ORLANDO, FLA. (Jan. 30, 2009) – Club Car Chairman Phil Tralies received the Ernie Sabayrac Award from the PGA of America in recognition of lifetime contributions to the game and business of golf.
Tralies, whose business leadership and support for the game has made the Augusta-based manufacturer one of the most respected brands in golf, received the award Thursday night at The PGA of America awards ceremony held in conjunction with the 56th PGA Merchandise Show here.
“You could take all of the golf professionals, superintendents, owners and operators in golf and put them in Raymond James Stadium down the road in Tampa, where the Super Bowl will be played on Sunday, and have plenty of room left over,” Tralies said during his acceptance remarks. “But what that stadium lacked in numbers would be more than made up in character. Golf is a business filled with some of the best people in the world. People for whom you would do just about anything in your power to help. Because you know they would do the same for you.”
A video tribute included comments from a number of industry leaders, including Joe Barrow, executive director of The First Tee; and M.G. Orender, former president of the PGA of America; and Steve Mona, CEO of the World Golf Foundation.
Tralies, who joined Club Car in 2001 as president and CEO and was named chairman in January 2008, has guided the company to prominence in domestic and global markets. Under his leadership, Club Car launched a number of new products into the golf market, resulting in significant market share gains. He also expanded the company’s global presence and transformed Club Car from a company focused on golf to one that manufactures small task-oriented vehicles that serve a wide range of commercial and consumer markets beyond golf.
Tralies has served as a popular ambassador for golf, lending Club Car’s support of a number of the game’s allied associations. He also was instrumental in forming an employee golf program that provides free lessons to Club Car associates and encourages their participation. The “Let’s Go Golfing” program has received industry-wide recognition as one of golf’s most successful grassroots programs.
“Yes, we’re a business, and we’re in business to make a profit,” Tralies told a crowd of PGA of America professionals, golf course owners and operators. “But speaking for the vast majority of manufacturers that support the golf industry, we’re also in this business because we love it. We love the game. We respect the jobs you do to make it better. And we enjoy helping you make your businesses more successful.”
“Phil Tralies’ record of service to the golf industry extends beyond the success that he has brought to a company and its employees,” said PGA of America President Jim Remy. “Through Phil’s expertise, he also has elevated the standards of the game in servicing both the PGA professional and the amateur player.”
The first Ernie Sabayrac Award was presented in 1994 to its namesake, the late Ernie Sabayrac, a prominent figure in the origin of the PGA Merchandise Show and a pioneer in the development of golf shop merchandising among PGA Professionals.
A native of Philadelphia, Tralies began his golf career in 1979 with Textron Inc., a global, multi-industry company that included E-Z-GO and Jacobsen. Tralies left Textron in 2000 to form P.J.T. Golf Capital LLC, a company focused on golf course financing for owners and operators, before coming to Club Car in 2001.
Club Car, a business of Ingersoll-Rand Company Limited, a diversified industrial firm, Honors the Game in its service to customers and support of the golf industry. Club Car is the exclusive premier partner of the National Golf Course Owners Association in the U.S. and NGCOA Canada’s exclusive Golf Car Supplier and Platinum Partner. Club Car is also a sponsor of the European Golf Course Owners Association, a Silver Partner of the GCSAA and a Corporate Advantage Partner of the Club Managers Association of America. It is the Official Supplier of Golf Cars and Utility Vehicles to the 2010 Ryder Cup, the Official Golf Car and Golf Utility Vehicle and an Official Sponsor of the PGA European Tour, the official supplier of golf cars and utility vehicles to PGA Tournament Players Clubs, and leading sponsor of the PGA Professional National Championship, The First Tee and the Executive Women’s Golf Association.
About Club Car
Club Car provides fleet, turf, hospitality and financing solutions for golf, agricultural, recreational and industrial markets. For more information on Club Car, go to www.clubcar.com. Based in Augusta, Ga., Club Car is part of the Industrial Technologies sector of Ingersoll-Rand Company Limited. Ingersoll Rand (NYSE: IR) is a global diversified firm providing products, services and solutions to enhance the quality and comfort of air in homes and buildings, transport and protect food and perishables, secure homes and commercial properties, and increase industrial productivity and efficiency. Driven by a 100-year-old tradition of technological innovation, we enable our customers to create progress and a positive impact in their world.
Contact:
Bill Bryant, Bryant Marketing Communications
(678) 366-3232, bbryant@bryantmarcomm.com
