PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Brent Krause, PGA Master Professional at Wynlakes Golf & Country Club in Montgomery, Ala., has been named the 54th recipient of the PGA Golf Professional of the Year Award, the highest annual honor bestowed by The PGA of America on a PGA Golf Professional.
A 29-year member of The PGA of America, Krause is the second member of the Dixie PGA Section to be so honored. In 2003, Jim Brotherton Jr. was the first member of the Dixie PGA Section to be named PGA Golf Professional of the Year.
"Being named the 2007 PGA Golf Professional of the Year is the pinnacle of my professional career," said Krause. "I have been very fortunate to have been able to work in a business that I truly love, and to be supported by so many people who have helped make this award possible. I am honored, humbled and thrilled."
Krause will be recognized at The PGA of America Awards, Thursday, January 17, 2008, during the 55th PGA Merchandise Show at the Orange County Convention Center’s Linda W. Chapin Auditorium in Orlando, Fla. The program will feature all 2007 national award winners.
Also winning national PGA awards are:
· James M. Hardy of Houston, Texas – PGA Teacher of the Year
· Thomas J. Carpus of Kennett Square, Pa. – PGA Horton Smith Award
· Michael S. Doctor of Skaneateles, N.Y. – Bill Strausbaugh Award
· Danny Harvanek of Larkspur, Colo. – PGA Junior Golf Leader
· William J. Reilly of Dresher, Pa. – PGA President’s Plaque
The 2007 PGA Merchandisers of the Year Award winners are:
· Adam D. Carney of Mountain Home, Ark. – Public Facilities
· Doug Steffen of Springfield, N.J. – Private Facilities
· Dirk M. Willis of Kohler, Wis. – Resort Facilities
"On behalf of the 28,000 men and women PGA Golf Professionals, I salute each of our 2007 award recipients for their dedication and passion for the game of golf," said PGA of America President Brian Whitcomb. "These PGA Golf Professionals have set the standard by which all fellow PGA Golf Professionals can follow."
BRENT KRAUSE – PGA Golf Professional of the Year
Brent Krause, PGA director of golf and general manager at Wynlakes Golf & Country Club in Montgomery, Ala., is now a two-time PGA of America National Award recipient, having previously received the PGA Horton Smith Award in 2002.
Elected to PGA membership in 1978, Krause has served two terms as District 3 Director on the PGA national board, from 1994 through 1997 and 2003 through 2006; as Dixie PGA Section President from 1988-1989; and as a member of various PGA committees, including the PGA Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief Task Force from 2005-2006.
Throughout his career, Krause has been instrumental in player development. His facility is involved in Play Golf America programs including PGA Free Fitting & Trade-Up Month, PGA Free Lesson Month and Take Your Daughter to the Course Week. Interns from Mississippi State University’s PGA/PGMâ?¢ program train under his guidance, and some 10 PGA head professionals have been guided by Krause.
Krause’s contributions to golf extend beyond The PGA of America. He has served on the Board of Directors of The First Tee of Montgomery since its charter was granted three years ago.
JAMES M. HARDY – PGA Teacher of the Year
Jim Hardy of JacobsenHardy Golf is a 37-year member of The PGA of America and the third member of the Southern Texas PGA Section to be named PGA Teacher of the Year – preceded by Harvey Penick in 1989 and Chuck Cook in 1996.
Hardy is the author of two books, including the worldwide best selling instructional book and DVD, "The Plane Truth for Golfers," published in 2005. "The Plane Truth for Golfers Master Class," was released earlier this year.
He is currently one of GOLF Magazine’s Top 100 and Golf Digest’s top 50 instructors. In 2002 and in 2005 he was named the Harvey Penick Teacher of the Year by the Southern Texas PGA Section.
Hardy conducts an average of 12 two-day "Teaching and Playing Seminars" for PGA Golf Professionals each year and was a featured presenter at The PGA of America’s Teaching & Coaching Summit in 2004. He has also been a presenter at a number of PGA Section Education programs and appeared at the World Golf Fitness Summit in April.
He currently teaches Tour professionals Peter Jacobsen, Scott McCarron, Tom Pernice, Bob Tway, Olin Browne, Duffy Waldorf, Jay Delsing, Stan Utley, Don Pooley and Graham Marsh.
THOMAS J. CARPUS – PGA Horton Smith Award
A contributor to PGA education for nearly two decades, PGA Master Professional Tom Carpus is the first member of the Philadelphia PGA Section to be named the national PGA Horton Smith Award winner. The award, established in 1965 and named for the late PGA Past President, is designed to give special recognition to an individual PGA Golf Professional for outstanding and continuing contributions to professional education.
Carpus is the PGA head professional at Kennett Square Golf & Country Club in Kennett Square, Pa. He was elected to membership in 1988.
Since 1996, Carpus has presented education programs throughout the country. And since 1993, he has served the Philadelphia PGA Section in various positions including a two-year term as President (2004-2005). Carpus was named the Philadelphia PGA Section Golf Professional of the Year in 2002 and the Horton Smith Award winner in 2000 and 2001.
Carpus has served on the PGA Rules Committee since 1995.
MICHAEL S. DOCTOR – Bill Strausbaugh Award
Michael Doctor is a PGA Master Professional at Skaneateles (N.Y.) Country Club, where he has served for 23 years. He is the second of three generations of PGA Golf Professionals. Elected to PGA membership in 1979, Doctor also sits on the National PGA Education Committee that developed the PGA Certified Professional Program.
The 1991 Central New York PGA Section Golf Professional of the Year, Doctor was also named the Central New York PGA Section Teacher of the Year in 1995. Doctor’s previous Section honors include the 1990, ’94, ’99 and 2000 Bill Strausbaugh Award and 1983, ’84, ’86 through ’89, ’91, ’92, ’96 Junior Golf Leader. He was named the Central New York PGA Section and Northeastern New York PGA Section Horton Smith Award recipient in 1983, ’84, 2001, and 2003.
Doctor has served the Central New York PGA Section for 23 years, including two terms as its President (1992-1996). He has chaired several committees – Junior Golf Committee, Club Relations Committee, Hall of Fame Committee and Education Committee. Additionally, Doctor represented District 4 on the National PGA Board of Directors from 1999-2002.
Doctor is the second Central New York PGA Section member to be honored with this award, preceded by Earl Maurer in 1988.
The Bill Strausbaugh Award was established in 1979, and is presented to a PGA Golf Professional who, by their day-to-day efforts, has distinguished themselves in mentoring their fellow PGA Golf Professionals in improving their employment situations and through service to the community. The Award is named in honor of the late Bill Strausbaugh, a PGA Master Professional in the Middle Atlantic PGA Section.
DANNY HARVANEK – PGA Junior Golf Leader Award
Danny Harvanek is a PGA Master Professional at The Golf Club at Bear Dance, home of the Colorado PGA Section, in Larkspur, Colo. He was elected to PGA membership in 1978.
Beginning in 1974 as a PGA apprentice, Harvanek has been involved in creating, developing and teaching junior programs. In 2006, Harvanek was rewarded for his work as he was named the Colorado PGA Section Junior Leader. Harvanek’s previous Section honors include the 2003 Colorado PGA Section Teacher of the Year and the 1991, ’92 and ’93 Golf Professional of the Year.
Harvanek has authored a series of children’s books that reflect his unique teaching methods for children. Taking place in a kitchen, six mice teach lessons in golf and lessons in life. The books also contain easy-to-understand instructions, including pictorial guides for adults.
Among Harvanek’s other pursuits was establishing the First Golf® & Literacy Elementary School Program in the Metro Denver area. He is currently working with the Denver Public Schools to implement a curriculum which encompasses golf, literacy, math and science skills in all 93 elementary schools, which represents more than 20,000 children.
WILLIAM J. REILLY – President’s Plaque Winner
William Reilly, a graduate of Villanova University, is the PGA head professional at Twining Valley Golf and Fitness Center in Dresher, Pa. He is a member of the Philadelphia PGA Section. His father, Hugh Sr. and brothers, Hugh Jr. and Michael, are also PGA Golf Professionals.
Reilly serves as chairman of the Philadelphia PGA Section’s Growth of the Game task-force and was the recipient of the 2006 and 2007 Presidents Plaque Award for the Philadelphia PGA Section. A winner of the 2005 PGA of America Junior Golf Leader Award, Reilly was also the 2003 and 2004 Philadelphia PGA Junior Golf Leader recipient. For the past 26 years, he has been coordinating junior golf clinics and numerous growth of the game initiatives as part of a family-run operation at Twining Valley.
In 2004, he guided the development of the Philadelphia PGA High School Golf Coaches Summit to promote Section programs and help encourage the development of high school golf. For the past six years, Reilly and Twining Valley have been active in promoting PGA Free Lesson Month. The Section has also hosted PGA Play Golf America Days the past two years.
Reilly coached the Mount St. Joseph Golf Team to the 2006 Pennsylvania State Championship. He has participated in the PGA/USA TODAY Hotline, taking calls from golfers nationwide. He serves on the Executive Board of Philadelphia’s Spirit of Golf Foundation and is executive director of The First Tee of Montgomery County and program director of The First Tee of Suburban Philadelphia.
The President’s Plaque is presented to individuals for extraordinary and exemplary contributions and achievements in Player Development. The award considers a PGA Golf Professional’s growth of the game leadership commitment at the Section and national levels, and the impact at the members’ own facility.
ADAM D. CARNEY – PGA Merchandiser of the Year – Public Facilities
A PGA Master Professional, Adam Carney is in his sixth season as PGA head professional at Big Creek Golf & Country Club in Mountain Home, Ark. Elected to PGA membership in 1995, Carney served as a PGA assistant professional at Dorchester Golf Club in Fairfield Glade, Tenn. from 1993-1996. He then became PGA head professional at Curtis Creek Country Club in Rensselaer, Ind., from 1996-1999. He was the PGA head professional at Holiday Hills Resort in Branson, Mo., from 1999-2001, before accepting his current position.
Since his arrival at Big Creek, an upscale public facility in the heart of the Ozark Mountains, Carney has completely renovated the golf shop with new fixtures, a theme and new traffic patterns. He as accented the displays in his shop with touches from the past that include an antique gas pump complete with a lighted gas globe, antique sewing machine, antique typewriters and antique sports items.
DOUG STEFFEN – PGA Merchandiser of the Year – Private Facilities
Doug Steffen is in his 11th season as PGA head professional at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, N.J. A PGA member since 1980, Steffen served as PGA head professional at Fresh Meadow Country Club from 1995-1996, and Middle Bay Country Club from 1980-1994 prior to arriving at Baltusrol.
Steffen said that he is successful because "the Baltusrol staff treats individuals the way you want to be treated. Customer satisfaction is a priority for success in the golf industry."
Baltusrol, host to 16 major championships through the years, most recently the 2005 PGA Championship, has benefited since Steffen’s arrival in 1997. He completely renovated the golf shop, updating display fixtures, lighting, carpeting, traffic flow and storage facilities. Steffen sees to it that his staff dresses in coordinating outfits on a daily basis, for the convenience of the club’s members and guests.
The accents in Steffen’s shop include some 20 mannequins, luggage, antique golf clubs and musical props.
DIRK M. WILLIS – PGA Merchandiser of the Year – Resort Facilities
Dirk Willis was named the manager of operations and retail at Whistling Straits and Blackwolf Run in 2006, following a three-year stint as the PGA head professional at Whistling Straits. Willis was elected to PGA membership in 1999.
Willis believes he is at an advantage because Destination Kohler is a world-class golf facility. Patrons are interested in purchasing merchandise unique to the Kohler facilities.
Whistling Straits will host the 92nd PGA Championship, having previously hosted the 2004 PGA Championship and 1999 PGA Professional National Championship.
Since his arrival at Whistling Straits, Willis has streamlined the number of vendors in each category, overhauled and increased the women’s selection and effectively moved out old stock through annual holiday sales during the off season.
To give Blackwolf Run its own identity, Willis switched up several vendors, thus creating a unique merchandise mix there as opposed to Whistling Straits.
The PGA of America is the world’s largest working sports organization, comprised of 28,000 men and women golf Professionals who are the recognized experts in growing, teaching and managing the game of golf, while serving millions of people throughout its 41 PGA Sections nationwide. Since its founding in 1916, The PGA of America has enhanced its leadership position in a $62 billion-a-year industry by growing the game of golf through its premier spectator events, world-class education and training programs, significant philanthropic outreach initiatives and award-winning golf promotions. Today’s PGA Golf Professional is the public’s link to the game, serving an essential role in the operation of golf facilities throughout the country.
Contact:
Jamie Carbone
561/624-8446
jcarbone@pgahq.com