The e-newsletter of the Middle Atlantic PGA

Important Dates:

July 28-29

Assistant Championship

August 7-10

PGA Championship

August 11-13

MAPGA Professional

Championship

August 19

APA Stroke Play Event

August 25-26

Sr. Championship, Quarter

Century Championship, & Sr.

Professional Championship

September 2

North Chap Fall Mtg & Pro-Asst

September 8

Cent Chap Fall Mtg & Pro-Asst

South Chap Fall Mtg & Pro-Pro

Inside this issue:

The Golf Season Is In Full Swing

President’s Perspective: Take Time

for Player Development

Section Direction: Allied Golf

Associations Working Together

Eyes on Employment: Mentoring/

Motiviating

Player Development Discussion: Let

Them Know

A Word from Our Allies

Chapter Chat

Newsletter Date:

July 2014

The Middle Atlantic Professional

President’s Perspective: Continue Growing the Game

With Professional events, junior events,

Drive Chip & Putt, and other fun golf

clinics… the golf season for MAPGA

facilities is in full swing. We here at the

MAPGA Section Office hope everyone has

had a very active season so far, and

continued success into the fall!

Dear Members and Apprentices,

I know we are all busy as the golf

season is in full swing and I hope

all of you find your facilities very

active with golfers taking

advantage of all your programs.

This is the perfect time for you to

start preparing for the fall.

Please reach out in your local

community and help grow this

game. It’s as easy as an after

work clinic series for a local

business or an after school junior

golf class. Since the spring, the

Get Golf Ready clinics at River

Bend have produced a 10%

increase in ladies golf rounds

over last year. These programs

work, so keep running them.

The MAPGA tournament program

and Junior Tour are deep into

their seasons. I challenge each of

you to play in at least one

chapter, section, or local Pro-Am.

Please encourage your juniors to

participate in the second half of

the junior tournament schedule.

These entire tournaments could

not be possible without our

sponsors. Please don’t forget to

thank our Sponsors throughout

the year for all their generosity to

sponsor events and programs in

our section.

On a national level, the PGA

Professional National

Championship was held last

month in Myrtle Beach, South

Carolina. It was exciting to see all

our MAPGA professionals playing

so well. Leading the way for low

MAPGA professional was by

Daniel Kinn, PGA. Way to go Dan!

The PGA of America has

announced the creation of the

KPMG Women’s PGA

Championship. This events’

inaugural tournament will take

place at Westchester Country

Club in Rye, New York starting

2015.

Drive Chip and Putt is in full

swing across the country.

(Cont. on page 2…)

Page 2 The Middle Atlantic Professional

MAPGA Board of Directors

OFFICERS

President

John Madden, PGA

River Bend Golf & CC

Vice President

Matthew Schulze, PGA

LPGA Kingsmill

Championship

Secretary

J.P. Lunn, PGA

Sabre Golf

Honorary President

John Malinowski, PGA

Ocean Pines Golf & CC

DIRECTORS

Mark Beran, PGA

Brice Busse, PGA

Butch Butler, PGA

Peter Gardner, PGA

Lynne Hunter, PGA

John Lyberger, PGA

Jeff Maynor, PGA

Sean Taylor, PGA

Mike Thomas, PGA

Josh Tremblay, PGA

Andy Weissinger, PGA

President’s Perspective cont.

The MAPGA has 15 local qualifying sites; two sub regional’s sites and one regional final. For those who

make it to the regional finals, the top finisher in each age/gender division will win a trip to the finals at

next year’s Masters.

Keep playing, participating and growing this game,

John Madden, PGA

President of the MAPGA

Inaugural International Crown at Caves Valley

The International Crown is a first-of-its-kind, biennial, global match

play competition featuring teams from eight countries battling for the

right to be "Crowned" the world's best golf nation. Each of the

countries will be represented by four players. The inaugural

tournament will debut July 22-27, 2014 at Caves Valley Golf Club in

Owings Mills, Maryland. Card holding PGA Members and Apprentices

(no spouse or family) receive complimentary access into the tournament. CLICK

HERE for more on the event.

Daniel Kinn, PGA

Page 3 July 2014

Last month, I attended the

PGA Professional National

Championship for the first time.

The event was played at Grand

Dunes GC (and the Members

Club at The Dunes Resort) and

was a fine showcase for PGA

Professionals. My biggest take

home from that event was how

invested the Golf Channel was

in making the event a success.

I witnessed planning meetings

with the PGA officers and

tournament staff regarding the

awards ceremony, placing of

marketing pieces, and the

many factors related to who

and how many professionals

make the cut. While many of

our 15 MAPGA professionals

played well, ultimately none of

them made the top 20 to

a d v a n c e t o t h e P G A

Championship.

I am writing this the week of

the two State Opens: Maryland

Open (July 14-16) and Delta

Dental State

O p e n o f

Virginia (July

17-19). These

two events

haven’t been

in the same

week for quite

some time, so

I know it will

be a busy

week for some

o f o u r

members (and

administrators, too!). These

events are great examples of

the allied golf associations

working together on the local

level. We assist the MSGA with

their event, and we co-own the

SOVA with the VSGA.

On a National level, this is seen

again with events like Drive, Chip

and Putt (DCP). Augusta

National provides the venue and

much of the funding of the event,

the USGA handles administrative

duties for the website and

registration, and the PGA

Sections (with the help of its host

professionals) run the many

qualifiers. I would like to publicly

recognize and thank the many

volunteers, whether MAPGA or

from the allied associations, who

help us at these events. We love

doing these events, but they are

very staff intensive so the

volunteers help a great deal.

SHOUT OUTS

Congratulations to Ricky Touma,

PGA of Burning Tree Club. Ricky

qualified for the US Senior Open

in his first try. He won a playoff at

the Homestead to make it in, and

then played well (78-76) despite

missing the cut at Oak Tree GC in

Edmond, OK.

WHAT’S NEXT?

DCP qualifying moves to the sub-

regional stage with the top three

children from each age group of

the local qualifiers advancing to

either University of Maryland

(August 7) or Belle Haven CC

(August 19). The top two from

each age group at those

qualifiers, plus other sub-

regionals in North Carolina,

Pennsylvania and New Jersey, will

advance to the Regional (one of

10) at River Bend CC on

September 6. At River Bend, the

top boy and girl from each age

group advance to Augusta

National next April.

We have 153 members

registered for the MAPGA

Professional Championship at

the Country Club of Virginia on

August 11-13. The James River

and Tuckahoe Creek Courses are

outstanding, and will no doubt

prove to be an excellent test for

our players. Based on our

numbers, 153 players earned us

11 spots into the 2015 PNC

(plus exempt past champions

DeFrancesco, Hutsell and

Sullivan). With the added money

and PGA Tour sponsorship, our

very early estimate is a purse of

$62,000.

Our second Section National Car

Rental (NCR) Pro-Am Series

event, a Pro-Scratch format, with

$7500 added from NCR, and

$5000 added from new local

sponsor, McCrea Heating and Air

Conditioning, is scheduled for

September 29 at Dominion

Valley CC in Haymarket. Please

make plans now to attend! NCR

will determine success by the

number of people registered into

its loyalty program, the Emerald

Club. To take advantage of the

many benefits offered as well as

helping our overall sponsorship

efforts, please register for the

Emerald Club now, even if you

aren’t playing in the event.

Very respectfully,

Jon Guhl

Executive Director

MAPGA Staff

(540) 720-7420

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Jon Guhl, ext. 125

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Stacey Smith, ext. 121

TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR

Jeremy Greiner, PGA, ext.

124

PLAYER DEVELOPMENT

Stephanie Jennings, PGA

ext 116

JUNIOR GOLF DIRECTOR

Bob Heintz, ext. 128

MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR

Kelly Lawson, ext. 126

COMMUNICATIONS

Eric Southard, ext 115

Section Direction: Allied Golf Associations Working Together

Page 4 The Middle Atlantic Professional

Eyes on Employment: Mentoring/Motivating

Are you a mentor? Are you

motivating your team to be the

best? The unique mentoring

relationship between PGA

Members, their Assistants,

Apprentices and staff has always

been one of the cornerstones of

our business. One of the

traditional roles of a Head

Professional has been to train

and develop their Apprentices

and to help them achieve their

career goals.

In addition to helping your team,

effective mentoring has many

benefits for you as well:

-It helps you build a strong team

and promotes loyalty and

longevity among your staff

-An apprentice who is properly

trained and mentored is more

productive and motivated

-Professionals with reputations

for effective apprenticeship

programs can attract better

employees

-Good mentors develop a

reputation in the industry as a

source for qualified personnel

-A proven record of hiring and

training quality staff enhances

the value you provide to your

employer

Mentoring can take on several

meanings – teacher, coach,

counselor, cheerleader, drill

s e r g e a n t , d i s c i p l i n a r i a n ,

promoter, role model, and more.

You can have a profound impact

(either positive or negative) on

shaping the future of your

Apprentice – here are some ways

you can be a good mentor:

USE A CONSISTENT - FUTURE

THINKING APPROACH

It’s much easier being a mentor

to someone who is eager to

learn, possesses good work

habits and interpersonal skills,

and is dedicated to a successful

career as a PGA Professional.

Use your business planning from

the off season to perform a

motivating check-up. Take the

staff away from the facility for a

celebration working dinner or

breakfast to review the mid-year

performance and discuss plans

for the remainder of the season.

Celebrate all of the success,

mention a few areas for

improvement and then be social.

Ask for their support and share

your commitment to excellence.

DEVELOP A SUCCESSFUL

EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIP

E m p l o y e e s c a n b e c o m e

discouraged if they don’t know

what you want them to do, don’t

receive training on how you want

things done, and don’t get

feedback on how they are doing.

Give your Assistants, Apprentices

and staff clearly defined

responsibilities and expectations,

provide ongoing training and

guidance, and keep the lines of

communication open with timely

f e e d b a c k a n d r e g u l a r

performance evaluations.

PROMOTE PERSONAL AND

CAREER DEVELOPMENT

Show your Assistants and

Apprentices that you care by

taking a sincere interest in their

career development. Help build

their skills and knowledge, allow

them to be involved in managing

the business, educate them on

PGA programs available to them,

and counsel them on their career

goals and direction. When they

are ready to begin the job search

process, help them with

networking strategies, resume

preparation, and interviewing

skills, and be their #1 promoter.

Utilize the new Job Finder Tool-

Kit as thee resource. It is

available on PGALinks.

INTANGIBLES

Lead by example and with a

positive attitude. Create an

enjoyable and stimulating work

environment, empower your

Assistants and Apprentices with

meaningful responsibilities,

encourage creativ ity and

initiative, and challenge them to

develop new ideas. Initiate staff

activities outside the workplace

and develop a schedule that

allows them time for family, golf,

leisure, etc. Perhaps in the fall

season responsibilities may be

reversed as an opportunity for

growth.

Always keep in mind that your

Assistants and Apprentices are

likely to adopt much of what they

see in you as their role model –

your values and beliefs, your

professional image, how you

manage your business, your

attention to detail, how you

interact with people and handle

situations, and how you conduct

yourself at work and away. It

can be a challenge juggling the

multiple relationships you may

develop with your staff –

employer/employee, teacher/

student, friend/friend, etc.

However, seeing your Assistants

and Apprentices climb the

ladder of success as a PGA

Professional makes it all

worthwhile.

Best wishes for 2014!

Don Sweeting is an

Employment

Consultant for the PGA

of America.

He can be contacted at

dsweeting@pgahq.com

(704) 440-8025

EMPLOYMENT

CHANGES

Simplify your life and

submit your

employment changes

electronically through

the PGA's ONLINE

CHANGE FORM in

PGALinks. Electronic

submission is fast

and helps you avoid

any applicable

fines by reporting

changes within ten

days of your new

status.

Page 5 The Middle Atlantic Professional

“Your number one source of

marketing is your staff ”

Mike Aldrich, PGA

Player Development Discussion: Let Them Know

If someone drove into your

facility, walked into your

building, and checked in at your

counter, in which businesses

would they think you are

engaged? Would the customer

know that you offer instruction?

Would they know that you host

outings? Or would they have the

impression that your core

business is selling shirts, golf

balls and gloves?

While you may think that it is

obvious that you are also in the

business of teaching all levels of

golfers, take a walk through your

facility with the eye of a

consumer. How many times

would they see a sign of your

desire to teach the game? Do

you have pictures of junior

golfers having fun at last year’s

camp? Why not display that

certificate from TPI, US Kids, or

your PGA Specialty Certification

in instruction?

Golf Professionals will spend

thousands of dollars to market

their services to people that they

have never met. We buy

expensive email programs to

capture leads and deliver slick

messaging to our customers. We

pay for online advertising and

beautiful websites describing

each hole. Many facilities event

purchase email lists and pay-per-

clicks advertising, or use third-

party marketing firms that

REQUIRE discounting and

expensive fees. Meanwhile, each

of us has hundreds of people

walking through our facilities

every week who already do

business with us and are

unaware of all of the services that

you offer.

Here are some easy steps that

you can take to communicate

your core business focus to your

existing customers through on-

site marketing

Signage

Display signs letting them know

what services you offer. In a high-

traffic area, create a marketing

table with your programs and

photos of people enjoying them.

Make it easy for your golfers to

sign up by providing schedules of

your events, take-away collateral

and on-line registration tools

listed on the forms.

Take a look at this short video

of a walk from the parking lot

through the small clubhouse at

East Potomac and through their

driving range to see how many

impressions of Get Golf Ready

a customer would get in just

over two minutes. They also

display upcoming events,

playing opportunities, and next-

step instructional opportunities.

Not every facility can or should

go to this level of signage in the

clubhouse, but don’t overlook

the importance of visually

promoting your key businesses.

If you are at a private club, find

a space in your golf shop to add

a communication area where

members can find information

about tournaments, instruction

and other upcoming events.

(cont. on page 7)

Mike Aldrich, PGA is the Player

Development Regional

Manager for D.C., MD, & VA.

He can be contacted at

(703) 728-9033

maldrich@pgahq.com.

Page 6 July 2014

Employee Activation

Your number one source of marketing is your staff, especially shop assistants, instructors and bag room attendants. Each day,

give each type of staff member an assignment to mention an upcoming event to your golfers. To avoid annoying repetition,

assign each a unique message.

For example, on Tuesday, you could assign your staff.

Shop message (Tournament) – “Mr. Madden, have you thought about signing up for the One-Day Member-Guest on August 15?

You and each of your guests will receive a logoed duffel bag.”

Instructors (Youth Development) – “Mr. Shulze, next week we are starting another PGA Sports Academy half and full day camp?

Can I provide more information about the curriculum?”

Outside Operations (Demo Day) – “Mr. Lunn, have you tried the new X-Moondust Driver? On Saturday’s Demo Day, our Pros and

the staff from Moondust will have a bunch of them on the range and they can fit you for one.”

Surveys

Traditionally, surveys have been viewed as a way to discover what your customers think of your products and services. In

today’s interactive culture, surveys are also a way to interact and connect with your customers. When sending your survey, be

sure to ask for suggestions on activities and products that you are not currently offering. An example might be to ask for ideas

for family-friendly tournament formats. Be sure to thank your golfers and let them know that where practical, you will implement

their ideas.

While we all want and need new customers to thrive, start your marketing efforts with your existing clients. They already trust

and like you enough to give you some of their business; let them know what they are missing and ask them to make you their

one-stop shop.

If you would like to implement any of the above ideas at your club and would like additional information on driving rounds and

revenue to your facility, contact Player Development Manager Mike Aldrich at 703-728-9033 or maldrich@pgahq.com

Player Development (Cont’d)

Register your facility today

in PGALinks:

Tee It Forward, Get Golf Ready, PGA Sports Academy

Page 7 The Middle Atlantic Professional

Central Chapter Update by President Josh Tremblay, PGA

The season is flying by! We had a great Central Chapter

Championship at the Piedmont Club on May 27th.

Congratulations are in order for Billy Hoffman and Bob Bilbo won

the Regular and Senior Division, respectively. Thanks to Page &

Tuttle for sponsoring the event and to Scott Purpura and John

Montgomery for hosting. On June 30th, we traveled to the Country

Club of Fairfax for the Central Chapter Pro-Junior. Matt Gallagher

and his staff put on a great event and the pros and juniors really

enjoyed the day! Congratulations to the winning team of Geoff Montross, Isabel Hansen,

Curtis Holland and George Duangmanee.

Two more tournaments are on the schedule this season and they are the Central

Chapter Assistant Championship at Cattail Creek on July 29th and the Central Chapter

Fall Meeting and Pro-Assistant at Army/Navy Arlington on September 8th. Don't miss out

on these wonderful chances to test your games, in addition to the Section Events. The

Central Chapter would like to make it back-to-back-to-back Chapter Challenges this

November 10th & 11th at the River Course at Kingsmill. Be sure to make the most of

your playing opportunities so we can have a strong team!

Lastly, it's not too late to join in on the fundraising campaign known as PGA Golf Day.

Many of you can't solicit through your clubs but in today's world with Facebook and

Twitter you can still surely put out a message through one of these mediums to your

friends, family and members who will gladly support your cause. I'll be playing 100 holes

for the third year in a row to raise money for the MAPGA Scholarship Foundation and City

Dogs Rescue. Please consider joining me or if not, donate an amount equal to one

lesson towards the efforts of one of your fellow MAPGA Professionals. Every little bit

helps!

PGA’s Program Manager supported by Active

Networks is your one-stop marketing source for

successful player development programs.

SIGN UP TODAY!!

Upcoming Chapter

Events...

Northern Chapter Assistant Championship–

July 28

Fall Meeting & Pro Assist–

September 2

Central Chapter Assistant Championship–

July 29

Fall Meeting & Pro-Assist–

September 8

Southern Chapter Assistant Championship–

July 29

Fall Meeting & Pro-Pro–

September 8

Visit the MAPGA

Tournament Schedule

on MAPGA.com for

more on Section &

Chapter Events

Page 8 July 2014

Southern Chapter : Ashley Plantation Installs 15” Holes from TaylorMade Golf

Peter Gardner, PGA and the staff at Ashley Plantation Golf Club in Daleville, VA recently installed 15” hole kits on their

Orchard 9 as part of TaylorMade Golf initiative to help grow the game. The ultimate goal is to reinvigorate interest in the

game and TaylorMade Golf believes the 15-inch cup is one way to do so. From TaylorMade’s initial results, the average

round was reduced by 45 minutes and the average score was reduced by 10 strokes. TaylorMade is also using two of its

star players, Sergio Garcia and Justin Rose to help promote this new idea. Ashley Plantation is one of 100 facilities in the

United States to receive the 15" hole kits from Taylor Made.

Northern Chapter: Joe Plecker, PGA Brings Golf to Living Classrooms

Taking advantage of the MAPGA’s player development equipment, Joe Plecker, PGA Director of

Instruction at Elkridge Club, set up a near-golf experience for over 120 children at a park in

Baltimore to help expand the learning environment for the Living Classrooms Foundation. This

foundation has been a part of the Baltimore community since 1985 and has a mission to inspire

young people to achieve their potential through hands-on education and job training. Their

“learning by doing” method has opened doors for children and young adults who are struggling to

succeed against terrible odds. Joe’s golf experience incorporated the inflatable dinosaur GolfZilla

(pictured) as well as SNAG equipment . All MAPGA Members can borrow GolfZilla, SNAG equipment, as

well as other fun inflatables, just give the Section Office a call at 540-720-7420 to schedule a date and time.

CENTRAL NORTHERN SOUTHERN

Sign up for the HoleSign up for the Hole--inin--One PoolOne Pool

Upcoming Educational Opportunities

Nov. 17-18—Nike Golf Teaching Summit (Congressional CC) FlightScope & UrCart Click HERE for more information

1 PGA Dr.

Stafford, VA 22554

Phone: (540) 720-7420

Fax: (540) 720-7076

E-mail: midatl@pgahq.com

Connect with the MAPGA

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MISSION: The mission of the Middle Atlantic PGA is to

promote growth in the game of golf, to provide

ongoing education and professional

development for our members, and to actively

improve employment opportunities for PGA

Professionals across the region.

VISION:

The Middle Atlantic PGA… a member-driven

association providing leadership across the golf

industry.

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