Disabled Vets to Learn Golf Free with Met PGA Pros

Met PGA Hope (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) got off to a good start yesterday at the John Kennedy Learning Center at Westchester Country Club when dozens of local pros gathered to find out how they can help veterans with disabilities benefit from the game of golf.

"There's a special link between golfers and our veterans," said Charles Robson, Executive Director of the Met PGA. "With West Point in our backyard, it just seems like a natural."  The eight-week golf instructional program for veterans with disabilities is slated to roll-out at West Point GC this spring.  "For us, it all comes down to giving something back to these people to whom we owe so much. For the vets, it's a great chance for them to benefit from the game."

Elmwood CC's Pete Stefanchik
swings wrong-handed on one leg

The pros attended a morning presentation by PGA Professional David Windsor, an expert in teaching adaptive golf programs for individuals with physical and cognitive challenges.  In the afternoon, they experienced first hand what the vets feel like trying to play golf while coping with various disabilities. The pros wore various devices that forced them to hit a ball on one leg, or with the opposite hand like a switch hitter in baseball, or with only one eye.

"The sensation is totally different," said Heath Wassem, Met PGA President and head pro at Fenway Golf Club. "It really gives you a great appreciation of what they go through."  There were also several disabled vets in the crowd who demonstrated their prowess.

PGA HOPE is the flagship military program of PGA REACH, the charitable foundation of the PGA of America. It is designed to introduce golf -- at NO cost -- to veterans with disabilities in order to enhance their physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being. The HOPE program, led by PGA professionals, helps veterans assimilate back into their communities through the social interaction the game of golf provides.

Interested participants should contact the Met PGA to learn more.

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf

Register Now for Drive Chip and Putt

Sarah Wills competing in 2014 Drive Chip Putt

Registration for the 2016 Drive, Chip and Putt Championship for young golfers hoping to earn an invitation to next year’s National Finals at Augusta National Golf Club is now open.  The event, hosted by the United States Golf Association (USGA), the Masters Tournament and The PGA of America, was a big hit at last year's Masters and is sure to draw even more attention this year.

This youth golf development initiative will again include boys and girls ages 7-15 who will compete in separate divisions in four age categories. In only its third year, the Drive, Chip and Putt Championship will provide qualifying opportunities at more than 250 sites in all 50 states during the months of May, June, July and August. Top performers at the local level will advance through sub-regional and regional qualifiers in July/August and September, respectively. The top 80 performers – 40 boys and 40 girls – will earn an invitation to the National Finals at Augusta National on Sunday, April 3, the eve of the 2016 Masters.

Locally, youngsters can compete at Stanwich on June 29, Apawamis on July 13, and Knollwood on July 27.  Don't just show up, though--advance registration is required!

The venues that will host the 10 regional qualifying events include several USGA championship sites: Chambers Bay (University Place, Wash., site of the 2015 U.S. Open), Oakmont Country Club (Oakmont, Pa., site of the 2016 U.S. Open), The Country Club (Brookline, Mass., site of the 2013 U.S. Amateur), and Torrey Pines Golf Course (La Jolla, Calif., site of the 2021 U.S. Open).

For a full list of qualifying venues at the local and sub-regional level, or for more information about the Drive, Chip and Putt Championship, including official rules, please visit www.DriveChipandPutt.com.

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf

Golf Isn't Dead!

Photo by Montana Pritchard/The PGA of America

The death of golf, it seems, may not have occurred, at least according to preliminary results for 2014 from a leading industry data collection and benchmarking service.  At last week's PGA Merchandise Show, the PGA or America and NGCOA (National Golf Course Operators Association) announced that 29 states showed growth last year.

PGA PerformanceTrak reported that according to preliminary year-end results, golf rounds played per days open in 2014 were up nearly 1% when compared with 2013 data.  PGA PerformanceTrak is the largest single source of rounds played data in the golf industry, with more than 2,600 facilities contributing to the report on a monthly basis.

According to PerformanceTrak, overall rounds played in the U.S. were down 1.4% in 2014 when compared with 2013 data, while 2014 also marked the fewest days open in the past 9 years. However, a new metric, rounds played per days open reinforces that, when weather conditions are acceptable, consumers are making the choice to play golf. In fact, 29 states and 36 of 70 major metro markets experienced growth in rounds played per days open in 2014.
 
PGA PerformanceTrak data also accounts for weather’s impact on other key performance indicators such as Golf Fee Revenue and Golf Merchandise Revenue. Golf Fee Revenue per days open realized an increase of 1.5% while Golf Merchandise Revenue per days open realized an increase of 2.6% when compared with 2013 data.

“While we are not in the business of predicting weather patterns, we felt it was necessary to establish a new metric to better reflect the true impact weather conditions have on days open, rounds played and ultimately facility revenue in the majority of markets,” said Derek Sprague, President, PGA of America. “When weather conditions are acceptable, consumers are playing golf and spending money on golf fees and merchandise at the facilities at a pace that is higher than 2013, which is certainly a positive trend for the golf industry.”

Other key findings:
• Food and Beverage revenue increased by 4.1% in 2014 when compared with 2013 data
• Total facility revenue increased by 1.4% when compared with 2013 data
• The average fee for an 18-hole round of golf was $25.35 in 2014, in 2013 it was $25.19

Through data maintained by the National Climate Data Center, a division of NOAA, 20 states had 2014 precipitation levels that were above normal, with the majority of impact occurring in the Northwest, Midwest and Northeast regions of the country.  In fact, both Michigan and Wisconsin recorded their 114th wettest years in NOAA’s 120 year history of tracking this data. To compound matters, much of the High Plains, Midwest/Ohio Valley, Middle Atlantic, Southeast and Southern regions of the country registered below average to much below average temperatures for the year, while the Northwest and Southwest regions had above average to record temperatures with California, Nevada and Arizona setting 120 year records for the warmest average temperatures.

When the weather's good, so is the business of golf.

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf

Get an Insider's Look at KPMG Women's PGA Championship

An army of volunteers as big as the event itself is needed for the inaugural KPMG Women’s PGA Championship to be held June 9-14, 2015, at Westchester Country Club in Rye, N.Y.

"We’re looking for about 1,800 volunteers," says Championship Director Bob Jeffrey. "About half of those are marshals we get through local clubs who are great supporters.  The rest serve on volunteer committees that handle admission sales and will call, contestant transportation, leaderboards and thru boards, and walking scorers."

It sounds like a lot of work--and it is--but the opportunities to experience the tournament are big, too. "Volunteers work three or four shifts depending on their committee assignment, so they have plenty of time to attend and enjoy the tournament the rest of the week," Jeffrey points out.  "Marshals and walking scorers are inside the ropes and are close to the players. Some jobs, like transportation, get opportunities for even more personal contact."

Adult volunteers, ages 22 and older, are required to work four shifts and contribute a minimum of 16 hours total, while junior volunteers, ages 16 to 21, are required to work three shifts and contribute a minimum of 12 hours.  Shifts will last between three and four hours.  For details on positions available, visit www.kpmgwomenspgachampionship.com/volunteer.  You can also contact Jenna Boyce, Volunteer Operations Manager, 914-595-6801 or jboyce@pgahq.com.

"We’re absolutely looking for men as well as women," Jeffrey says, "and we even have junior positions for young people 16 to 21. There’s no fee for them. We want to get as many juniors involved as we can."

Adult volunteers pay $96 to participate. In return, Jeffrey explains, "they get items with a much greater value. The package includes a Polo Ralph Lauren shirt, headwear, a credential they can use to access the course anytime whether they’re working or not, meal and water vouchers for on-course concessions, a program, complementary parking, and a discount for merchandise."

Not sure you know enough about golf to hold a responsible position at a professional tournament?  Not to worry.  "Not every job requires a lot of golf knowledge," Jeffrey says. "Transportation, admissions, and office volunteers don’t need any golf knowledge at all."  He adds that there will be training and orientation offered in late April and, the weekend prior to the tournament, volunteers will visit the course to see what they will actually be going before they start their first shift.

The Championship will offer a purse of $3.5 million, among the highest in women’s golf.  The event is a collaboration of KPMG, the PGA of America, and the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA). Continuing in the tradition of the LPGA Championship, which was first played in 1955, the event will rotate annually among prestigious courses in major metropolitan areas.

Throughout Championship Week, KPMG will spearhead an on-site women’s leadership summit bringing together top women leaders in business, politics, sports, and society to network, learn, and give back. KPMG also will manage the ongoing community initiative to provide today’s top women leaders the opportunity to cultivate the next generation of female leaders and equip them with the leadership skills, networks, and confidence through scholarships, training, and internship and mentoring programs.

The KPMG Women’s PGA Championship will be broadcast on NBC and Golf Channel

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf