I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. In Western Montana, it has been frigid and snowy. However, I did get my first ski days in on my new knee. It was wonderful!
As we enter December, your Officers, Board of Directors, Committee Chairs, and Staff are busy planning for 2023. The arduous process is more than many may know. Each Chapter is nearing completion of your tournament schedules and budgets for 2023. Most Chapters have met and established their goals and objectives for the coming year, held committee meetings to address the important items of player development, professional development, education, governance, tournaments, and reviewed their 2022 operations. The Section will conduct the same winter planning meeting on December 3rd. Frank has worked with Bill Shea to create our Section budget for 2023. Additionally, all committees have met and completed plans for next year. At this meeting we will set goals and objectives, establish timelines, and measure our performance as an organization on your behalf. By the way, please help thank our sponsors in any way you can.
I commend Frank and his team for their hard work. Our Section is one of the best in the Nation. We offer and excel at more programs than most. We are considered a best practice in many of the things we do by our peer Sections. Our tournament program is excellent. Our destination pro-ams are very successful. Our Chapters are aligned through our ED’s and Chapter leadership. We are second in PGA Junior League participation and among the best in our Drive Chip and Putt program. So, what’s next? Well… I am going to share several areas I want to see grow.
PNWPGA Foundation
I am not sure many of you know, but Frank is a foundation guru! Frank’s first job in golf was when he was hired in 1998 by the Southern California Section of the PGA to start and grow their foundation. A separate nonprofit organization wholly owned by that section, today, the SCPGA Foundation is one of the largest and most successful in the PGA.
The PNWPGA Board made a decision last year to establish the Pacific Northwest Section Foundation Task Force. That Task Force was led by Section past president Bryan Tunstill. I thank him for all his time and hard work. That group spent the better part of the year evaluating the opportunity to transition of our Junior Golf Fund into an operating foundation. They recommended and the Section board approved moving forward with this effort. Nearly all the Sections in the country have a Foundation of some type. We have had a Junior Golf Fund for many years, but we haven’t utilized it well. The Section’s new foundation will develop in 2023, and I anticipate many of our current programs will move into our foundation. Look for more information to come in the months ahead.
PGA LEAD
The PGA Lead program is an amazing opportunity for our professionals to develop leadership skills. LEAD is a national program, and the PNW Section has many professionals graduate in recent years. The PGA is accepting candidates for Cohort VII now. If you or a professional you know are interested in this opportunity, please click here for more information. Our Section LEAD graduates will gladly help you along the path or give you insight about the program.
PGA HOPE
In 2022, I have become a major PGA HOPE fan. If you don’t know what PGA HOPE is, please give me a call and I will share my amazing experiences with you. This year we hosted a Missoula PGA Hope program, and I had the honor of attending the PGA Hope and Wellness event in Washington, DC with some amazing veterans. The HOPE program literally saves lives. Veterans that had little to no interest in the game come together as a community through our great sport. The opportunity to teach military veterans to play golf is awesome, but even more than that it is amazing to develop relationships and life-long friends. In 2022 there were 5 programs in the Pacific Northwest. My goal is to see us establish 12 for 2023. Please find a way to get involved with PGA HOPE.
PGA JAM
PNW PGA Professionals are the best at junior golf. We prove it year after year with our PGA Junior League numbers. Talk about a program that serves the member and grows the game! How about we take it one step further? PGA JAM is a PNW PGA program. We are the pioneers of a program that is literally a game changer for our industry. As a pilot program, I have 15 of my junior golfers that are PGA Junior Ambassador Members for the year. This group of kids are basically in the boy and girl scouts of golf! In September, my Jammers hosted a fundraiser to raise money for PGA Junior League All-star expenses. They raised nearly $3,000 for their own program. They did all the work for the event and had a blast. They may have been a little sadistic with the hole locations! In November, my JAM kids did a very successful food drive for local area families, through their schools, that needed food for the holidays. They learned about community, giving, and participated in supporting families. Up next in February is our final program, a junior simulator league. Good stuff, and the best part, these are programs we were already doing, but the Junior Ambassadors now are vested in our success, while they learn teamwork, leadership, and life skills.
PGA Coach
Personally, I am missing out by failing to complete my PGA Coach profile. Over the next 60 days I will be completing mine. Have you done yours? Join me if you haven’t. Let’s get it done. Even though I don’t get to teach a lot as a GM, I want to continue to grow as a Professional. I am excited to learn about the ADM model and new ways to better engage, inspire, and retain golfers.
The best part of these programs is that they drive revenue to you and your facility. Growing the game, creating new golfers and bolstering your customer base is at the heart of what we do as PGA Professionals. If you’re asking what the PGA does for you, these programs are the best part of it. Additionally, don’t forget about benefits like the PGA Financial Assistance Fund Scholarships which open for application for the 2023-24 school year on December 9, 2022. College scholarships are available for the children of PGA Professionals. Make sure your child applies. I have two daughters that received scholarships for college. Soon you will also see the rollout of the deferred compensation program from National. It is slated to begin in the second quarter of 2023. Look for information soon and don’t forget to sign up.
I have laid a lot out there in this article. There are so many ways to enhance your career through our Association. For all of us, this is the slow season. Find time for your family, get some much-deserved rest, and find a program that fits your strengths that will make you more money and a better professional.
This is my last chance to wish you the best this Holiday Season, as Frank will write our next report. So, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Best wishes.
Chris M. Nowlen, PGA