 |
| Gold Level Sponsors | |||
 |
|||
 |
President's ReportSpring is full steam ahead in the Pacific Northwest, as our great weather continues out of the not-winter of 2014/2015. Hopefully, we have taken advantage of the unseasonably nice weather to increase rounds, lessons, and other activities at our facilities. I know many golf professionals in the Northeastern US would love to be in our situation right now! Our Section and 5 inclusive Chapters are all underway administering a robust tournament and education program this season. As we enter into the end of this MSR cycle, all chapters are reporting great attendance, participation, and optimism heading into the season. I attended a few of the chapters' spring meetings. It was very nice to see the full rooms, good dialogue, and sharing of best practices. Our Section is alive and well. A quick shout out and congrats to Mark Gardner and his fine play in the PNWPGA Senior Players Championship, contested at Wine Valley GC last month. Mark posted an impressive first round 64 and finished it off the next day, but felt heat from behind from Mike Gove of Inglewood GC. Thanks to John Thorsnes, PGA, and staff for a great event and for hosting another event at the club. Show John some support by recommending Wine Valley GC to your members or patrons looking for somewhere fun to play this season. Looking ahead to May, we have two Professionals competing in the Senior PGA Championship. This year's event is being held at the French Lick Resort, in French Lick, Indiana. Brent Murray, my old boss and Head Professional at Oswego Lake CC, joins Jeff Coston of the Champions Tour and Semiahmoo GC, to represent the PNWPGA. We are looking forward to your fine play gentlemen, and you have our full emotional support! Your Section Board, in the pursuit of continuous improvement, is always looking for new and better ways to communicate with the membership. As we have headed out of the off-season, where we meet for fall, winter and spring meetings, and head into our busy months, one action item left still to do is the formation of a new Sponsorship Committee. The purpose of this committee is to network with our membership and create an opportunity to follow up on potential leads of an individual, company, or corporation that may be interested in sponsoring a Chapter or Section event or program. The committee will need to be well diversified, covering all areas of our geographically large Section and population centers. If you are interested in serving as an advisory member of this committee, please contact me personally at bryan.tunstill@cecc.com. The more people we have on this committee to keep feelers out for potential leads, the better. Put some sunscreen and a hat on, and then get out there and play and teach! Bryan Tunstill, PGA
|
| Gold Level Sponsors | ||||
|
||||
 |
CEO's ReportWe recently returned from the Media Day for the Muckleshoot Casino Washington Open Invitational. Past champions, club representatives, sponsors and your staff promoted you and your event to the local media. We have a great event planned at Meridian Valley Country Club that will support the Folds of Honor Foundation. Tony Biata, Vice President of Patriot Golf Day, will be on hand to present a scholarship in the name of Lance Corporal Buddy Cote, a local hero killed in Iraq on his first tour, only a few months before his daughter was born. It will be a great day for the heart to honor the service of so many. We’ll sneak in a little fun along the way – I hope you will be joining us for both reasons. Entries are still open. Entries are also out for the Oregon Open Invitational at Crosswater in Sunriver, OR, as well as the Rosauers Open Invitational, which is returning to Indian Canyon GC in Spokane, WA. Visit www.pnwpga.com to enter. Our thanks to Josh Willis at Sunriver and Gary Lindeblad in Spokane for being our hosts. Thank you to the 200+ members and apprentices who completed our Social Media survey. We’ve taken a quick look at the data but still need to dive in to finalize the analysis. Two trends were immediately evident: 1) Facebook trumps all other social media platforms in adoption by those responding, 2) a significant segment of professionals want their information via email and the web. Unless further analysis reveals additional details, you’ll see our Communication Plan employ both a Facebook presence and maintain a strong reliance on email and the web site. Our goal remains the same….let you know what is going on! Registrations are open for Drive Chip and Putt with local qualifiers starting next month. Please promote this great program to your juniors and parents. This is not a program exclusive to the Junior Tour player, but is built for kids of every ability. Parents can sign their children up for this free program at www.drivechipandputt.com. Enterprising professionals might consider offering a Drive Chip and Putt prep clinic to help your junior golfers prepare for the competition. You’ll make a few juniors and their parents happy and make a couple of bucks along the way. Monte Koch has a nice playbook for those interested in this opportunity. We are fortunate to have Mike O’Donnell, Senior Director of Player Development, presenting a Player Development Seminar on May 13 at The Home Course. Mike made a great presentation in Coeur d’ Alene this winter. His program has many favorable reviews from my fellow Executive Directors around the country. You’ll be better equipped to grow the game and most importantly our business after Mike’s presentation. Register here: http://www.entry.pnwpga.com/2015-Mike-ODonnell-Player-Development-Seminar-2015EDU1.htm The MSR deadline is looming! If you have not checked your status, please log into your PGA.org account and check your progress. If you need PGA required credits, attend the seminar above. We are also sponsoring the Golf Alliance of Washington’s Summit on May 14. Register here: http://wwgcsa.org/pages/events-sign-up/golf-alliance.html. Consult the Section and your Chapter’s web site for additional MSR opportunities. Dues bills will be hitting your email shortly. Every year, the PGA of America emails your dues invoice. Simply log into PGA.org to make your payment or print off an invoice for the club to pay. If you have an email in the system, that is how your invoice will arrive. Paper copies will only be mailed to the handful of members with no email on record. Notice I did not say, correct email. If you don’t see the email, just log into your account. We are just six weeks away from the US Open at Chambers Bay. It should bring a great focus on golf in the Pacific Northwest. We’ve received a few calls about access to the championship. The following is reprinted from PGA.org: A final thanks to all of you for being patient with my schedule. I still have not enjoyed a five day week in the office this year! Your team here does a great job of helping you navigate your membership, processing pro-am payouts and simply doing the business of the Section. I owe them a lot for how well they serve our 1,200 PGA Professionals. Thank you, team. Jeff Ellison, PGA |
|
Rosauers Open Invitational Returns to Indian Canyon GC!
Eastern Washington’s most famous golf tournament returns to Indian Canyon GC – with the course in the best shape it’s ever been! We are accepting entries for the Rosauers Open Invitational at Indian Canyon GC on July 17-19. The entry deadline is Wednesday, July 1. pro online entry form | pro entry form (pdf) Play for one of the Largest Section Purses in the Country!This is our biggest Section purse, at $135,000 total with a $11,000 first place check. It is also one of the largest purses in the country! We expect it to be similar to the past, which was: 1st place $350 / 2nd place $325 / 3rd place $300. The payout is deep –34 PGA Professionals will make a $1,000 check or higher. Join the Pro-AmThe main reason the purse is so large is our sponsors! Professionals, after you sign up for the Rosauers Open Invitational, please do not forget to also sign up for the Umpqua Bank Pro-Am on Wednesday-Thursday, July 15-16. You will be paired with a sponsor team and have the opportunity to play the course in tournament conditions before the championship, enjoy a hosted breakfast, lunch and dinner each day, as well as win money and have a chance to thank our sponsors personally. These sponsors also raise funds of $105,000-$130,000 annually for the Vanessa Behan Crisis Nursery, the official charity of the Rosauers Open Invitational. Email Molly Cooper at mcooper@pgahq.com to let her know of your availability during the Umpqua Bank Pro-Am. Participation in the pro-am is important to keeping this championship great! Join the Kickoff Party at Arbor Crest WineryIt all starts with the kickoff party on the evening of Tuesday, July 14. As part of your entry, you and a guest are invited to the Arbor Crest Winery to enjoy wine tastings and delicious hors d’oeuvres. We and our sponsors would love to have you join us! |
|
Join Us at the Oregon Open Invitational
There are still team spots available in the Oregon Open Invitational at Sunriver Resort - Crosswater Course on June 9-11. Entries close Wednesday, May 27th, so download the Oregon Open Invitational Team Entry. If you haven't entered yet, here are some great reasons to call your golf buddies, get over to the fax machine and get that entry in! 
Play an Incredible Golf CourseThe 2015 championship will be contested at Sunriver – Crosswater Course. This is a gorgeous 18-hole heathland-style semiprivate course designed by Robert E. Cupp. Golf Digest named it one of America's 100 Greatest Courses in 1999, and Golf Week named it one of the Top 10 best courses you can play in Oregon in 2014. Play for Bonus Money in the Team CompetitionsThanks to a nice sponsorship through the PGA of America, National Car Rental will be the sponsor of the team competitions – with a $7,500 contribution! This means there will be extra money to play for, in the team competition. To be eligible for the team competitions, all players on the team must be Emerald Club members. Emerald Club signup – Pro | Emerald Club signup – Am |
|
PNW Junior PGA Championship
Championship Qualifier Information: A stroke play competition based on the lowest gross scores. The age divisions are: 12 & Under, 13-15, and 16-18. The winning Boy and Girl Champion from each of the 41 PGA Sections will participate in the Junior PGA Championship held August 3-6, 2015 (Practice Rounds August 1-2) at Miramont Country Club in Bryan, Texas. Section Champions are identified based on the lowest gross score in the 16-18 age division. |
|
We are accepting entries for the 2015 Pacific Northwest Section Junior PGA Championship Qualifier at Lake Spanaway GC on May 30 – May 31. Please let your junior golfers at your club know about our upcoming tournament in the coming months. It’s a wonderful opportunity for your junior golfers to become involved in competitive golf.
PNW Junior PGA Championship
Championship Qualifier Information: A stroke play competition based on the lowest gross scores. The age divisions are: 12 & Under, 13-15, and 16-18. The winning Boy and Girl Champion from each of the 41 PGA Sections will participate in the Junior PGA Championship held August 3-6, 2015 (Practice Rounds August 1-2) at Miramont Country Club in Bryan, Texas. Section Champions are identified based on the lowest gross score in the 16-18 age division. |
|
| Silver Level Sponsors | |||||||
|
|||||||
Mark Gardner Wins PNW Senior Players' Championship
Molly Cooper, PGA - Director of Tournament & Member Programs PGA Professional Mark Gardner of The Creek at Qualchan won the PNW Senior Players’ Championship after firing rounds of 64-71-135 to win by 2 strokes over PGA Professional Mike Gove of Inglewood GC. The championship is a two-man team competition of one Pacific Northwest PGA Professional and one amateur playing a both an individual and a four-ball competition. PGA Professional Mark Keating of Pumpkin Ridge GC took third place. Ed Jonson of Wing Point G&CC took low amateur honors after finishing in a tie for fourth place with PGA Professional Tom Sovay of GC at Redmond Ridge and PGA Professional Billy Bomar of Prairie Falls GC.
After his first round of 64, 8-under par that consisted of six birdies and an eagle, Gardner said, "My 64 was a fun day. Not a lot of great shots but very steady and never got into much trouble. I did hole a 9 iron on #7 for an eagle, after hitting my tee shot into a bad lie in the rough." He said that his “thought process before every shot was about my granddaughter Charlotte. What she was going through in the hospital made a bad golf shot seem very unimportant. I just enjoyed my time away.” Congratulations to PGA Professional Lon Hinkle of Eagle Bend GC who made a rare double eagle on hole #7, a par 5 on Tuesday. He dunked a shot from 252 yards with a 20 degree hybrid. Congratulations also to amateur Keith Crimp of Ellensburg G&CC for making a hole-in-one on the 11th hole. He hit an 8 iron from 155 yards.
Top finishers also earned Senior Hudson Cup and Senior Player of the Year points! Wine Valley Golf Club, which opened in April of 2009, has been rated 5th on Golfweek's Best New Courses. This stunning Dan Hixson design unfolds on a grand scale, playing over rolling hills in the shadow of the Blue Mountains. The course has broad fairways, dramatic bunkers, and bold, undulating putting surfaces. The Northwest Open Invitational will once again return to Wine Valley GC, August 17-19, 2015. Entries will be out in June. And thanks to PGA Professional John Thorsnes and owner Jim Pliska, we are confirmed to return for the Senior Players’ Championship again next year, April 19-20. Senior Player of the Year points and Senior Hudson Cup points were awarded! |
Mark Gardner also won the team Four-Ball competition with his teammates John Lefriec (amateur), Billy Bomar, PGA (Prairie Falls GC), Mike Kerns (amateur), Mark Keating, PGA and Mark Bowler (amateur).
The Senior Players’ Championship welcomed PGA Professional Ken Allen and Club Glove to the event this year as a sponsor. Ken was on site at Wine Valley to meet each participant and hand out a tee gift.| Silver Level Sponsors | ||||||
|
||||||
Holk's Highlights
Who inspired you in your golf career, and how did you become interested in merchandising? "My good friend and mentor Dan Strite was a huge influence on my golf career. He taught me everything about merchandising very early on when I worked for him in High School. I also have had the privilege of working for many other amazing PGA Professional along the way."
Brought to you by Grant Holcomb and:  |
Matt BrownFacility: Highlands GC Hometown: Gearhart, Oregon University: Linfield College, played golf all four years. PGA Member Since: 1998 You were recently awarded the PNWPGA Merchandiser of the Year Award in the Public Category. Can you share a few tips about online merchandising? "Developing personal relationships with your customers is the most important thing whether you are selling to them in person, online or over the phone. You want to make sure they trust you to always give them exceptional value and get them in the correct product to help them enjoy the game. The Internet is a great way to help get your name out there, but developing personal relationships is how you keep your customers coming back." You worked on developing an exclusive line of golf clubs at Highlands GC. Can you describe this experience? "Last year we introduced our own brand of high-end Japanese forged blades called Gearhart & Co. Fine Forged blades. We sell a lot of high-end irons and wedges from companies like Mizuno, Titleist, and Bridgestone and wanted this new line to complement our other lines. With our own brand, we are able to improve margins and take care of a small niche market for folks looking for the highest quality and best feeling blades in golf. We are just starting out but see a lot of future potential." |
|
||||||||||||
OMEGA Partnership AnnouncedMolly Cooper, PGA | Director of Tournament and Member Programs | MCooper@pgahq.com
Through its national partnership with The PGA of America, OMEGA will become the Presenting Sponsor of the national PGA Professional Player of the Year awards. The Swiss watchmaker and the world’s largest professional sporting association are also pleased to announce a similar partnership at the section level, which will enhance the opportunities of all Pacific Northwest PGA Section professionals. The 2015 Pacific Northwest PGA OMEGA Player of the Year will go into effect for 2015. The first PNW PGA major that will have points available will be the upcoming Muckleshoot Casino Washington Open Invitational at Meridian Valley CC on May 18-20. View the Pacific Northwest PGA OMEGA Player of the Year point opportunities. OMEGA is proud to be the Official Timekeeper of The PGA of America. The partnership represents a major breakthrough for OMEGA, expanding the innovative watchmaker’s rich history in sports timekeeping and reflecting its commitment to the global growth of the game of golf. OMEGA is responsible for the on-course venue timekeeping at all PGA of America major championships and is a presenting sponsor of your PGA Professional National Championship. Driven by the company’s pioneering spirit, OMEGA watches have been part of every NASA manned mission since 1965 including all six lunar landings, conquered the oceans’ and enabled the brand to time the world’s most important sporting events. Since 1932, OMEGA has served as Official Timekeeper of the Olympic Games 26 times, scoring all disciplines, and will continue with the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, which will include golf as an Olympic sport for the first time since 1904. OMEGA’s roster of brand ambassadors includes golf stars Rory McIlroy, Stacy Lewis, Sergio Garcia, Michelle Wie and golfing legend Greg Norman. As a result of OMEGA’s partnership with The PGA of America, all PGA members and apprentices are eligible to receive a 20% discount on the retail price of an OMEGA timepiece (excluding special/limited editions). This exclusive offer is limited to one purchase per calendar year per member or apprentice. OMEGA has been creating timepieces since 1848. The brand’s impressive legacy is reflected by its continuous commitment to innovation and quality, reflected by its anti-magnetic Master Co-Axial calibers, mechanical watch movements that have met one of watchmaking’s greatest challenges. |
||
|
|
Words to Avoid in Customer ServiceCarol Pence, PGA | PGA Employment Consultant | CPence@pgahq.com There is karma to everything that we say. This means that the words we use have consequences. In customer service, choosing the right words is important and will make for better relations and result in more sales. Choosing the wrong words may cause a sale to take more time or, worse, be unsuccessful.
Sentence 1: Thank you for your interest in our program, but unfortunately we don’t have this feature available. Sentence 2: Thank you for your interest in our program! Unfortunately, we don’t have this feature available. The change in tone is subtle but important. |
||
|
|
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Bottom LineMonte Koch, PGA | Player Development Regional Manager | mkoch@pgahq.com I heard an interesting story about a golf professional who was working with one of my colleagues recently. In a discussion about merchandising sales, my colleague, Ian James of RetailTribe, had asked the golf professional (who happened to own his own shop) a very simple question about his gross revenue just from sales of golf gloves. In a simple calculation, Ian had the professional answer these simple questions, then complete a simple calculation:
As it turns out, the pros shop sold one glove for every six rounds. Pretty good, right? At first, that seemed pretty good to the pro. Then Ian burst his bubble. He asked the pro, “What if you could sell one glove per foursome?” In response, the pro immediately went back to his calculator, and changed up the calculation. As it turned out, without adding more rounds (about 40k rounds) or raising his glove prices (average about $14 per glove), the increase in gross glove sales would be somewhere between $50,000-$60,000. What do you think this pro did? You’re right, he went directly to his staff to talk about selling more gloves. (Now, I realize there is a cost of goods sold (COGS) to consider, but the point is still worth thinking about.)What funny things might you be missing “on the way to the BOTTOM LINE?”
|
|
|||||||||||
 |
The Defense of Purchasing PowerBlake Parrish | BP Financial Associates | blake@bpfinancialassoc.com "Economize. The secret to golf is to turn three shots into two”. Under-saving isn’t a golf professional phenomenon. It’s a human phenomenon. There is a gap between the perception and reality of the amount of retirement income their savings can buy. Fifty percent of all Americans over the age of 65 are living entirely on Social Security. But some might say, “central banks around the globe have been printing money like crazy and it’s eating away at my wealth.” I don’t see what global monetary policy has to do with anything, because Americans save and spend in dollars, and the dollar is far and away the most credible currency in the world. Not that that’s saying much. We’ve all heard of the adage, failing to plan is planning to fail. This holds true when saving for retirement as well. For people in the accumulation phase of life, that means a written, date-specific, dollar-specific retirement accumulation plan, premised on long-term historical returns. Once in retirement, it has to become a retirement income plan which, at historic returns, defends and even accretes purchasing power. What if I retire right before the next market crash and most of my holdings are in stocks rather than bonds/CD’s? There are a number of ways to manage this risk... |
||
|
|||||||||||||
Pros on the MoveMichelle Parish | Tournament & Membership Assistant Employment Changes
Classification Changes
New Apprentices
Newly Elected Members
Reinstated Members
Transfers OUT of the Section
Transfers INTO the Section
New Half-Century Club Members
Deceased
|
|
|||||||||||||
