Congratulations to our 2011 Indiana PGA Special Award recipients, who work very hard to continuously improve themselves and their clubs to better
serve their players and members. Award winners will be recognized at the Indiana PGA Spring Business Meeting at the Holiday Inn North in Indianapolis on March 7.
Professional of the
Year
Chip Essig
Essig Golf Management
Chip Essig has worked hard over the years to meet with
numerous golf professionals from around Indiana and the United States to
improve his facilities, officiate championships, and promote the game. The
network of professionals he has formed allows him to see what trends are
working in other parts of the country as well as what is not. As Director of
Golf at Hickory Stick and owner of Essig Golf Management, Chip oversees three
head professionals, one director of instruction and four apprentices. The
facilities he oversees do over 85,000 rounds of golf annually. He also
continues to give golf lessons to students he has taught for many years.
His service to the Indiana Section includes being a member,
an officer, or committee chair on the Board of Directors for 12 years,
culminating in his service as President from 2006-2008. Additionally, he has
instructed at several Play Golf America Days, junior clinics, and helped orchestrate
Special Olympics.
His service at the national level revolves prominently
around rules officiating. Essig served on the PGA Rules Committee and
officiated 2-5 events a year including 15 major and senior major championships.
In the winters, he coordinates and instructs USGA/PGA Rules Workshops. His vast
knowledge of the rules has also served his Indiana fellow-professionals as
well. He shares his stories and expertise at Section meetings, local workshops,
clubs, and high school coaches meetings.
Teacher of the Year
Jon Hoover
Wood Wind Golf Academy
In 2010, Jon Hoover improved the game of players of all ages
and ability levels by offering over 1700 lessons and clinics. Over 250 of these
were juniors who participated in his junior golf program. Almost all of his
students take instruction through a series of multiple lessons or on a monthly
retainer fee so that he can best evaluate their abilities, identify weaknesses
and construct a program to improve their game. His comprehensive approach
includes full swing analysis with video feedback, TrackMan analysis to evaluate
numerous angles and planes, short game education, putting analysis in the SAM
Lab, green reading through AimPoint, club fitting, and on-course evaluation.
Hoover also works with area high school teams such as
Brebeuf, Westfield and University High Schools. In 2011 he will serve as head
coach for Westfield and work to develop their middle school program. For the
juniors who wish to pursue competitive golf beyond high school, he is working
to develop “The Leading Edge”, a junior development program designed for
juniors 12-18 years of age. Additionally, based on the Suzuki method of learning how to
play musical instruments, Hoover co-wrote a publication named “PAC Golf
(Parents as Coaches)”.
Students of note who have been instructed by Hoover include
Seth Fair, Erich Johnston, and Nels Surtani, a nationally ranked 9-year old.
Bill Strausbaugh
Award
Greg Havill
Woodstock Club
Since 1988, Greg Havill has been the Head Golf Professional
at the Woodstock Club, and during his tenure he has mentored numerous assistant
golf professionals that have gone on to further their careers as golf
professionals and salesmen in the golf industry. He works hard to equip his
assistants with all of the skills they need to succeed as a head professional,
from merchandising and tournament operations to golf cart maintenance and
customer service. Havill also encourages his assistants to improve their
playing ability to build credibility and attract students for lessons.
His service to the Indiana Section goes beyond training and
educating future professionals at his club. Greg served on the Indiana Section
Board of Directors from 1993 to 2002, and he served as president from 2001-02.
Some of his board term was spent chairing the Apprentice Committee, and he
conducted several apprentice meetings to provide guidance and offer support to
many through the apprenticeship process.
Havill has also received the 1992 Indiana PGA Player of the
Year, 2001 Indiana Teacher of the Year, and 2005 Golf Professional of the Year
awards.
Horton Smith Award
Chad Cockerham
Otter Creek Golf Course
The Indiana PGA and the Board of Directors have benefitted
from Chad Cockerham’s service for the past three years. He has worked directly
with the Education Committee to secure key note speakers for Section business
meetings and participated as a panelist during break-out sessions at those same
gatherings.
He has also served as the Growth of the Game committee chair
for the past three years. During that time he has organized 12 Play Golf
America Days in Indiana.
Junior Leader Award
Bryan Crouch
Thatcher Golf Course
Indianapolis Junior Golf Foundation
Bryan Crouch founded the Indiana Junior Golf Tour in 2000,
which serves central Indiana youth as part of the Indianapolis Junior Golf
Foundation. The program has grown to over 350 players and 20 events. Free
instruction and rules clinics are also offered as part of the program, and he
has reached over a thousand juniors through these means.
Other youth have also benefitted from Crouch’s love for
sharing the game. He has volunteered his teaching services to the Ben Davis and
Cardinal Ritter High School boys and girls golf teams, worked with the Boy
Scouts of America, and most recently has earned accreditation of assistant golf
coach with The First Tee.
Patience is Crouch’s greatest asset along with being able to
make learning fun for children and exude a calm and friendly demeanor, all of
which make Bryan an excellent junior leader.
Assistant of the Year
Chris Montagano
Sycamore Hills Golf Club
For the past four years, Chris Montagano has served Sycamore
Hills Golf Club and the membership in an exceptional way as the Assistant Golf
Professional under the direction of Tim Frazier. Responsibilities he has
excelled at include running a year-round junior program, assisting in the
selection and hiring process of a Second Assistant Golf Professional, managing
outside operations and budgeting. Specifically, he has been a leader in
improving the outside operations. He put together an Outside Operations
Employee Manual and Employee Agreement Form to hold all employees more
accountable and increase their level of service to the membership. Inside the
golf shop, he put a lot of effort into making the sales associates tronger in
the areas of customer service, product knowledge and merchandising tips.
Montagano has also been an integral part of the national
championships that his club has hosted recently, such as the US Women’s Team
Championship and two PGA Junior Championships. Before the Women’s Team, he put
together a Junior Golf Day that included golf instruction and an introduction
to course management.
Other ways he has served his community and Section are by
joining the Apprentice Committee and working with fellow-professional Kyle
Cramer on forming an Assistant/Apprentice Tournament Series. Additionally, he
has given complimentary lessons at a local YMCA in the winters.
Montagano attended Ferris State University and graduated in
2007 with a degree in Business and Marketing and a concentration in
Professional Golf Management.
Merchandisers of the
Year
Resort Category
Jon Chapple
The Fort Golf Resort
Jon Chapple’s merchandising plan has three key elements:
offering a wide variety of quality products and vendors, offering competitive
prices, and employing a friendly sales staff. He and his staff encourage demo
use and welcome merchandise returns. He claims the most important and
successful tactic is simply talking to his customers to help decide how to best
fit their needs and budget.
Public Category
Tom Nelson
Christmas Lake Golf Course
Tom Nelson’s merchandising philosophy centers around
utilizing the unique aspect of his facility name and logo and applying it to
high quality items. He also tries to keep the prices reasonable at the same
time by mixing fresh merchandise in with carefully picked closeout products. He
also firmly believes in keeping all of his facility staff members well-trained
and happy to be wearing the facility logo.
Private Category
Chad Ayres
Hillcrest Golf & Country Club
A three-part plan to merchandising has allowed Chad Ayres to
achieve success in his golf shop. First, he provides apparel and equipment that
match his members’ preferences while also introducing them to new trends. Next,
he displays his merchandise in a unique and appealing way in line with the
upcoming season or event. And lastly, he believes in providing exceptional
customer service by making sure all employees have appropriate product
knowledge.