A Mid-Season Update

Fellow PGA Professionals,

Congratulations to Michael Block, PGA; what an inspiring performance highlighting what it means to be a PGA Professional at Oak Hill in May This year’s PGA Championship was truly one for the ages I am not sure we could have scripted a better finish.

Thank you to our section PGA Members who have kindly opened their doors and tee times to the new junior golf model allowing for ninety-one junior tournaments, one hundred thirty tournament days, and over 1,000 junior tour members I would also like to thank the 77 Colorado PGA Professionals who signed up as PGA Junior League Coaches who are providing playing and programming to over 3,000 youth in the PGA Junior League Program Best of luck to our Colorado teams as the Junior League Championship season begins next month

Our team is excited to develop a new section mentorship program that will pave the way for the next Section leaders by helping facilitate getting our Associates through our education program The need is clear and acute for recruiting and retaining talent in our industry. There is no better way to accomplish this than at the grassroots level, walking beside our associates as they progress through the program. I recall fondly back to days when I served on the Assistant’s Committee and played in Assistant-only events. A huge thank you to Steve David (Denver CC) and Ron DeJacimo (Red Rocks CC), who were one of the first professionals to raise their hands to lead these mentorship events Chris Williamson (Rain Dance National), Bob Doyle (Life Member), Ben Tremayne (Willis Case GC), and Jeramy Curry (Pinehurst GC) should also be commended for giving their time at these round tables Next up, Bill Hughes will offer an exciting networking day for Assistants with special guest David Leadbetter This is the way to help lead the future of our profession Please let us know if you would like to host a future event!

We are currently at a 52% completion rate as a section for both the local and national compensation surveys. Please find 10 minutes to complete these important tools. The section will receive $19,500 to fund our section operations if we get to 65% by Fall. More importantly, this data is crucial to professionals who may be negotiating a salary increase or a new job The information you provide is confidential We have seen professionals in the Mountain and Midwest Region able to increase compensation by $724,381 by leveraging customized compensation data reports during their annual reviews and meetings with their Boards

A big THANK YOU to our new and returning Section partners It has been so wonderful to see an increase in all tournament purses and programming experiences If you have the opportunity and are seeking new partners at your facility, please give them a chance to earn your business

Cheers to a great Summer!

Cathy Matthews-Kane, PGA Colorado PGA Section President Incoming PGA of America District IX Director