Looking Back
We Are
GOLF By Todd Saelhof
National Allied Golf Associations - Increasing Awareness of Golf
The thank-you cards fell fast and furious across the desk of Robert Rousselle, the president of the Alberta branch of NAGA, the National Allied Golf Associations. The cards were ringing endorsements for a job well done by the Alberta branch of NAGA during the strangest times of our lives. COVID-19, be damned. Golf got its groove on in the face of the coronavirus pandemic with help from the guiding hand of Rousselle & Co., a group of enthusiasts committed to the sport. "Extremely positive," said the NAGA Alberta president, beaming with pride when talking about the feedback sent the association's way for steering the province's golf industry through the health troubles of 2020. "I received many cards over the season, thanking us for all the work we did,” Rouselle said proudly. “The comments were very thankful from an extremely high percentage of golf clubs in Alberta."
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The Alberta Golfer 2021
We Are Golf is a Canada-wide coalition of the National Allied Golf Associations, aimed at increasing awareness of golf as a key driver of our economy, a steward of our environment and a vital way in which millions of Canadians stay fit and healthy every year. We Are Golf is comprised of Golf Canada, the National Golf Course Owners Association Canada, the PGA of Canada, the Canadian Golf Superintendents Association and the Canadian Society of Club Managers. Around these parts, the provincial chapters of those five associations make up NAGA Alberta. "Our intentions are aligned with We Are Golf," said Rousselle of his five-man cohort comprised of the heads of the provincial branches of the national bodies. "The whole intention around NAGA is to promote a united voice that represents the entire golf industry.
Indeed, the praise seems appropriate given the role of Rousselle and his merry band of men over the past year.
"Our role goes in waves," continued Rousselle, himself doubling as PGA of Alberta executive director. "We had the flooding (in 2013). We had issues with pesticide. Our role is to come in and support the golf industry and become one voice for government. We represent the voice of all our members."
Many considered NAGA Alberta to be a driving force behind what became a successful golf season, surprisingly emerging from the worry that engulfed the industry during the early stages of the pandemic. But just how does the association fit into the golf landscape?
Giving all golfers in the province a voice is just what NAGA Alberta did last spring with the pandemic keeping other sports on the sidelines. The outfit snapped into action at that point with an industrywide push to get golf courses open for business.
