2021

Craig Bowden

​2020

Mike David

2019

Brian C. Chalifoux

Brian C. Chalifoux was born and raised in North Adams, Massachusetts. He first became interested in golf as a young adult, after participating in a golf league as an employee at General Electric. His newfound interest in the game sparked his love of agriculture and prompted him to enroll in the Stockbridge School of Agriculture at the University of Massachusetts, with a degree in Turfgrass Science.  After graduating from Stockbridge, Chalifoux became an Assistant Professional at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York, under the leadership of Richard Bator. After serving as an assistant from ’78 to ’80, Chalifoux went on to become a golf course superintendent at South Bend Country Club in South Bend, Indiana for two years (’81-’82). He then went on to work as a superintendent at Olympia Fields Country Club in Olympia Fields, Illinois from ’83 to ’87. His career then took him back to Indiana in ‘88, where he served as superintendent for 31 years at Fort Wayne Country Club.  Throughout Chalifoux’s career, a huge emphasis was placed on mentoring his assistants and helping them become superintendents or other promotions within the industry. In total, 18 of his former assistants have gone on to become superintendents. Chalifoux also prides himself on his involvement with the Hoosier GCSAA, serving as both Vice President and eventually President (’90). In 2018, Chalifoux was recognized with the Midwest Regional Turf Foundation Distinguished Service Award. His career motto was to, “work hard, lead, train, and keep your eye on the prize.”

Cathy Gerring

Cathy Gerring was born and raised in Fort Wayne, Indiana. She learned the game of golf from her father, Bill Kratzert, at an early age. During her junior golf career, Gerring won two Indiana State Junior Championships (’76, ’77) and went on to play collegiate golf at Ohio State University. There, Gerring was a two-time medalist at the Big Ten Conference Championship (’82, ’83), an NCAA First Team All-American (’83), and was named Ohio State University’s Athlete of the Year (’83). In 1984, Gerring took her shot on the LPGA Tour, finishing 12th at LPGA Qualifying and earning an exempt status for the 1985 tournament season. Throughout her LPGA career, Gerring was a three-time LPGA Champion (the Lady Keystone Open, Stratton Mountain LPGA Classic, and the Trophee Urban World Championship). After giving birth to her first child, Zachary, Gerring only competed in six events in 1988, but went on to grab four top-20 finishes in 1989 and was named the 1990 LPGA Bounce Back Player of the Year. That same year, Gerring was selected to participate in the Inaugural Solheim Cup at Lake Nona Golf & Country Club in Orlando, Florida. Led by Captain Kathy Whitworth, the United States defeated Europe 11.5 to 4.5 points. This is one of Gerring’s most proud career moments to date. In ’92, Gerring suffered severe burns on her face and hands during a fire incident in April. She did not return to competition until ’96. In ’97, Gerring was inducted into the Ohio State University Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2004, she was also inducted into the Little League Hall of Excellence as the first female inductee.

Erika Wicoff

Erika Wicoff was born in Joliet, Illinois and was raised in Hartford City, Indiana. She began playing golf when she was only four years old. Wicoff had a successful junior golf career, winning the Indiana State Junior Championship back-to-back years (’88, ’89), finishing runner-up the following two years (’90, ’91), and also adding two runner-up finishes at the IHSAA State Finals to her junior golf resume (’90, ’91). She went on to play collegiate golf at Indiana University, where she was a Big Ten Conference Champion three years in a row (’93, ’94, ’95), Big Ten Freshman of the Year (’93), three-time Big Ten Player of the Year (’94, ’95, ‘96), two-time NCAA First Team All-American (’95, ‘96), and Indiana University Athlete of the Year (’96). Wicoff also finished fourth at the NCAA Women’s Golf Championship in ’95. During her summer breaks, Wicoff was busy succeeding in state and national events, adding three consecutive Indiana Women’s State Amateur titles to her credit (’93, ’94, ’95), a win at the Judy Schock Ohio Girl’s Championship (’93), and medalist honors at back-to-back USGA Women’s Amateur Championships (’94, ’95). In 1996, Wicoff decided to further her golf career by turning professional and won the Futures Betty Puskar Championship that same year. In 1997, she earned an exemption for the 1997 LPGA tournament season. Throughout her LPGA career (’97-’01, ’03), Wicoff had five top-ten finishes, and participated in five US Women’s Open Championships. In 2006, Wicoff was inducted into the Indiana University Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2014, she was also inducted into the Blackford High School Hall of Fame, and in 2018 she was inducted into the Indiana High School Golf Coaches
Association Hall of Fame.

2018

John Dunham

John L. Dunham is a native of Cincinnati, OH. Dunham began playing golf at the age of 12. Sneaking onto golf courses, playing golf until dark, caddying and using the ball diamond at an orphanage as his training ground – that’s how his golf passion began. Dunham was unable to afford golf lessons. He earned a golf scholarship to the University of Cincinnati and was a member of the men’s golf team from 1961-1965, including the team Captain in 1965. He earned a master’s degree, University of Cincinnati, in 1966. Dunham began his professional career as an assistant at Maketewah Country Club in the fall of 1970 and at Kenwood Country Club from 1971-1973 in Cincinnati, OH. During his time as an assistant, he was a 3 time champion of the Assistant’s Championship of the Southern Ohio PGA Cincinnati Chapter. He was also a member of the Mashburn Cup Team matches. During his early years as an assistant is where his passion for golf instruction began where he gave between 400 – 1,200 private lessons per year. In 1974, at the age of 30, he was hired to be the head professional at Highland Golf and Country Club in Indianapolis. He worked there for 34 years before retiring in 2007. Dunham served as president of the Indiana PGA Section from 1981-1982. He was the 1983 Indiana PGA Golf Professional of the Year and the 2004 Indiana PGA Bill Strausbaugh Award winner. He was a member of the IGA/PGA Executive Board of Directors for eight years and served as a delegate to the National PGA of America meeting. Dunham is most well-known and respected for his instruction of the game of golf. Throughout his career, John has given approximately 28,000 private golf lessons. Dunham is a four-time winner of the Indiana PGA Teacher of the Year Award (1988, 1991, 1994 and 2007). Dunham has been recognized by Golf Digest annual publication, Best Teachers in America and State, as the #1 Teacher in the state of Indiana approximately 16 times. He has also been recognized by Golf Magazine as one of the best teachers in the state.

2017

Jeff Cook

Alan Schulte

Alan Schulte grew up in Oneonta, New York and attended a small, rural high school with just 34 kids in his graduating class.  He was the only golfer in his entire school, so he never had the opportunity to participate on a team.  Luckily, with the help of his teacher, he was granted entry into the high school state tournament, and from there, his golf career began. In 1980, Schulte won his first state-wide event, the New York State Junior Championship.  He went on to attend Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia on a golf scholarship.  There, Schulte won back-to-back Conference Championships (’84, ’85) and qualified as an individual for the USGA Amateur Championship.  In 1991, Schulte moved to Fishers and worked as a golf professional at Hillcrest Country Club.  In 2002, he became the Head Professional at the Hawthorns Golf and Country Club. While working as a Head Professional, Schulte continued to play competitively and proved to be a front-runner.  He won back-to-back Indiana PGA Open Championships in ’05 and ’06, was a two-time Indiana PGA Professional Champion (’00, ’05), a PGA Southern Open Champion (’04), and Indianapolis Open Champion (’06), and a three time Indiana PGA Assistants’ Champion (’98, ’01, ’03). His tremendous tournament play earned him several state accolades, including two Indiana PGA Assistant Player of the Year titles (’01, ’02) and six consecutive Indiana PGA Player of the Year titles (’02, ’03, ’04, ’05, ’06, ’07).  In 2006, Schulte had a stint on the PGA Tour, qualifying for the PGA Championship at Medinah Country Club, where he competed alongside the world’s best professionals.

2016

Ann Gregory

A natural athlete, Gregory grew up a tennis star.  But in her early thirties she decided to learn golf and joined the all-black Chicago Women’s Golf Association (CWGA).  Within four years, she won the CWGA Championship, the Joe Louis Invitational and the United Golf Association Championship.  At that time, the press dubbed her the “Queen of Negro Women’s Golf.”  In 1956, the CWGA became the first black golf organization to join the USGA and Gregory became the first African-American woman to compete in a USGA Championship at the U.S. Women’s Open.  Throughout her career, Gregory competed in 27 USGA Championships, including six U.S. Women’s Opens, seven U.S. Women’s Amateurs, and 14 U.S. Women’s Senior Amateurs, where she was the runner-up in 1971.  She was also the 1989 Women’s Golf Gold Medalist at the National Senior Olympics at the age of 76.  In addition to her playing accomplishments, Gregory also integrated the Gary Public Library Board and South Gleason Park GC, where a marker stands today in her honor.

Therese Hession

Kyle O’Brien Stevens

Stevens began her golf career in her hometown Indianapolis, Ind.  In 1975, Stevens won the Indiana Girl’s State Junior Championship and was runner-up at the U.S. Girl’s Junior Amateur Championship.  She also qualified for the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship that same year.  Additionally, in ’75, Stevens led her North Central High School team to the second of back-to-back IHSAA State Championships, where she won Medalist honors, and was the IHSAA Mental Attitude award recipient.  Stevens went on the play golf at Southern Methodist University where she won the AIAW National Championship both as an individual and a team.  She was named Golf Magazine’s 1979 Collegiate Player of the Year and was a two-time First Team All-American in ’79 and ’80.  After college, Stevens qualified for the LPGA Tour and in ’81 was named Golf Digest’s LPGA Tour Rookie of the Year.  Her career yielded five top-10 LPGA finishes.  In 1985, Stevens returned to SMU where she became Head Women’s Golf Coach.

2015