Before I sat down to write this article, I reviewed Greg Morris’ article from May 1st, 2019. The second paragraph from that article said, “Here we go – spring is here, and the 4-5-month grind is on.” While things may be far from normal this year, I sincerely hope we will be growing the game of golf at our respective facilities by the end of the month so we can all get on with that seasonal grind we all love.
April has been wild for many of us. With the nicer than normal weather, golf has been on full tilt in some parts of our Section. Customers and members have been flocking to courses in Oregon, North Idaho, and Western Montana. On a personal note, my facility is up well over 200% from years past. For those of you in Washington, I know it has been hard to watch a 70-degree day roll by with no golf at your facility. Thankfully, Governor Inslee recently announced the reopening of golf courses in Washington on May 5 under a specific set of conditions. Click here for the order and click here for the golf-specific details. This is just one more example of just how crazy things are for all of us.
As many of you know, we had to postpone our Washington Open. The new dates are June 27th-30th. Thank you to Greg Manley and the members at Meridian Valley Country Club and the Muckleshoot Casino for working with us to find new date for our event. I hope you can find the time to join us in Kent, Washington at the end of June. It is now a 2-day competition, as your Section staff and board both felt strongly that a move to a 36-hole event was best for all of us. Thank you to Ryan Benzel, our Section Tournament Committee Chair, and Molly Cooper, our Tournament Director, for your hard work and forward thinking. Sign up today by clicking here!
After discussions with Black Butte Ranch, the decision was reached to not conduct the Oregon Open Invitational on June 16-17. Thank you to PGA Director of Golf Jeff Fought for his long support of the Section. We are working on plans to enjoy Black Butte Ranch’s famous hospitality in the very near future.
Unfortunately, we will also be canceling The Rosauers for 2020. It was a difficult decision, but our Rosauers partners and the many sponsors that are part of this event felt it was the best decision at this time. We look forward to next year’s event in 2021.
Please save the date for both the Northwest Open/Folds of Honor Pro-Am on August 15th-19th. Wine Valley is always a treat in August, and from what I have heard, there are a few wineries that exist not too far from the course.
A full list of Section events can be found by clicking here!
I hope you all had a chance to join us for our series of chapter Town Hall meetings in mid-April. Please be on the look out for additional online meetups soon. Our Section office staff and many of our Chapters are also putting together some great webinars. Topics include: handicapping changes, Golf Genius, PGA Junior League, online merchandising and more. Have a suggestion for a topic you’d like to see? Let us know by sending an email to myself, Jeff or Molly.
A full list of PNW PGA “Stay Involved” webinars can be found by clicking here!
As I wrap up this article, I want to thank once again the Section and Chapter staff, committee members and our Section and Chapter Board members for their efforts. Between Zoom calls, Google Hangouts, and personal phone calls, they all have been hard at work in charting a path on your behalf. We are here to serve each of you and grow the game of golf.
Special shout out to our District 14 Director Doug Doxsie. There is no PNW PGA Professional more equipped to serve each of us at the National level. Thank you, Doug, for all you have done for us these past few weeks.
Like I have said before, we are ALL in this together and we will ALL get through this together.
Sean Fredrickson, PGA