April 2023
OFFICERS/BOARD
President Dawn Neujahr, PGA
Vice President Mike Schuchart, PGA
Secretary Phil Palmer, PGA
Honorary President Gil Russell, PGA
Board Member Nick Wanderscheid, PGA
Board Member Chris Cover, PGA
District 8 Director Greg Neujahr, PGA
NEBRASKA PGA STAFF
Executive Director/CEO David Honnens, PGA
Managing Director Seth Scollard, PGA
Tournament Director Vincent Bachteler, PGA
Nebraska Junior Golf Director/PGA REACH
Programming Assistant—Kurt Karcher, PGA
Operations Manager Renee Tyson
Development Officer Bob Danenhauer
Digital Media Director Brett Renner
PGA REACH Prog. Coord. Nic Latcham, PGA
The PGA Professional Championship began in 1968 to provide additional playing opportunities for PGA Professionals. It has become a showcase event featuring some of the finest players in the Association.
Formerly a 360-player field, the format of the PGA Professional Championship was converted from 19972005 to a larger nationwide event featuring the finest 156 players at the peak of their games. Today, the field features 312 players. The list of Champions includes: Sam Snead, Bob Rosburg, Ed Dougherty, Bruce Fleisher, Larry Gilbert, Rex Baxter Jr., Don Massengale, Laurie Hammer, Larry Webb, Bob Boyd, Brett Upper, Bruce Zabriski and Mike Small.
Nebraska PGA is excited to announce a new partnership with On the Rocks for the 2023 tournament season.
On The Rocks will be the title sponsor of Nebraska PGA’s new season-long On The Rocks Team Challenge which will consist of 10 teams of 10 PGA Professionals competing together throughout the season vying to become team champions. 10 PGA Professionals were designated as team captains and drafted nine additional players to their teams.
For more information about the season-long event and to view the 2023 teams, click HERE.
Every Nebraska PGA event will be included in the On The Rocks Team Challenge and individual points earned at those events will go towards the team totals. The top 3 teams will receive a cash payout and every member on the teams will receive the same amount, meaning no matter how many events played or skill level anybody could win.
“We are really excited for this new opportunity that On The Rocks can provide to our membership. The concept of a season-long team contest will improve camaraderie among our PGA Professionals and help increase participation across all our events as teams try to be the On The Rocks Team Challenge Champions. Thank you On The Rocks for being a proud sponsor of the Nebraska PGA,” said Nebraska PGA Tournament Director Vincent Bachteler, PGA.
Brought to you by Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits of Nebraska, On The Rocks provides craft cocktails that distill a bar-quality experience into a ready-to-serve drink. Whether it’s in your pro shop, halfway house or at your poolside bars, On The Rocks cocktails are designed to improve efficiency, timeliness, and consistency across all areas of your facility.
Nine of our team names within our On The Rocks Team Challenge represent the nine flavors of On The Rocks cocktails: The Old Fashioned, The Cosmopolitan, The Aviation, The Margarita, The Jalapeno Pineapple Margarita, The Mai Tai, The Manhattan, The Classic Daiquiri, and The Espresso Martini.
The season-long On The Rocks Team Challenge will kick off on April 17th at The Players Club of Omaha with our first Professional-only event of the season. For the full 2023 Nebraska PGA tournament schedule, click HERE.
At the 2023 PGA Buying & Education Summit, you will have the opportunity to meet with 100+ emerging and top golf brands showcasing the latest innovations and trends in apparel, accessory, gift and award, equipment, technology, and golf lifestyle products. The Summit will feature focused buying appointments, open ballroom exhibits, education at the new PGA Professional Development Center, and experiential networking opportunities across the expansive PGA Frisco campus.
Ballroom exhibits will open to all attendees beginning Tuesday, August 1 through Wednesday, August 2.
Dear Nebraska Section PGA,
I hope everyone is well, and you are starting to get your events going at your facility. This is a great time of the year to hold player development activities to make sure your customers/members are getting their games started off the correct way for 2023. We are definitely in the “roller coaster” mode for the weather so let’s hope May is a bit more consistent and we can get golfers out on our courses. I think this will be another strong year for rounds and new players entering the game. The number of American golfers with an active USGA handicap has surged nearly 17% in the past two years with nearly 420,000 players establishing handicaps in 2022.
This is a big month for our championships as we turn the page to the PGA Championship and also the Senior PGA Championship. The 105th PGA Championship will be held at Oak Hill CC in Rochester, NY May 18th – May 21st and will be played on the East course which opened in 1925 and continues to challenge the world’s greatest players. The Wanamaker Trophy has been awarded to the winner of the PGA Championship since 1916. I am looking forward to attending and hope to see some of you there! We will have on-course hospitality for PGA members and discounts in the merchandise tent areas for PGA Members. I will be starting players on Thursday, Friday and Saturday off the first or tenth teeing areas so wish me luck on the pronunciations. Any player who qualifies through one of our PGA Championship exemptions – such as past PGA Champions and the winners of major championships the last five years – will be eligible to compete in the PGA Championship even if they are no longer competing on the PGA Tour. Best of luck to those competing in the PGA Professional Championship down at Twin Warriors GC in New Mexico and earning one of the 20 spots at Oak Hill!
The Senior PGA Championship is May 24th through May 28th and will be held on the Fields Ranch East course at PGA Frisco. This will be our first event and championship held at the new home of the PGA and we are excited to see the best senior players challenge the new course. There will be 35 Senior PGA Professionals attending the event with 13 of those playing in the event for the first time. We will have 3 PGA Professionals from our district playing in the event (2 from Iowa and 1 from Minnesota) and we wish them best of luck! I will also be attending and fulfilling my announcing duties and looking forward to seeing the property come to life and show the world all the great things happening in Frisco.
Thank you for allowing me to serve on a National level and I hope everyone has a great month!
Sincerely,
Greg Neujahr, PGA District 8 Director
It was great to see so many of you at the Spring Meeting. For those who were unable to attend, I look forward to seeing you at your facility or a Section event in the near future.
As I presented at the meeting, compensation growth is a major focus for the PGA Career Services team. We saw success in 2022 through compensation reporting and negotiation assistance as well as through our involvement in both complementary and paid search services. Historically, when PGA Career Services is able to work directly with an employer regarding compensation during talent searches, we have seen a 15% increase in the compensation eventually offered to the PGA Member. The data from the confidential compensation survey is a critical tool for us in those discussions.
Completion of the Compensation Survey is also critical for the Section to meet its strategic funding goals. Simply put, the more Members who complete the compensation survey, the more funding the Section receives. Only those surveys completed in calendar year 2023 will count towards this funding. Even if your compensation hasn't changed since you last completed the survey, please take a moment to review and click "SUBMIT" for your survey to count.
Please click HERE to complete or update your Compensation Profile. The survey will take less than five minutes and will earn you 1 PDR per year and up to 3 PDR per cycle.
Deferred Compensation- The PGA is offering up to $1,500 in retirement funding for each PGA Class A professional. Click HERE to sign up and start earning points today. This service is free to all PGA Professionals.
As your Career Consultant, I can help provide important information to help you during compensation negotiations or your annual review. Whether it's creating a custom compensation report or compensation based on your current job role(s), I have several useful resources to assist you. I thank you for the opportunity to serve as your Career Consultant and I wish you the best of luck in the 2023 golf season.
Explain facility performance like a pro with PGA Operations Benchmark
The free PGA Operations Benchmark is the only way to understand how your course compares to the market. It offers the first interactive picture of your overall facility performance and gives you the power to make informed decisions. Public and private courses can sign up for the PGA Operations Benchmark program today.
PGA of America Member App & Deferred Compensation
The new PGA Member app is live in the Apple and Google Play stores. Members can now track PDRs, pay dues and submit and track Deferred Compensation points all through an app. Learn more and download it today!
PPC Starts Sunday!
The PGA Professional Championship begins on Sunday. Be sure to follow along for the latest on our National Championship including tee time, broadcast windows and scoring by clicking here.
Member Invoices Coming Soon
The 2023-2024 annual member dues invoices will be available the first week of May 2023 when an email notification is sent to you. The 20232024 invoices will have a June 30, 2023 due date and can be paid from your personal PGA.org dashboard or by calling (888) 263-5285. Please have your ID number available for this option.
DONATE HERE
PGA REACH Nebraska administers the Tasha Keiter Scholarship for young women who enjoy the game of golf. The purpose of the scholarship is to assist female students in furthering their education. Scholarship winners are selected on the basis of their interest and activity in golf, the potential for future contributions to the game, leadership skills/community involvement, then on their academic/professional ability and financial need.
Create
your 2023 PGA Jr. League Programs
today! Players can start registering for published programs on February 1st.
m a 2022 PGA Jr. League Coach
Since you’ve already created your account and set your location, you’ll simply need to publish your 2023 programs.
I didn’t register as a Coach in 2022
Begin by signing up as a Coach through PGAJrLeague.com. From here, you’ll create a location and then publish your 2023 programs.
2023 Nebraska PGA Jr. League Section Qualifier
Fremont GC on Tuesday, July 25th
**If there are too many teams for one qualifier, there will be two qualifiers. The second location is Jackrabbit Run GC in Grand Island on Wednesday, July 26th. Teams will be split as evenly as possible based on geographic location if this additional qualifier is needed.
2023 Nebraska PGA Jr. League Section Championship
The Club at Indian Creek (Red Feather Course) on Saturday, August 12th
IMPORTANT: The top two teams in both the 13U and 17U divisions at the Section Championship will qualify for the regional event, which will be held at The Ridge GC in Sioux Center, IA on Sept. 1-3, 2023.
The 17U post season will have a National Championship starting this year, as opposed to stopping at the Regional Event in previous years.
