June 1, 2020

President's Report

I am excited to announce that by June 10^th, all five of the chapters that make up the PNWPGA will be operational!  This has been no small feat and I cannot thank our staff and board enough for their tireless work to make this happen.  I think it is safe to say that we can finally see a light at the end of this tunnel.

I recently had the opportunity to play in my first chapter pro-am of 2020 at Pronghorn Resort in Bend, Oregon.  Kudos to Dominic Marconi and the entire OPGA Chapter Board for creating a safe environment for us to play.  The weather was perfect, the field was full, and it was nice to see my chipping yips have not been affected by my absence from semi-competitive golf.

Early reports from chapter staff have indicated that we all are itching to play golf.  Oregon, Western Montana, Central Washington, Inland Empire and Western Washington all expect full events as our tournament season heats up.  Please make sure you find time in your busy schedule to participate in a chapter event.  As I’ve stated previously, your participation will help all our chapters regain a healthy status.

The Section’s major event schedule will look quite different this year.  I assume you all have been updated on the status of our Oregon and Washington State Opens.  Both entries are live, and I hope you will make it a priority to attend at least one if not both of these prestigious events.

Click here to sign up for the Muckleshoot Casino Washington Open at Meridian Valley Country Club in Kent, Washington.  Thank you to Greg Manley and the membership at Meridian Valley for working with our Section to host this event in 2020.

Click here to sign up for the Oregon Open at Arrowhead Golf Club in Molalla, Oregon.  Thank you to Bryce Fisher and the entire Fisher family for opening their doors to PNW Section Professionals.  Arrowhead is a true friend of the PNWPGA.

I invite you to take a moment to think of your peers who have performed exceptionally this season, especially in light of this difficult time. The Special Awards Committee, led by Roger Wallace, has been working hard to streamline the awards nomination process. Special thanks to Jess Roper for developing the new online process and Angela Hinzpeter for assisting the committee in realizing their vision. Click here nomination forms and criteria for each award.

In the Fall of 2020, you will all be voting for the next Secretary of the PNWPGA.  Bill Shea, the General Manager of the Cedars at Dungeness and Chris Nowlen, the General Manager at Missoula Country Club, are quality PGA Professionals.  Thank you to both for your willingness to serve our association.  Please give them your time this summer as they answer questions about why they deserve your vote.  The final vote will be tallied at our Fall Meeting in October.

Finally, I want to provide an update to our search for our next Section CEO.  The search committee has narrowed down the candidates and we have begun the interview process.  We are following our timeline closely, and we will achieve our goal of placing a new CEO in August.  This will allow sufficient time for a smooth transition.  As expected, the process has been bittersweet.  While we knew we would face a difficult task of replacing Jeff Ellison, we have become increasingly confident we will be able to find the next leader of the PNWPGA.

Sean Fredrickson
Head PGA Professional – Oswego Lake Country Club
PNW PGA President
Cell: 503-476-7668
[email protected]
 

Upcoming Events

PNW PGA "Stay Involved" Education Series

• presented by Keith Bennett, PGA

• presented by Chris Runyan, PGA

• presented by Director Cole Mize and Internship Coordinator Luke Nickodemus

• presented by Ryan Young, PGA and Derek Siesser, PGA

Holk's Highlights: Paul Cobleigh

This spring, we are highlighting PNW PGA Professionals who have contributed Best Practices to the Section. We hope their programs will inspire you! Search the full Best Practices archive at https://www.pnwpga.com/bestpractices.

Name: Paul Cobleigh, PGA

Facility: Suntides GC

Hometown: Yakima, WA

PGA Member Since: 1990

Who or what inspired you to get into golf?

I began golfing in 1973 (age 12) when a good friend invited me to play. Ironically, we played Suntides GC. It was difficult but fun, and I thought how cool it would be to be a professional in this sport. I golfed 2-3 times a week that summer and next summer. My father got me a membership at Yakima Elks, where he would drop me off on his way to work and pick me up on his way home.  I played high school golf at Selah and college golf at Columbia Basin CC and Central Washington University. I graduated CWU in 1984 and turned pro that fall when the assistant professional position became available at Suntides GC. I had worked for Don Williams, PGA at the Elks picking up range balls with shag bags from ‘77-‘81 and was now his assistant at Suntides. In 1991, Don cut back his schedule to focus on teaching and I became the Head Professional. In 2001, I was elevated to General Manager and became co-owner of Suntides Golf, Restaurant, and RV Park. Today I spend lots of time with the grounds crew and doing all the bookwork for the three corporations we own. It’s different everyday so it never gets old.

Who are your mentors?

Don Williams, PGA. I’m a product of his junior program at Elks and he has been my mentor, instructor and confidant.  Also, Scott Galbraith, PGA and Kelly DeShaw, PGA have been longtime friends and colleagues since junior golf and college teammates.

Fun Fact: I have been working at Suntides since 1982 and married to the same lady since 1985.

You had success running a First Tee Summer Camp in 2019 at Suntides GC. Please tell us a little bit about this program.

Partnering with The First Tee has been a huge success in bringing a quality junior program to the Yakima Valley. Molly Thola, LPGA directs the instruction with many volunteers.  They have classes 3 times per day, 4 days a week here at Suntides and classes in the inner city parks to reach even more kids.  Like other chapters of The First Tee, they teach life skills as well as golf skills.

You recommended offering adult lessons during the same time as kid’s lessons or “Family Days”. Is that in the plan for 2020? Are you are making any changes to your program to accommodate social distancing?

Suntides has started an adult beginning golf clinic for parents and others interested in golf, taught by J.R. Mercer, PGA and new assistant Chad Cameron. The junior and adult clinics are already socially distanced for safety reasons, especially with newcomers swinging clubs for the first time. Class sizes have been reduced to help further accommodate this.  The program hopefully will continue this summer starting in mid-June, assuming we are able due to the current situation. We’ll hope for the best.

Read Paul’s Best Practice Here

Search the full Best Practices archive at https://www.pnwpga.com/bestpractices.

Employment Opportunities

Monte Koch, PGA of America Employment Consultant

These are primarily “PGA Professional” only positions posted on the PGA Career Services Job Board: https://jobs.pga.org

Internship, non-PGA positions, strictly retail and “franchise” ownership positions will not be listed here.Please visit jobs.pga.org to see these types of opportunities.

Assistant Golf Professional Positions (Full-time, not Internships)

Note: these are listed as of 8 AM, May 29, 2020. Positions listed here are not guaranteed to be available. Visit jobs.pga.org to see the most current listings.

Teaching & Coaching Golf Professional Positions

Management Positions (HP, DOG, GM or similar) 

Note: not all positions like these will be posted here; instead, postings will generally be at the request/approval of the employer.

Back2Golf Resources

PGA's Recommendations for Getting Back2Golf:

As golf facilities begin re-opening, it is vital that we do so in a responsible manner that protects the entire golf community. In collaboration with our Allied Golf Organizations and in alignment with the Center for Disease Control (CDC), we have developed a comprehensive plan that allows golf to be played while observing recommended social distancing guidelines.

Our industry understands there are various restrictions in different parts of the country and emphasize that all should be adhering to state and local guidelines to ensure our sport comes back in a healthy way. This action plan, broken down into three phases, can be implemented on a statewide or county-by-county basis.

For more information and to access the below resources, please click here.

• Details on how you and your facility can responsibly get Back2Golf, while adhering to state and local guidelines
• Back2Golf Guidelines for Opening Up Golf, presented by the Allied Golf Organizations
• A PDF version of the Operations Playbook

A key understanding for Back2Golf: “Our industry understands there are various restrictions in different parts of the country and emphasize that all should be adhering to state and local guidelines to ensure our sport comes back in a healthy way.”  In other words, use the playbook and guidelines IN RELATION to where your facility is located. We urge you to understand and follow the health regulations in the following order: Your municipality -> Your county -> Your state -> Back2Golf (If Back2Golf is more stringent than your county, or less stringent, we suggest you operate according to the county guidelines)

Let’s Stick Together: If you are a golf professional, operator or similar with a concern about how your neighboring facility is operating within the “appropriate guidelines” (though all of these guidelines are based on best practices, not legal requirements), please BE A GOOD NEIGHBOR and take the time to go directly to the golf professional who is leading the operation – ask them about what they’re doing and why…don’t take what you heard they’re doing as fact. Seek to understand their situation and then, only then, can you offer suggestions on how they might improve things (and maybe you’ll learn something you could do differently or better too).

Let’s work together as we educate golfers to the appropriate behaviors in our “new normal”: In your area, you may be open (in a limited way) for golf or you may be completely closed. Based on your “neighborhood” status, a great suggestion may be reach out to the professionals/course operators in your area (at similar facilities) to develop a “reopening” or “getting back to normal operations plan” that you follow as a group.

As we all have experienced, the golfers will pay attention to the differences between facilities (like they do in basic frost delays) and this may cause issues for your "neighborhood". In this case, sticking together and driving customer engagement and getting players excited about golf is the impact we all need.

Unemployment Resources

State Labor Offices

Click the link, and then click on your home state – then click in the table to go directly to the labor department website. Do you feel that you are not receiving the same amount of income now as you did in 2019? If your answer is yes, you should consider applying for unemployment right away.

If you are a 1099 employee, an S-Corp or an LLC (some part of your income is from a source that is not a W-2, or own your own shop), there may be options for you. As a 1099, you may benefit most from unemployment. If you’re an S-Corp or an LLC, your best option may be the Payroll Protection Program (PPP).

Pros on the Move

by Robin Lindsey, Tournament & Membership Coordinator

• James D. Hochrine, PGA (A-13) - from The Club At Snoqualmie Ridge to Tacoma C&GC
• Pat Huffer, PGA (A-1) - from Stewart Park Municipal GC to Wenatchee G&CC
• Philip G. Kohnken (B-14) - from Eaglemont GC to Lake Padden GC
• Christopher J Lisk, PGA (A-8) - from Harbour Pointe GC to Tam O'Shanter G&CC
• Nathan J. Miller, PGA (A-1) - from Leavenworth GC to Double Arrow Golf Resort

• none

New Associates

• James A. Mee (B-8) - The Ranch Club

Newly Elected Members

• Kyle A. Hosch, PGA (A-8) - Corvallis CC
• Todd J. Killingsworth, PGA (A-8) - Waverley CC

• Grayson R. Arellano (B-8) to Rock Creek Cattle Co. from S.California
• Hogan M. Arey (B-8) to Trysting Tree GC from Gateway
• Philip C. Conrad, PGA (A-8) to Gozzer Ranch Golf & Lake Club from S. California
• Timothy S. DeBarge, PGA (A-8) to The GC At Black Rock from Carolinas
• Brandon S. Drake, PGA (A-8) to The Club at Rock Creek from S. Texas
• Kevin B. Ellis, PGA (A-8) to Rock Creek Cattle Co. from New England
• Tara N. Liebert (B-8) to Iron Horse GC from S. California
• Zachary T. McArthur, PGA (A-1) to Old Works GC from N. California
• Evan J. Mitchell, PGA (A-8) to Rock Creek Cattle Co. from S. California
• Rick E. Reed, PGA (A-13) to Chelan, WA from Southwest

• Thomas P. Anton, PGA - (Retired) to S. Florida 
• Russ Bloom, PGA - (Life Member) to N. California
• Timothy D. Palmer, PGA - from Bandon Dunes Golf Resort to Carolinas
• John D. Sommerville, PGA - from Inglewood GC to Michigan 
• Drew J. Zins, PGA - from Meadow Springs CC to Colorado

• Jason M. Jerman, PGA