Stafford, VA – Jim Bennett, the PGA Assistant Professional at Green Spring Valley Hunt Club (Owings Mills, Md.), is the recipient of the Middle Atlantic PGA’s 2013 Horton Smith Award. This award bestows special recognition on a PGA Professional for outstanding service and contributions toward developing and improving educational opportunities for PGA Professionals and apprentices. Bennett will be recognized in front of his peers at the MAPGA Hall of Fame and Awards banquet to be held on March 9, 2013 at the Gaithersburg Marriott Washingtonian Center in Gaithersburg, Md.
Originally born in Tacoma, Wash., Bennett’s family settled in the Baltimore, Md. area in his early years. He was introduced to golf at the age of 10 by his maternal grandmother who was an avid golfer and member at Maryland Golf & Country Club. By the age of 15, Bennett was hooked on golf and continued with the sport through college. As an amateur, he was the 1991 Baltimore County High School champion; received All-Conference and All-Region honors at Essex Community College in 1992 and 1993; and qualified for the 1992 & 1993 Division II Junior College National Championship. These accolades earned Bennett a golf scholarship to the University of Tennessee at Martin.
Bennett became a golf professional in 1997 and started his career at Grand Cypress Resort in Orlando, Fla. After five seasons there, he accepted an assistant professional position at Orange Tree Golf Club, also in Orlando, and worked four seasons before moving to Maryland. While working at the Elkridge Club (Baltimore, Md.) in 2008, he earned his PGA membership and then accepted his current position with Green Spring Valley in 2011.
A born leader, Bennett served as Vice President of the MAPGA Assistant Professional Association (APA) in 2008 and was elected President of the APA in 2009. He is also the A-8 (Assistant’s) Director on the MAPGA Board of Directors. His goal is to make sure that every incoming apprentice or PGA Professional does not feel “lost” in the system. He says, “If you don’t like the way things are being run, get involved so you can directly influence the decisions that are being made.” Bennett and other leaders in the APA have done great work in creating education seminars for assistants on topics like clubfitting, résumé and cover letter writing, and networking for those in each level of the PGA’s Professional Golf Management Program. In 2010, Bennett was the recipient of the MAPGA Assistant Professional of the Year award.
In 2012, Bennett was one of 18 MAPGA Professionals who played a 100-hole golf marathon to raise money for local charities. He selected Autism Speaks as his personal charity which hits very close to home since his son, Hunter, lives with the challenges of Autism. When Baltimore held their “2012 Walk Now for Autism Speaks” event, he was recognized on stage in front of an estimated 6,000 participants for his efforts in raising over $3,700.
About the Middle Atlantic Section of the PGA of America
The Middle Atlantic Section of the PGA (MAPGA), located in Stafford, Virginia, is one of 41 Sections of The Professional Golfers’ Association of America (PGA), headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. As a part of The PGA since 1925, the MAPGA consists of over 1,100 members and apprentices in Maryland, Virginia, the District of Columbia and small portions of Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Together, the MAPGA golf professionals, volunteers and staff support the mission of The PGA to promote enjoyment and involvement in the game of golf and to contribute to the game’s growth by providing services to PGA Professionals and the golf industry.
Contact:
