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1 Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting. The cold of February has given way to a great start to March. I am hopeful we can kick-off the season the right way with some good weather. Please thank John Sheridan of Under Armour Golf for being a great partner to our Kick-Off Meeting. Spring Meeting participants will receive a logoed pair of athletic shorts for attending. Please keep John in mind when making your orders for the 2015 Season. I would also like to thank All Star Pro Golf for their title sponsorship of the 2015 Quad Pro Event. When ordering your tee’s and pencils, please remember their support of PGA Professionals and facilities. I want to take a quick moment to say that I am very excited going into 2015. Our team (staff) was extremely active in seeing many golf courses and PGA Professionals over the few dormant months that you have on your calendar. In addition to this, we also secured and increased many of our partner activations for you heading into the 2015 season. I am looking forward to seeing the fruits of these activities play out in the coming months. I had the opportunity to be a part of the 3rd Annual Teaching & Coaching Summit on the first weekend of March. A special thanks to Barbara Blanchar and Dennis Biedenstein for their outstanding commitment to this event. They included a wonderful re-cap and some pictures in the newsletter below. I received so many nice notes and there was a common take-away that it’s a “must do” on next year’s calendar. In the coming days you will receive a packet, via email, that will include our director, committee, and financial reports. Please take a moment to read them over before the meeting. If you should have any questions – do not hesitate to contact a member of the staff. Here’s to a great start to the season! I look forward to seeing you real soon. All the best, Josh Riley, PGA Volume 8, Issue 3 March 2015 From the Officers Desk P 2 Partner Profile - Under Armour P 3 Betz Jewelers Stroke Play Series Announcement P 4 Pro Chat P 5 Junior Golf Letter P 6 Growth of the Game P 7 Drive, Chip and Putt P 8 Assistants’ Corner P 9 Rules Corner P 9 Education Corner P 10 Employment Chips P 10 Teaching & Coaching Summit Recap P 11 PGA HQ News P 12 Fitness Tips P 13 Tournament News P 14-15 Upcoming Events P 16 Member Updates & Birthdays P 17 Section Officers Nathan Charnes, PGA President Benjiman Kent, PGA Vice-President Michael Suhre, PGA Secretary Gateway PGA Staff Josh Riley, PGA Executive Director Steve Finn, PGA Assistant Executive Director Michael Brown, PGA Director or Junior Golf Ali Wells, PGA Director of Foundation Operations Lindsay Riley Foundation Admin Assistant Susan Bender Membership

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Page 1: Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting

1

Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership

Meeting. The cold of February has given way to a great start to

March. I am hopeful we can kick-off the season the right way with

some good weather. Please thank John Sheridan of Under Armour

Golf for being a great partner to our Kick-Off Meeting. Spring

Meeting participants will receive a logoed pair of athletic shorts

for attending. Please keep John in mind when making your

orders for the 2015 Season. I would also like to thank All Star Pro Golf for their title

sponsorship of the 2015 Quad Pro Event. When ordering your tee’s and pencils,

please remember their support of PGA Professionals and facilities.

I want to take a quick moment to say that I am very excited going into 2015. Our

team (staff) was extremely active in seeing many golf courses and PGA Professionals

over the few dormant months that you have on your calendar. In addition to this, we

also secured and increased many of our partner activations for you heading into the

2015 season. I am looking forward to seeing the fruits of these activities play out in

the coming months.

I had the opportunity to be a part of the 3rd Annual Teaching & Coaching Summit on

the first weekend of March. A special thanks to Barbara Blanchar and Dennis

Biedenstein for their outstanding commitment to this event. They included a

wonderful re-cap and some pictures in the newsletter below. I received so many nice

notes and there was a common take-away that it’s a “must do” on next year’s calendar.

In the coming days you will receive a packet, via email, that will include our director,

committee, and financial reports. Please take a moment to read them over before the

meeting. If you should have any questions – do not hesitate to contact a member of the

staff.

Here’s to a great start to the season! I look forward to seeing you real soon.

All the best,

Josh Riley, PGA

Volume 8, Issue 3 March 2015

From the Officers Desk P 2

Partner Profile - Under Armour P 3

Betz Jewelers Stroke Play Series Announcement

P 4

Pro Chat P 5

Junior Golf Letter P 6

Growth of the Game P 7

Drive, Chip and Putt P 8

Assistants’ Corner P 9

Rules Corner P 9

Education Corner P 10

Employment Chips P 10

Teaching & Coaching Summit Recap P 11

PGA HQ News P 12

Fitness Tips P 13

Tournament News P 14-15

Upcoming Events P 16

Member Updates & Birthdays P 17

Section Officers

Nathan Charnes, PGA President

Benjiman Kent, PGA Vice-President

Michael Suhre, PGA Secretary

Gateway PGA Staff

Josh Riley, PGA Executive Director

Steve Finn, PGA Assistant Executive Director

Michael Brown, PGA Director or Junior Golf

Ali Wells, PGA Director of Foundation Operations

Lindsay Riley Foundation Admin Assistant

Susan Bender Membership

Page 2: Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting

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FROM THE OFFICERS DESK

Dear Fellow PGA Professionals:

It is difficult to temper my enthusiasm for the upcoming season! We are fortunate to have such a

high level of engagement and dedication among the Members of our Section. Whether it is Barb

Blanchar and Dennis Biedenstein putting together a first-class Teaching and Coaching

Summit, Ali Wells (Gateway PGA Foundation) and Michael Brown (Gateway PGA Junior

Golf) dedicating themselves to Player Development, or Scott Brauer, Steve Lotz, Mike Suhre,

Steve Finn and the entire Tournament Committee ironing out the details for the 2015 Tournament Schedule, the

enthusiasm is contagious. A wise person once told me, "Confidence and enthusiasm are fuels for success". From

what I have observed, I like our chances for success in 2015.

One of the exciting things I have been working on is the 2015 Gateway Golf Summit, scheduled for Monday,

October 26. We already have two fantastic industry leaders scheduled to attend and participate; Dottie Pepper and

Derek Sprague. Thanks to Nathan Charnes for securing Derek!

More details on the Summit will become available in the coming months.

Switching gears, I was fortunate to be asked to serve on the PGA National Education Committee. We had our first

meeting on January 20 in Orlando, and it became readily evident that this group is motivated to maximize the

opportunities that exist within the extensive educational offerings available to our PGA Members. I would love to

hear your feedback and perceptions regarding PGA Education as well as any Section-related suggestions you may

have. My direct number is (636) 300-5703.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve you and best wishes for a successful 2015 Season!

Be well,

Ben

Benjiman C. Kent, PGA, MBA, CMAA

General Manager & Director of Golf

Persimmon Woods Golf Club

Vice President, Gateway PGA, 2015-2016

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Page 4: Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting

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BETZ JEWELERS STROKE PLAY SERIES

The Betz Jewelers Stroke Play Series highlights the individual stroke play events throughout the

Gateway PGA calendar year. Gateway PGA Professionals will compete for increased purses, points,

and ultimately a custom jewelry piece that will be awarded to the champion in the Regular and Sen-

ior Divisions at the end of the series. Thank you to the Betz family for their partnership.

Date Event Venue

Monday April 20, 2015 Pro Open #1 Norwood Hills CC

Monday, May 18, 2015 Pro Open #2 Meramec Lakes GC

Tuesday, May 26, 2015 Pro-Open #3 Tapawingo Natl GL

Monday, June 1, 2015 Tower Tee Invitational Tower Tee GC

Monday, June 15, 2015 Southern IL Open Rend Lake GR

Monday, August 31, 2015 Pro-Open #4 TBA

Monday, September 14, 2015 Pro-Open #5 Tan-Tar-A Golf Resort

2015 STROKE PLAY EVENTS

Page 5: Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting

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PRO CHAT

I am the newly appointed Growth of the Game (GOG)

Committee Chair for the Section. I am excited to be

appointed to this role and I look forward to serving the

membership the best that I can. Ali Wells and I sat

down at the beginning of the month and went over the

state of the Committee and our goals for 2015 and

beyond. We all agree there are many ways to grow the

game of golf. Our job as a committee is to give you

ideas and tools to help your Growth of the Game

initiatives at your facility and within our section. The

Growth of the Game has two heads. They are

Promotion/Marketing and Programming. Both are

equally important in GOG. Promotion/Marketing is

standing in front of a crowd, school, talking with an

organization or promoting yourself as a PGA

Professional. It is laying down the ground work in how

to get started. Giving them a taste of what golf can be

like and how great it is. Programming is what is going

to get them into your facility, keep them at your facility

and turn them into an engaged (golf is important) or

committed golfer (golf is part of my life).

Programming is Get Golf Ready, PGA Junior League,

Junior Camps, clinics, lessons and the list goes on. So

now that I have rambled on, we want to hear your ideas

in how you Grow the Game at your facilities in the

Section newsletter. We will call it “Pro Chat”. Submit

your ideas to [email protected] and we will post

them in future newsletters. Let us know how we can

help you but we also need your help. The PGA and our

committee can come up with the greatest programs but

we need you to promote those ideas and yourself. I will

start off the first newsletter article.

We started a program at Quincy Country Club last year

with the “Get Golf Ready” class for women. We had

done Get Golf Ready in the past but we wanted to offer

more. We advertised it as 2 sessions. The first was 5

weeks in length and it was the introduction of golf. We

had 10 participants. The second session we asked these

10 golfers (beginners) and what we will call

“Recreational Golfers” to play every Wednesday

evening in a 6 hole scramble with no score

keeping. Groups were pre-made and they played with

someone new every week. We had themes weekly

along with a special named drink in the bar to keep it

FUN! We did the 2nd session for 6 weeks. The 1st

impact was revenue to our instructors from the first

series of “Get Golf Ready” clinics and repeat lesson

business. The 2nd impact was 6 weeks of cart revenue

from players who would not have been on the course

plus cart revenue from our Recreational Golfers who

acted as mentors. The 3rd impact was sales in our Bar

and Restaurant that may not have occurred if we had

not ran the “Get Golf Ready” program. This years’

program will go after the same members plus new

members. Our goal is to retain and build on this group

of members.

Respectfully,

Gideon Smith, PGA

Head Golf Professional

Quincy Country Club

2015 Growth of the Game Committee Chair

Page 6: Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting

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It finally looks like Spring is here and the weather is getting warmer. We all know what that means that we all will

be getting very busy. Just like you the Gateway PGA Junior Tour has a very busy 2015 Tournament schedule on the

books. Our Spring schedule starts very soon on April 12th at Spencer T Olin and plays most Sundays until the

Juniors get out of school. I know that junior golfers in the St. Louis area have a lot of choices to play tournaments

but I know we have the best Courses on our schedule thanks to all of the PGA Professionals in the Gateway Section.

I want to make sure that your Junior golfers know of all the opportunities they have to play on the Gateway PGA

Junior Tour this summer. We have a place for all levels of juniors, from the very beginner Junior Development Tour

that has their parents as caddies . We also have a 9 Hole division, 18 Hole division and the Tour Division that has

juniors playing 36 Hole events.

I have included some links below that you can click on and Print out and post where your members and juniors can

see them. This will be a great help in get all to know the Gateway PGA is the place to go for all things junior golf.

Looking forward to seeing you all at your course hosting a Junior event.

Thanks for your support of the Gateway PGA Junior Tour. Any questions or need more information please call

636-532-9191 or email [email protected].

Click Here for the Junior Golf TOUR flyer to post and email to all Junior Golfers

Click Here for the Junior Development TOUR flyer to post and email to all Junior Golfers

Click Here for the Spring Schedule

Click Here for a list of all the places the Junior Tour will play in the Summer of 2015

Michael Brown, PGA

Gateway PGA Section

Director of Junior Golf

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GROWTH OF THE GAME

Gateway PGA REACH Foundation is going DIGITAL!

Launching soon, the Gateway PGA REACH Foundation is rolling out a brand new website that

will feature the totality of the Foundation through images, stories, and information complemented

by updated functionality and the ability to interact, and get involved with, the Foundation. We’re

not stopping there; launching simultaneously will be Gateway PGA REACH Facebook and Twit-

ter accounts to better communicate with Members and the community. Exact launch dates

coming soon – keep an eye out for more information!

PGA Junior League Golf

Registration for the 2015 PGA Junior League Golf Season is open now. ALL NEW AND RETURNING CAP-

TAINS MUST REGISTER THROUGH THE NEW WEBSITE. Registration is still done on

www.pgajrleaguegolf.com but due to the recent acquisition of PGAJLG by the PGA of America, new systems and

processes are in place which requires everyone to register. You will notice the need to go through a background

check when registering; this is part of the PGA’s Youth Safety Program starting this year and all fees for 2015 are

being paid for by the PGA of America – thanks PGA!

Registration deadline to sign up to host a team is MARCH 30th. All captains need to register, but teams do not

need to be filled out by this date. Two days after registration, you will have access to you Captain’s Clubhouse to

start building teams. If you have any questions or need more information, please contact me or a member of the

Junior Golf Committee overseeing PGAJLG teams in your area (Mike Suhre, Matt Gindler, Eric Ratzlaff, Jeff Field,

Tim Davenport, and Shawn Deaver).

Equipment Rentals

Have you made your equipment rental reservations for 2015, yet? Keep our Equipment Rental Program in mind for

your season opening party, junior golf meeting or kickoff party, family day, junior camps, or growth of the game

community event. Growth of the Game Partner Program facilities have early bird reservation rights until April

20th. Not a partner yet? Not a problem. Contact me to get started so you can reserve Golfzilla, Golfopotomus, oth-

er Birdieball inflatables and equipment, SNAG Golf, KWIK Golf, and more.

Upcoming Dates

Spring Meeting at Forest Hills Country Club – March 30th the Annual Meeting will welcome some special

guests from the PGA HOPE Program, the VA Hospital and PGA of America.

Give STL Day on May 5th – Give STL Day is a 24-hour, online giving event with the goal of inspiring the com-

munity to come together to contribute as many charitable dollars as possible to support local non-profits like us!

WE NEED YOUR HELP to spread the word throughout the golfing community that on May 5th, “Your $10 will

help PGA REACH and PGA Professionals reach our goal of $5,000”. Anyone and everyone can donate through

www.givestlday.org!

PGA REACH Pro Am & Gala – Join us June 28th and June 29th for the 6th Annual Event with Ozzie and a couple

of his friends! The Four Seasons will host the Gala and we are back at Bellerive Country Club for the Pro Am.

Check out www.gatewaypga.org/foundation for more information, to register your team and claim your seat at the

gala.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Ali Wells, PGA

Foundation Operations Director

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Typically we are trying to round together teams for the Assistants Pro-Am but it has been moved

to August this season.

The committee would like to congratulate George Schrage for accepting the Head Golf

Professional position at Spring Lake Country Club in Quincy, Illinois. George was the Vice

Chairman and has put 4 years of service on the committee. We wish him the best of luck!

We’d also like to thank Ty Zimmerman for

putting on, “How to be a great Assistant”

seminar last month. It was a fun afternoon

filled with lots of great ideas that we can

bring back to your club. Thank you Brett

Moomey, George Schrage, and Nic

Bunning for your involvement!

RULES CORNER

ASSISTANTS CORNER

Rule 3-3 is titled Doubt as to Procedure. This rule applies to stroke play only. With the start of

the high school season in Missouri I would urge PGA professionals to review the proper

procedure for applying this rule with junior players you teach or coach. I would also urge

Gateway Professionals that will be competing in section tournaments to be sure they

understand how to properly proceed under this rule.

The rule states "In stroke play, if a competitor is doubtful of his rights or the correct

procedure during the play of a hole, he may, without penalty, complete the hole with two

balls." However, the player needs to do two important things. When the doubtful situation

arises, before taking further action, the player needs to announce his intention to play two balls to his marker or

fellow competitor. The player also needs to announce which ball he wants to count if the rules permit the procedure

with that ball.

If the player does both of these things he will get to score with the ball selected. If he fails to do either one, this rule

contains a formula for the committee to determine which ball counts. That formula is explained in detail in Decision

3-3/0.5.

When a player plays two balls, even if the score is the same for both, he must report the facts to the committee

before returning his scorecard or the player is disqualified. Finally if you play two balls be sure to hole out with

both. You do not know which ball is going to count until the committee makes a determination. Failure to hole out

with the ball determined to count would also result in a penalty of disqualification.

2015 Committee Members

Brandon Coffey, PGA Chairman Forest Hills Country Club

George Schrage, PGA Vice-Chairman Quincy Country Club

Michael Leotta, PGA Past Chairman Illini Country Club

Andrew Jury, PGA Secretary Winghaven Country Club

Richard Niedergerke, PGA The Club at Old Hawthorne

Austin Waibel The Club at Old Hawthorne

Adam Betz Meadowbrook Country Club

RJ Villafuerte, PGA Meadowbrook Country Club

Brandon Veld, PGA Bellerive Country Club

Page 10: Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting

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EDUCATION CORNER

I hope all my fellow Gateway PGA professionals and apprentices are doing well and you have had some time to en-

joy this nice weather we have had. I am so pleased to have seen a lot you take part in the educational opportunities

that we have had so far. By going to these events it is only going to make you a stronger asset for your facility. With

that we have a great program lined up during the Spring Meeting for the break out sessions before the Quad-Pro. Al-

so, on April 6th Titleist PGA Tour Technician Brett Fleming will be in town to present about club fitting and how

they approach their PGA Tour players (this event was scheduled for March). To register for this FREE event you

must contact Chris Hahn. I can not wait to see you all at the end of the month at Forest Hills Country Club and if I

can do anything at all for you please do not hesitate in contacting me at the club at 636-939-6494 ext. 250.

Ty Zimmerman, PGA

GPGA Education Chairman

Employment “Chips” Please enjoy this “Gateway Employment

Chips” section of your email newsletter.

Every month I will be adding to the

subjects of these “brief” articles and

hoping to inspire your thought process

regarding your employment and/or your

facility. Please use and expand on the

information to make your employment

more successful!

STOP!

…What You’re Doing

and Please Complete the PGA

Compensation Survey!

The PGA of America kindly requests your participation

in helping to ensure that one of our Association's most

powerful employment tools remains effective for you

and your fellow PGA Professionals. Please click here

to complete the 2015 PGA Golf Professional

Compensation Survey. PGA members who complete

the survey by March 23, 2015, can receive up to two (2)

Member Service Requirement (MSR) credits. Your

participation is the key to ensuring that your Section's

compensation information is valid and meaningful.

Your support of this important PGA initiative is greatly

appreciated.

As your PGA Employment Consultant, I use

information from the Survey almost daily when I am

working with employers who use CareerLinks and for

PGA members seeking compensation and benefit

information that can help in evaluating and hopefully

upgrading their current compensation package.

The survey has been streamlined and is easier than ever

to complete. Please complete the survey today, if you

have not already done so, and help your fellow PGA

members and yourself!

Thank you!

Tim Tim Marks, PGA

Employment Consultant

269-221-6009 – office

[email protected]

Page 11: Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting

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The 2015 Gateway PGA Teaching & Coaching Summit was March 6th and 7th. What a great 2 days of very

talented golf professionals presenting on a variety of topics.

Friday evening was a wonderful show sponsored by Jim Hackenberg with the Orange Whip. Lou Guzzi and Joe

Hallett entertained us with stories and tips on teaching. Lou is the 2013 PGA Teacher of the Year and Joe is the

2014 Tennessee PGA Teacher of the Year as well as the coach to Stacy Lewis, Juli Inkster and so many more.

THANK YOU to all of them and the companies that came out to support the Gateway PGA Professionals. Thank

you to Bridgestone, Callaway, Cleveland, Srixon, Mizuno, Ping.

Saturday morning JC Anderson gave us $10,000 worth of mental golf knowledge. He gave us some (but not all) of

his success secrets on the mental game of golf and how Vision 54 helped put all the pieces together for him. Mark

Christensen shared his ways of making more money per hour with semi-private golf lesson while still having

compassion and individual relationships with his students. Michael Wyatt gave his insight to teaching those with

disabilities, especially with essential tremors, and was able to help us teachers understand what they go through

trying to play golf. The Gateway PGA has 2 programs in place to help teach golf to those with disabilities: Ranken

Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital helps children learn to play golf from a bed or wheelchair and PGA HOPE at

Arlington Greens and the V.A. Hospital where PGA Golf Professionals are helping wounded veterans learn to play

golf. Barbara Blanchar, Maria Palozola, and Bev Miller “talked woman” with Ali Wells and gave some ideas on

how to teach and connect with women. The afternoon started off with Lou Guzzi showing us a PowerPoint

presentation with his amazing indoor/outdoor facility in Pennsylvania, the training tools he uses, some marketing

ideas, and some teaching strategies. Jim Hackenberg shared his teaching background and how he came to invent the

Orange Whip and how others could go about making a dream/idea come into a money making reality. Joe Hallett

concluded our day with a great PowerPoint presentation showing us how he is able to build relationships with his

LPGA Tour players and is available to them on any time zone. He can give golf pointers from anywhere to his

students, even the Las Vegas baggage claim, via video. He uses video, parent’s eyes, and caddie’s eyes to figure out

what his players are doing so he can help them without even having to be by their side.

The 2015 Gateway PGA Teaching and Coaching Seminar was such a value!! To bring these talented golf

professionals to us so we can continue to learn and be better teachers ourselves is priceless. And the price was under

$100!

Below is a review of the two days by way of some photos. Hope to see you there in 2016.

TEACHING & COACHING SUMMIT RE-CAP

Page 12: Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting

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PGA HQ NEWS

What your employer expects you to know

PGA PerformanceTrak: Monthly Rounds and

Revenue Reporting

Employers expect you to know where you stand in relations to the market. In only minutes each month, you can report and compare your facility’s performance through PGA PerformanceTrak and provide sound business information to help drive your facility’s bottom line.

Demonstrate your expertise to increase your credibility and industry knowledge

Benchmark your facility’s performance and identify areas that may be under performing

Generate reports that showcase your business and support future budgeting efforts

PGA Professionals can earn MSR credit by participating online. Don’t miss out on this valuable service. If you are the highest ranked PGA Professional at your facility, click here to submit your data. If you wish to participate in this service on behalf of your highest ranked PGA Professional, ask them to click here to assign access to you.

The next deadline to submit monthly rounds is March 24, 2015. Whether you are open or closed in a given month, it is important that you continue to enter this data online.

HOW CAN WE HELP? Contact us by phone at: (800) 477-6465 Ext. 8574 or by email at: [email protected]

As a courtesy extended by Augusta National Golf Club;

Class A PGA members, Life members and Master

Professional members gain complimentary access to The

Masters (PGA members only; this offer is not extended

to apprentices). No spouse or families (including practice

rounds). Must show membership card and photo I.D.

each day. Go to Gate 6A off of Berckmans Road then

report to Gate C to receive daily ticket. NOTE: Daily

tickets are not available to purchase for spouse. Ticket

Information (706) 667-6700.

We need your help to continue to keep this a great re-

source for all fellow section members. Please take some

time to complete this survey before March 23rd. PGA

members can receive up to two MSR credits by

completing the survey by the deadline. The survey can be

accessed by clicking the following link and entering your

PGALinks username and password.

Members who update their PGA.org profile will receive

one (1) MSR credit in “service”, which

applies to the Total MSR category (M06 = 1). Awarding

MSR for this activity is consistent with other National,

Section and Chapter activities in which PGA Members

can receive credit for providing service to the

Association. The MSR Credits for this activity will be

awarded to those Members who have already updated

their PGA.org profile as well as those Members who

do so on a going-forward basis.

Online registration for a 2015 PGA/

USGA Rules of Golf Workshop is

available. You can register via phone

beginning Monday, Oct. 27.

More information

ARE YOU ON TRACK?ARE YOU ON TRACK?ARE YOU ON TRACK? MSR Cycle Ends 06/15/2015 See Where You Stand:See Where You Stand:See Where You Stand:

Log into PGALinks.com to see your current MSR status

Page 13: Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting

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Barb Michael is a health and fitness consultant and fitness education sponsor for the Gateway PGA. Her company, Optimal Lifestyles, Inc. provides general fitness, golf-fitness and yoga for golfers. The information provided by Barb is for education purposes and should not replace care or advice of your physician. Please check with your physician if you are beginning an exercise program or suspect you are ill.

Brought To You by Optimal Lifestyles, Inc.

All your hard work during those long winter months to keep fit by eating well, stretching properly and

maintaining an exercise routine are about to pay off – golf season is underway! This is no time to let

up: you’ll enjoy your time on the golf course more if you stay on the fitness course, too.

Tips for kicking the season off right:

As a daily routine – or as often as possible – warm up by taking some swings and stretching with a

golf club in hand. Start at 40 or 50 percent and increase the swing as you loosen up. The warm up

helps so that when you start playing with a full swing you don’t pull any muscles or have them

tighten up. Commit to a warm up, stretch and cool down each time you play a round of golf.

Practice putting every day or every other day. This practice will keep you on track with focus and

concentration for this important part of your game.

Review your pregame routine early, and make any needed adjustments. Check in with your golf

professional to correct any swing faults. Learn something new that could take your game to the next

level!

Evaluate your exercise program, tweaking it a bit for the new season. Begin a mini-conditioning

program by walking three times a week. Fit in some new daily flexibility. Strengthen your legs with

squats and your torso by doing planks on your elbows. Get a physical conditioning assessment from

a coach or trainer to set a fitness marker.

Set new goals for this season, then put a plan together to work toward those goals.

With a little spring preparation and forethought about the upcoming golf season, you’ll be swinging

your clubs like a pro! Contact Optimal Lifestyles, Inc., 314-984-0592, for help in getting your body and

mind in shape for golf.

Page 14: Here we are at the 2015 Gateway PGA Spring Membership Meeting

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We hare happy to announce

the return of the National

Car Rental Pro Am

Series. This years calendar

will feature 6 qualifying Pro Ams and the

Championship will be held on Monday, October

12th, at Forest Hills CC. Teams again will qualify

throughout the season and will participate in the "no

charge" Championship. The schedule for this years'

Pro Ams are as follows:

Get your teams and calendars together to earn your

entry in the National Car Rental Pro Am

Championship.

The Annual kickoff for the 2015 Gateway PGA Tournament Season will follow the Spring Business Meeting at Forest Hills CC on Monday, March 30th. The All Start Golf Quad Pro presented by PTE Golf will feature a Shotgun start at 1:30 pm. Teams of 4 will play the Championship course at Forest Hills and half of the team will Scramble on one side while the other 2 players play

4-Ball. They will then switch formats for the other nine and both scores added together count for the team score. PGA Eligibility is waived for this event to allow Buyers, Merchandisers, & Shop Assistants, to partipate on teams. Each team my not have more than 2 of the following from 2014 POY Points, Top 10 Regular, Top 5 Senior, or Top 5 Assistants. Entry fee is $90 per player and includes golf, purse, on course contests, & team skins.

CLICK HERE FOR INFO AND REGISTRATION

We are pleased to announce the return of Betz Jewelers as Title Sponsor of the "New" Betz Jewelers Stroke Play Series for

2015. This will be "the race with the race" as Points

Monday, April 27th

Pro-Senior Pro Am

Lake Forest CC Pro with 3 Ams age 50+

Monday, June 8th

Pro-Ladies Pro AM

WingHaven CC Pro with 3 Female Ams

Monday, July 13th

Ping Pro Am

OakBrook GC Pro with 3 Ams

Monday, July 27th

Scratch Pro Am

Persimmon Woods GC Pro with 3 Ams (No Handicaps)

Monday, August 3rd

Section Pro Am

Dalhhouise GC Pro with 3 Ams

Monday, August 10th

Assistants Pro Am

Sunset Hills CC Pro with 3 Ams

2015 Prairie Cup Monday - Wednesday April 6-8th

Firekeeper GC Mayetta, KS

The 2015 Prairie Cup is rapidly approaching and registration for team spots are still available. The event on April 7-8th, will be held at Firekeeper GC just north of Topeka, KS, and entry fees in-clude logding at the Prairie Band Casino & Re-sort. The golf course is great and hotel is very nice. 2-persons teams will Scramble in the first round and play 4-Ball on the second day. Practice rounds are included on Monday, April 6th as well.

Entry fee is $300 per player and includes golf Monday - Wendesday, hotel room for Monday & Tuesday, lunch on Tues/Wed, Social/Dinner Tuesday evening, and Alternate Shot Shootout on Tuesday for qualifying teams. Single occupance rate is $362.

The will be a team game as well with District 7 teams vs. District 6 teams. Players will be com-peting from Gateway, Midwest, & South Central Sections, against Nebraska, Iowa, & Minnesota Sections.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO & REGISTRATION

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for the Regular & Senior Divisions will be kept for all Pro Opens, Tower Tee Invitational, & Southern Illinois Open events. Series winners in the Regular & Senior Division will receive awards and there will be increase purses in each of those events overall.

Craig Betz and Betz Jewelers, sponsor of the Player of the Year Awards in 2014, has increased their this level of Partnership and will certainly enhance the 7 event race.

Since 1941 Glenn Betz Jewelers have specialized in helping celebrate life’s most joyous occasions through fine jewelry. We've valued the tradition of offering personal and customized services to our loyal clients, all at preferred prices.

Their professional staff has more than 100 years' of combined jewelry industry experience. Their team consists of owner and third-generation jeweler Craig Betz, fourth-generation David Betz, Cheri Sells and Sally Igleheart. Following the principles of superior customer service that founder Glenn Betz lived by, they want your shopping and service experience to be extraordinary.

Today, the Betz name continues to be well recognized for their accommodating team members, honest business practices, and of course, high-quality merchandise. Stop in and see them in Des Peres, at 11776 Manchester Road (1 mile east of I-270) to experience it firsthand experience to be extraordinary.

Each year, the GPGA Tournament Committee goes over all of the Tournament Regulations to review them and make sure that they are relevant and up to date with the current Rules of Golf. Also, during this process, suggestions and recommendations from the Membership that have been brought to the attention of the Committee are discussed and vetted, resulting in amending the Regulations for the up-coming season. For 2015, the following changes will be put into effect

1. The Tower Tee Invitational will be a PGA POY Point Event in All Divisons. The Regular, Senior, Super Senior, Ladies, and Assistants Divisions will earn points on the Section "C" scale going forward.

2. The Super Senior Division will no longer receive POY points in the Sr Match Play championship.

3. Participants in the Metropolitain Open and the Missouri Open will no longer recieve POY points in

the Regular or Assistants Divisions.

4. The Team Championship eligibility has been amended to read. **GPGA Professional may select any eligible GPGA Professional as a partner or Amateur.

5. The Players Championship field will include winners of any point event in the 2015 season along with the: Top 25 in Regular POY Points Top 15 in Senior POY Points Top 5 in Assistant POY Points Top 3 in Super Senior POY Points

We have an outstanding list of Partners for the upcoming 2015 Golf Season. Here is a listing of our partners and events they are associated with:

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March 15th - April 15th

Sean M. Enke B-8

Robert A. Koontz, PGA A-15

Name Facility Class

Curt L. Corey, PGA A-1 Crown Pointe Golf Club

Sean M. Enke B-8 Rolling Hills Golf Club

Daniel J. Garth, PGA A-8 Bellerive Country Club

William T Hayes B-8 Osage National Golf Club

Robert A. Koontz, PGA A-15 Golf Galaxy - Fairview Heights

Martin A. Krulatz, PGA A-4 The Club at Old Kinderhook

Chris W. Lash, PGA A-8 Lodge of the Four Seasons

Andrea A. Taylor B-8 Lake Valley Golf & CC

Jason A. Woods, PGA A-1 The Club at Old Kinderhook

Donald Haxel, PGA A-4

Andrea A. Taylor B-8

Daniel J. Garth, PGA A-8

Chris W. Lash, PGA A-8

Justin D. Auping, PGA 4/1

Jim F Offer, PGA 4/2

Chad C. Robbins, PGA 4/4

Kevin M. Schaeffer, PGA 4/5

Ryan M Buckley 4/6

Jordan M Cox 4/6

Archer W. Logan, PGA 4/6

Lance A. Flury, PGA 4/7

David C. Jones, PGA 4/7

James M Noelke 4/7

Monty A. King, PGA 4/8

Alex N. Sanford, PGA 4/10

Adam D. Kaufman, PGA 4/12

Eric Engel, PGA 4/14

Bradley J. Benney, PGA 3/15

Benjamin E. Biersner, PGA 3/16

Curtis L. Goss III 3/16

Mark S. Waltman, PGA 3/16

Christopher M. Liszewski, PGA 3/17

Mark A. Morfey, PGA 3/17

Ryan E. Martin, PGA 3/19

David Levine, PGA 3/20

Mike R. Miller, PGA 3/21

M. Todd Miller, PGA 3/21

James Grimes, PGA 3/22

Steven Liter, PGA 3/22

Richard L. Niedergerke, PGA 3/22

Wayne M. Ockovic, PGA 3/22

Brad Hulett, PGA 3/23

William K Alexander III 3/24

James D. Cochran, PGA 3/25

Kevin J. Triefenbach, PGA 3/25

Brian Stitch, PGA 3/26

Jason A. Woods, PGA 3/26

Josh A. Crowell, PGA 3/27

Larry W. Emery, PGA 3/30

Richard Shaiper, PGA 3/30