1785 | www.nebraskapga.com

In a recent study of more than 4,700 PGA Professionals, the PGA brand was primarily viewed as a way of adding credibility and serves as an integral element in helping to promote you and your programs and services. However, when it comes to leveraging the PGA brand, it appears that the PGA Professionals by in large believe the brand is more important to them than their employer or customers. This may make sense through the eyes of a PGA Professional, but what about through the eyes of your customer? A PGA led study conducted in the Spring of 2014 evaluated interests and attitudes of golfing and non-golfing consumers including the impact and importance of PGA Professional involvement in select player development programs. The overwhelming majority of golfers and non-golfers feel PGA Professional involvement in the delivery of Get Golf Ready is a very positive element to this program.

Three-quarters or more of golfing parents and more than 45% of non-golfing parents feel PGA Professional involvement in the delivery of youth golf programs is very positive.

While there may be some confusion among consumers as to the role of the PGA Professional, rest assured that consumers view the PGA brand as the best in golf. So take a moment and look through your golf programming and marketing materials to see how you are taking advance of those three initials to help grow your business and your connection to the PGA brand. Visit the Marketing Resource Center to create your own marketing materials using the PGA of America logo or PGA Professional logo. Nebraska Section PGA | 610 J Street., Ste 10 | Lincoln, NE 68508 | Ph: (402) 489-7760 | Fx: (402) 489-1785 | www.nebraskapga.com

Local Qualifiers Saturday, June 13, 2015

Hillcrest Country Club (Lincoln)

Saturday, June 27, 2015

Eagle Hills Golf Club (Papillion)

Friday, July 10, 2015

Riverside Golf Club (Grand Island)

For a complete list of qualifiers nationwide, visit drivechipandputt.com.

Las Vegas, Nevada – Ryan Vermeer of Tiburon G.C. got off to a hot start by birding three out of his last six holes on the front nine and cruised to capture the low professional title of the 25th Annual Vegas Classic presented by TaylorMade Golf. Near perfect temperatures and variable winds allowed for ideal scoring conditions. Nick Wanderscheid, PGA of Green Valley G.C. made an early run at Vermeer but a couple untimely bogies on the back nine left him finishing alone in second place. Chris Wiemers, PGA of Happy Hollow Club rounded out the top three 16 points back of Vermeer in the modified stableford format. Chris Wiemers’s, PGA play inspired his fellow amateur partners, Mike Sortino, Bob Slezak, Dan Thomas and Tony Merksick as they posted a final round best score of 85 points. Wiemers birdied four out of his first seven holes on the front nine and his amateur partners caught fire on the back nine to help propel them to the team title. Second round leaders, Shane Zywiec, PGA of Highlands G.C and his amateur partners struggled but managed to secure second place. Vermeer’s team rounded out the top three finishers in the team competition. The Nebraska Section PGA would like to thank TaylorMade Golf and regional representatives, Mitch Benjamin, Todd Petersen and adidas supporting sponsor, Mike Long for their support of this great event. Click here to view the results on the website.

NORCROSS, Ga. – Jonathan Mielke, Director of Instruction at Oak Hills Country Club Omaha, has been named to U.S. Kids Golf’s annual list of Top 50 Kids Teachers. The Award recognizes the world’s most outstanding youth golf instructors, and Mielke is part of a select group that earned Top 50 accolades among more than 500 applicants. Since 2004, U.S. Kids Golf has honored the best youth golf teachers with the Top 50 Kids Teacher Award. Applicants complete an online survey and winners are chosen based on their contributions to youth golf, such as: experience young golfers; time devoted to teaching youth; innovation, creativity and fun in their programs; communication; parental involvement; use of a well-organized instruction program and overall effort to grow the game. The Top 50 Kids Teachers of 2014 includes golf professionals from 22 states, Canada and Costa Rica. Each year, award recipients include teachers who work at public, private, resort and municipal courses. “The teachers and coaches who win this award play an important part in our corporate mission to make the game of golf for kids,” said Dan Van Horn, President and CEO of U.S. Kids Golf. “Our goal in recognizing these youth golf coaches is to bot recognize their accomplishments and also to help parents find quality golf instruction for their kids.” The Top 50 Kids Teacher Award is administered by the U.S. Kids Golf Coaches Institute, a division of the U.S. Kids Golf Foundation. For more information about the Top 50 Kids Teacher Award, please contact U.S. Kids Golf at playandlearn@uskidsgolf.com. The U.S. Kids Golf Foundation, a Georgia non-profit recognized as a 501(c)(3) charity, was created in 2001 and provides services that include competition and instruction. The Foundation organizes over 800 tournaments each year for more than 10,000 players, ages 5-18. These tournaments include Local Tours in more than 50 cities, eight Regional Championships, the European Championship, and the U.S. Kids Golf World Championship and Teen World hampionship, which are held each year in Pinehurst, North Carolina. The vision of the U.S. Kids Golf Foundation is to provide kids and their families the opportunity participate in the game of golf through instruction and competition. With the belief that family interaction is critical in the development of young golfers, parents are encouraged to serve as caddies for their kids during tournaments and to develop positive coaching techniques. U.S. Kids Golf, LLC is based in Atlanta and manufactures equipment and related golf products designed for kids. It was created in 1997 when Founder/CEO Dan Van Horn found that his children were losing their interest in golf due to not having the proper equipment. In addition to more than 4,000 golf shops and retail locations in the United States, the company's products also are available in more than 75 countries worldwide. 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 4 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 jcanny@pgahq.com or by fax 402-489-1785.

WHAT:

NEW Online Education - Golf 2.0

INFO:

Click Here for Log In

MSRs:

Up to 11 MSRs - Toward PGA Required

WHAT:

Update PGA.org Profile

MSRs:

1 MSR Credit - Toward TOTAL MSR Category

Look for your Junior Golf Posters in your mailbox soon!

Look for your Junior Golf Posters in your mailbox soon!

Keep golf on the junior’s radar to grow the game As PGA professionals we face an ever evolving challenge to grow junior golf, and all too often it becomes a common practice to only offer a four-week program in the summer. Some of these programs draw a large number of participants, but the problem with this format is once the program is completed, we lose the juniors. In most cases, we might not see them until the next year and golf falls off their radar. There is a small window for juniors to experience golf, especially with all the other sports available. It usually turns into out of sight, out of mind. In fact, if you were to ask juniors what sports they would like to play, you would see the top five are team sports such as baseball, soccer, football, basketball and volleyball, followed by gymnastics and martial arts. Golf might not even make the top 10 and this becomes the challenge. In order to keep golf on our junior’s radar, I have designed the Mielke Golf Junior Academy. This is a year-round program designed around long-term athletic development (LTAD) and an extensive classification system that minimizes the Matthew and Relative Age effects. The curriculum takes into consideration the 10-year rule, fundamental movement/sport skills, specialization, developmental/ biological age, windows of trainability and phases of development. The first step to enter the academy is the junior screening process. Each athlete will perform a series of tests including physical, golf skills and golf knowledge that are graded with a pass or not passed score. The total number of passed proficiencies will determine their developmental level. Each junior, regardless of their chronological age, must go through the screening process to optimize their academy experience. Once the athlete completes the screening process, they will be placed into one of the developmental levels: Level 1. Launch (L Division); Level 2. Implement (I Division); Level 3. Engage (E1 Division); Level 4. Elite (E2 Division). During the last week of each month, athletes will be re-tested and are required to achieve a score of 80 percent or better in all the skill tests in order to graduate into the next level. Academy athletes have the opportunity to attend two 60-minute sessions per week, along with three practice sessions. To solve the winter season issues, I temporally convert a storage room into 980 square-foot indoor studio that contains a full swing simulator, 10-by-15-foot putting green, 6-by-15-foot chipping green and a lounge area. The importance of keeping golf on our juniors’ radar With the implementation of the MGJA, Oak Hills Country Club has been able to retain 31.2 percent of our junior golfers, year-round. We have also been able to introduce the game to an average of four new golfers per month. An increase in equipment sales and club participation during the off-season is proof of the importance to keep junior golf on the radar. Our projection for the next year is a retention rate of 58 percent, with 75 new to golf juniors attending our programs. Making a real impact on the growth of junior golf should not be looked upon as a sprint, but rather a marathon. The process will not happen overnight and we need to create a foundation to support and encourage growth, securing the future of the game we all love. Jonathan Mielke, PGA Director of Instruction – Oak Hills Country Club Top 50 US Kids Instructor TPI Level 3 Golf Instructor TPI Level 3 Junior Coach US Kids Certified Instructor Positive Coaching Alliance Double Goal Coach Certified Clubfitter

Our Founding Fathers wrote in the preamble to the Declaration of Independence, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Did you know that the USGA has endowed you with certain inalienable rights to assist you in your pursuit of happiness on the golf course? Here are just a few examples, along with references, in italics, to relevant Definitions, Rules or Decisions: You have the right to mark, lift, and clean your ball on the putting green. Rule 16-1b [The Putting Green: Lifting and Cleaning Ball] You have the right to brush away sand and loose soil on the putting green. Definition of “Loose Impediments”; Rule 16-1a [Touching Line of Putt] You have the right to share distance information. Decision 8-1/2 [Exchanging Distance Information] You have the right to remove a movable obstruction interfering with your play. Rule 24-1 [Movable Obstruction] You have the right to relief for a ball embedded in its own pitch-mark in any closely-mown area through the green. Rule 25-2 [Embedded Ball] You have the right to repair ball marks and old hole plugs on the putting green. Rule 16-1c [Repair of Hole Plugs, Ball Marks and Other Damage] You have the right to put identification marks on your ball before you put it into play, and you have the right to mark and lift your ball to make sure that the ball is yours. Rule 12-2 [Lifting Ball for Identification] You have the right to carry as many as 14 clubs. Rule 4-4 [Maximum of Fourteen Clubs] You have the right to mark and lift your ball to determine if it is unfit for play if you believe that it has become unfit for play during play of the hole being played. Rule 5-3 [Ball Unfit for Play] You have the right to play a provisional ball if your original ball may be out of bounds or lost outside a water hazard. Rule 27-2 [Provisional Ball] You have the right to have the flagstick attended before making a stroke from anywhere on the course. Rule 17-1 [Flagstick Attended, Removed or Held up] You have the right to search for your ball for up to five minutes before your ball is deemed lost. Definition of “Lost Ball” and Rule 27-1c [Ball Not Found Within Five Minutes] You have the right to eliminate irregularities of surface on the teeing ground. Decision 13-2/2 [Player Who Misses Tee Shot Presses Down Irregularities Before Next Stroke] You have the right to discontinue play if you reasonably believe there is danger from lightning. Rule 6-8a [Discontinuance of Play; Resumption of Play: When Permitted]; Decision 6-8b/5 [Player Claiming Danger from Lightning Refuses to Resume Play When Resumption Ordered by Committee] You have the right, in stroke play, to play a second ball if you are doubtful of your rights or the correct procedure during the play of a hole. Rule 3-3 [Doubt as to Procedure] You have the right to deem your ball unplayable anywhere on the course, except when your ball is in a water hazard. Rule 28 [Ball Unplayable] Nebraska Section PGA | 610 J Street, Ste 10 | Lincoln, NE 68508 | Ph: (402) 489-7760 | Fx: (402) 489-1785 | www.nebraskapga.com

As a courtesy extended by Augusta National Golf Club; Class A PGA members, Life members and Master Professional members gain complimentary access to The Masters (PGA members only; this offer is not extended to apprentices). No spouse or families (including practice rounds). Must show membership card and photo I.D. each day. Go to Gate 6A off of Berckmans Road then report to Gate C to receive daily ticket. NOTE: Daily tickets are not available to purchase for spouse. Ticket Information (706) 6676700.

Members who update their PGA.org profile will receive one (1) MSR credit in “service”, which applies to the Total MSR category (M06 = 1). Awarding MSR for this activity is consistent with other National, Section and Chapter activities in which PGA Members can receive credit for providing service to the Association. The MSR Credits for this activity will be awarded to those Members who have already updated their PGA.org profile as well as those Members who do so on a going-forward basis.

What your employer expects you to know PGA PerformanceTrak: Monthly Rounds and Revenue Reporting Employers expect you to know where you stand in relations to the market. In only minutes each month, you can report and compare your facility’s performance through PGA PerformanceTrak and provide sound business information to help drive your facility’s bottom line. 

Demonstrate your expertise to increase your credibility and industry knowledge



Benchmark your facility’s performance and identify areas that may be under performing



Generate reports that showcase your business and support future budgeting efforts

PGA Professionals can earn MSR credit by participating online. Don’t miss out on this valuable service. If you are the highest ranked PGA Professional at your facility, click here to submit your data. If you wish to participate in this service on behalf of your highest ranked PGA Professional, ask them to click here to assign access to you. The next deadline to submit monthly rounds is April 24, 2015. Whether you are open or closed in a given month, it is important that you continue to enter this data online. HOW CAN WE HELP? Contact us by phone at: (800) 477-6465 Ext. 8574 or by email at: PerformanceTrak@pgahq.com

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

See Where You Stand:

2015 Nebraska PGA Tournament Schedule Date

Tournament

Harris Yamaha Golf Cars 27 Hole Pro - 3 Am Tiburon Golf Club - MGW - Omaha, NE Apr 13 Tiburon GC - GWH - Omaha, NE Tiburon Golf Club -HM - Omaha, NE National Car Rental Pro - 3 Am Apr 27 Hillcrest - Lincoln, NE Club Car Pro - 3 Am May 4 Champions Run - Omaha, NE Club Car / Cutter & Buck Pro-3 Am May 11 The Country Club of Linco - Lincoln, NE Harris Yamaha Golf Cars Asst. Match Play Champ May 14 - Sep 25 Tiburon GC - GWH - Omaha, NE Harris Yamaha Golf Cars Match Play Championship May 14 - Sep 25 Tiburon GC - GWH - Omaha, NE Dodge Riverside - Council Bluffs, IA E-Z-GO Pro 3-Am May 18 Iron Horse GC - Ashland, NE Mizuno Pro/Assistant Championship May 26 Oak Hills - Omaha, NE All Star Pro Golf Pro - 3 Am Jun 8 Fremont GC - Fremont, NE Laser Link Foundation Pro-Am Jun 15 Happy Hollow - Omaha, NE National Car Rental Pro-3 AM Jun 22 Wilderness Ridge - Lincoln, NE HCIS Pro - 3 AM Jun 29 ArborLinks - Nebraska City, NE Nebraska JR PGA Championship (13-18) Jul 1-2 Wilderness Ridge - Lincoln, NE Nebraska JR PGA Championship (12 & U Jul 3 Jim Ager Memorial GC - Lincoln, NE Siouxland Golf Charities Pro - 3 Am Jul 6 Whispering Creek - Sioux City, IA Golf Fore The Troops Jul 13 Firethorn GC - Lincoln, NE TaylorMade 36 Hole Pro - 3 Am Jul 18-19 Green Valley GC - Sioux City , IA E-Z-GO Facility Championship Jul 27 Shadow Ridge CC - Omaha, NE Nebraska Assistants Championship Aug 3 Riverside GC - Grand Island, NE

Info

Opens 05/21/2015

Info

Opens 04/06/2015

Info

Opens 04/06/2015

Info

Opens 11/28/2015

Aug 3-4

NE PGA Senior Professional Championship Riverside GC - Grand Island, NE

Info

Aug 10-11

Nebraska PGA Professional Championship ArborLinks - Nebraska City, NE E-Z-GO/Bushnell/Bolle Pro 3-Am Oak Hills - Omaha, NE

Info Info

Aug 24

All Star Pro Golf Team Championship Beatrice Country Club - Beatrice, NE

Info

Sep 11-13

Wells Fargo Nebraska Open Elks Country Club - Columbus, NE Nebraska PGA Cup Series Championship Quarry Oaks - Ashland, NE

Info

Opens 05/07/2015

Info

Opens 09/21/2015

Aug 17

Sep 21

Benjamin L. Johnson, PGA

A-8

Two Rivers Golf Club

Jeffrey A. Perdew, PGA

A-13

Awarii Dunes Golf Club

Damon G Brower

B-8

Champions Run

3/3/2015

Scott Carlson, PGA

A-1

Pioneers Golf Course

3/16/2015

Wade Foreman, PGA

A-4

Jim Ager Memorial Golf Club 3/7/2015

Benjamin Johnson, PGA

A-8

Two Rivers Golf Club

3/9/2015

Patrick Kilbride, PGA

A-1

Amana Colonies GC

2/27/2015

Jeffrey Perdew, PGA

A-13

Awarii Dunes Golf Club

3/6/2015

Shane Zywiec, PGA

A-1

Seward Country Club

3/1/2015

Terrance P. Riordan, PGA Robert A. Walker, PGA Nick P. Wanderscheid, PGA Mike R. Schuchart, PGA Todd C. Boeve, PGA Scott M. Allacher, PGA Robert G. Thomason, PGA Kenneth C Evans Hank A. McFarland, PGA Bill Scarborough, PGA Brett D. Evans, PGA Scott E. Martin Ky M. Molholm, PGA Tom E. Nelson, PGA

4/1 4/2 4/2 4/6 4/7 4/8 4/8 4/9 4/11 4/11 4/12 4/12 4/14 4/15

Jonathan S. Beaver, PGA Gerald Fitzpatrick, PGA Sean M. O'Neill, PGA Jim B. White, PGA Don Kruse, PGA Adam J Harter Britton R. Ward, PGA Jeffrey L Kuhn Jon D. Petersen, PGA David M. James, PGA Mitch Merrill, PGA Mike Cornell, PGA Jennifer A. Smith, PGA

4/16 4/16 4/16 4/16 4/22 4/23 4/23 4/24 4/24 4/25 4/25 4/26 4/28

STAFF David Honnens, PGA Executive Director dhonnens@pgahq.com

Sean Oâ€™Neill, PGA Tournament Director soneill@pgahq.com

Joe Canny, PGA Junior Golf Director/ Player Development Coordinator jcanny@pgahq.com

Renee Tyson Operations Manager rtyson@pgahq.com