Bryan Tunstill, PGA
(503) 285-8354
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As we spring into the golf season, the Pacific Northwest Section is set for a successful year. This is largely due to the efforts of many, not just a few.
Specifically, I speak of our Committee System. As I became President and in turn had to populate our Section Committees, I realized that we had a strong system in place already. However, as your Section Board reviewed the scope and charter of each Committee one by one, we realized that some of the language and ‘job descriptions’ of some of the Committees needed to be changed or updated. We worked through these, made the relevant changes, and then we established goals for each Committee for the year. We feel confident that our Committees will provide our Section with a wide viewpoint, across all of our Chapters, as we move forward.
I want to thank each member of our Section Committees for their hard work and efforts to make our Association better. A list of the Committees and their goals for 2016 are listed below this article. If you have any questions or issues that you would like to see addressed by a respective Committee, please contact myself at bryan.tunstill@cecc.com or the Committee Chair. If you are interested in getting involved with a Committee, I encourage you to do so. The best way for now is at your local Chapter level. Contact your respective Chapter Presidents (OR – Sean Fredrickson; WW – Dan Harrington; IE – Kathy Gildersleeve-Jensen; WMT – Cameron Milton; CW – Clint Ables) to get involved.
Every professional that serves on a Committee, whether Chapter, Section or National, does so as a privilege of his and her peers. We are all here to serve in the best interest of you, the member of the PNWPGA.
View Committee Goals for 2016
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Jeff Ellison, PGA
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Thank you to everyone who completed the PGA Compensation Survey. You helped provide valuable information to assist yourself and your fellow PGA Professionals understand and enhance their compensation situation. This is a valuable tool for Carol Pence when she works with you or a facility to elevate compensation to appropriate levels. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to Carol to elevate your personal situation. Whether it’s telling your story to your current employer or looking forward to another position, she is just an email or phone call away: cpence@pgahq.com or 510-706-1583.
On Sunday, April 3, Augusta National Golf Club will host the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals. Two young ladies who came through the Northwest will be competing on the hallowed grounds. Jayla Kucy of Camrose, Alberta who qualified via the OGA Course last season will compete for the second year in a row and Malia Schroeder of Arlington, WA, who qualified through Lake Padden GC will also represent us. Tune in to Golf Channel to follow the finals. Drive, Chip and Putt is a great free program for juniors of all abilities, please promote participation in one of our ten local qualifiers to juniors at your facility. Our schedule is posted at http://www.pnwpga.com/junior-golf/drive-chip-and-putt-local-qualifying/ along with a list of facilities offering Drive Chip and Putt Clinics.
The Muckleshoot Casino Washington Open Invitational is scheduled for May 16-18 at Meridian Valley Country Club in Kent, Washington. PGA General Manager Greg Manley is looking forward to being your host for the season’s first major. There is still room for another pro-am team if you have four amateurs who would enjoy great golf, good food, a trip to the Muckleshoot Casino and the chance to support the Folds of Honor! Click here for details. With a full field, we are looking at a total purse of $85,000…. maybe you should play!
Entries are now out for the Oregon Open Invitational, which returns to Brasada Canyons GC, site of the 2009 championship. Zach Swoffer, PGA Director of Golf and his team will roll out the red carpet for your stay. VERY special rates are available for tournament participants at Brasada that will provide you with all the amenities offered at this world class resort. Click here for details.
Finally, the committees will soon be reviewing applications for the Yamaha Player Development Grants and the Youth Player Development Grants. We received over $34,000 in requests for our $24,000 in available funds. It looks like the Committee has a little work to do! Thanks for applying!
You have a great team in both the Section and Chapter offices. Please reach out to these dedicated folks to assist you in taking advantage of our programs, understanding our program offerings or simply understanding PGA membership processes. They are all here to help YOU.
Jeff Ellison, PGA
CEO, Pacific Northwest Section PGA
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Candidates for Secretary
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Get Ready for the Oregon Open Invitational!
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Team entries are now available for the Oregon Open Invitational at Brasada Canyons on June 14-16th. Entries close Wednesday, May 25, so hurry and get your team entry in now before this popular event fills!
- Brasada Canyons - 6,893 yards, Par 72
- Full field will be 48 teams of four players
- Competition: 54-hole individual competition, beginning Tuesday, June 14, with tee times from 7:30 am - 2:30 pm off the first and tenth tees. Additionally, there is a 36 hole (best 2 of 4 net) team competition and pro-am four-ball. The second round will be followed by a cut and repairing of the top 70 players and ties.
Get the Team Entry Form
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Lucky 13th Holcomb-In-One Las Vegas Pro-Am
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L to R: Ryan Young, Joel Micka, Jacob Wassall, Cameron Whittle, Elliott Kunugi
By Molly Cooper, PGA
Director of Tournament and Member Programs
Thank you to all 24 teams (120 participants) who participated in the 13th Holcomb-In-One Las Vegas Pro-Am at Desert Pines GC, Chimera GC and favorite Anthem CC. All players enjoyed a week of fantastic weather – mid to high 70’s!
Congratulations to PGA Professional Ryan Young’s team from Chambers Bay GC with amateurs Joel Micka, Cameron Whittle, Elliott Kunugi and Jacob Wassall! They took home the Sterling Cut Glass trophies and title of the 13th Holcomb-In-One Las Vegas Pro-Am Champions, after winning by five points over the defending champions from Prairie Falls GC, led by Billy Bomar, PGA, with amateurs Mike Bergt, Larry Buss, Dave Faulk and JW Horsley.
"We were just going down for a good time, but after realizing what a dynamic team we had, we just had to make sure we made our tee times!" Young said of his team's win.
Congratulations to Jason Aichele of Meadow Springs CC for winning the overall professional division by two points over Mark Gardner of The Creek at Qualchan. Low amateur gross stableford honors went to Cameron Whittle of Moses Lake CC, who won by three points over Bjorn Bjorke of McCormick Woods GC. Amateur John Mazzuca of Fircrest GC won low honors in the amateur net field in the stableford competition by two points over Glen Graham and Larry Beroth, also from Fircrest GC.
Grant Holcomb sponsored this event, along with John Anderson of Antigua/Slazenger, Ed Kowachek of Sun Mountain Sports, John Bond of Imperial Headwear, Scott Williams and John Riley of VooDoo Performance Towels, Dennis Parks of AM&E and Jon Sjostrom of Range Servant, making it our best year yet. Each participant in the event received two Antigua pieces – a golf shirt and pull over, a Sun Mountain rain bag cover, a VooDoo Performance Towel and a hat from Imperial Headwear. Thanks also to Jason Gregory of CaddyX for sponsoring the event for the second year.
For those of you that have yet to experience the Holcomb-In-One Las Vegas Pro-Am, it’s a great one and Grant is "ALL IN" for next year, so start working on your team and join us in 2017! But you don't have to take our word for it. In the words of Ryan Young: "Saying you'll be there for 5 days is a little crazy, but there's nothing like living a life of Entourage for a week."
Final Results
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Rainier G&CC Duo Wins Pro-Assistant Championship
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L to R: Host PGA Professional Sean Fredrickson, Darren Black, Bushnell Sponsor Sally Schmitz and Uriel Jimenez
By Molly Cooper, PGA
Director of Tournament and Member Programs
The Rainier G&CC team consisting of Head PGA Professional Darren Black and Assistant Professional Uriel Jimenez won the Pro-Assistant Championship by one stroke. The duo fired rounds of 67-65-132, 10 under par in the four-ball competition. The two-day event was held March 21-22 at Tualatin CC in Tualatin, Oregon.
Going into the final round, Head PGA Professional John Kawasoe and PGA Assistant Professional David Lebeck of Astoria G&CC were tied for the lead. The co-leaders were none other than the 2012 champions of this event – Head PGA Professional Brent Murray and PGA Assistant Professional Scott Erdmann. Both teams had fired first round scores of 65, 6-under par. With many strong teams within shots of the leaders, it was still anyone’s game for the team championship.
On the morning of the final day, Brent Murray showed up solo as Scott Erdmann had emergency gallbladder surgery the night prior. Despite hopes of making history by winning the championship playing by himself, Murray could not hold the lead. The team from Rainier G&CC with Black and Jimenez came from two strokes behind and won the event by one stroke. Along the way to their second round score of 65, they posted four birdies and an eagle.
Three teams finished in a tie for second place, including the host team from Tualatin CC. The team from Astoria G&CC with Kawasoe and Lebeck also finished second, along with the team from Broadmoor GC.
The lone skin of the event went to Dan Hill and Tim Feenstra of Broadmoor GC, for an eagle on #11 the final day.
“It was very special for me to be able to represent Rainier Golf and Country Club. Winning was a bonus, there were a lot of great teams in the field and we feel fortunate to have come out on top,” Jiminez reflected after their win. He had been working at Rainier G&CC since last April and just experienced his first winter in the Pacific Northwest.
“It always feels special to enter the winner's circle!” added Black, who won the Muckleshoot Casino Washington Open Invitational last year. “I am happy to add our names to this wonderful trophy and be a part of history for the event.”
Asked how they felt going into the final round against such stiff competition, Jiminez replied they were mainly focused on having a good time in the tournament. “Playing with two great friends made it a lot easier.” Going into the final round, the team kept their cool, with their strategy simply to “just take it one hole at a time and see where they fall.”
For their victory, Black and Jiminez earned $2,750 and the title of 2016 PNW Pro-Assistant Champions. In addition to their first place check, Sally Schmitz gave both men a Bushnell new rangefinder of their choice. All participants also received a Cutter & Buck shirt from Brian Dickson and bag tag from Pro Tag.
Our thanks to Sally Schmitz of Bushnell, Bryan Dickson of Cutter & Buck, Troy Flateau of NW Golf Consulting, Matt Pollitt of PTE Golf, Gordon Schenk of Pro Tag and David Nelson of Hole-In-One Insurance for their support. A special thanks to host PGA Professional Sean Fredrickson and his staff – especially to superintendent Randy Shults and his crew for a fantastic golf course.
Final Results
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Sponsors
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Gold Level Sponsors |
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Holcomb-In-One Sponsors |
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National Sponsors |
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Partner-Level Sponsors |
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