Stafford, VA – Don Frost, the PGA General Manager at Clustered Spires Golf Club (Frederick, Maryland), is the recipient of the Middle Atlantic PGA’s 2014 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. Frost will be honored in front of his family, friends, and peers at the annual MAPGA Hall of Fame and Awards banquet on Saturday March 14, 2015 at the Baltimore Marriott Inner Harbor in Baltimore, Maryland
Donald (Don) J. Frost has a deep appreciation for education, a value that Horton Smith also held close to his heart. Don has served on the Education Committee for the MAPGA as well as on the Instructors panel for the MAPGA, chairing the wildly successful MAPGA Teaching Summit in 2014. Don has been influenced and helped by so many other PGA Professionals that he feels a strong desire to give back to others, just as others have given to him.
A native of Maryland, Don was the only son of three siblings and much of his early childhood was spent playing various sports. His first exposure to golf was at the age of five when his father took him for his first golf lesson with PGA Professional and 2008 MAPGA Bill Strausbaugh Award winner Quin Sullivan. By the age of 13, Don was hooked and so began his life in golf.
Don entered Frederick Community College and became a star on the golf team; playing in two Junior College National Championships. He then transferred to the University of North Carolina-Wilmington where he played on the Division I golf team for two seasons. Don returned to Maryland and attended the University of Maryland where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Management.
In 1989, Don made the decision to play golf professionally. He joined the Space Coast Mini-Tour in Florida and played that circuit for the next three years. Through his Florida connections, Don secured his first Assistant Professional position at Aberdeen Country Club in Boynton Beach, Florida in 1992. Being in South Florida, Don was introduced to Hall of Fame golf instructor Bob Toski and Golf Digest’s Top 50 Instructor Martin Hall. After taking lessons from both Toski and Hall, Don discovered his true passion for teaching the game. Bob Toski has been Don’s mentor for 24 years and has invited Don to instruct with him for top tour players like LPGA player Birdie Kim and PGA Tour Players Tom Putzer, Tom Shaw and Mike Spoza to name a few. Following Aberdeen, Don spent two seasons at Blowing Rock Country Club in North Carolina and one season at the Country Club of Florida in Boynton Beach before returning home to Maryland. Clustered Spires Golf Club in (Don’s hometown of Frederick) hired him to be their Head Golf Professional in March of 1996.
In 2014, Don developed three teaching seminars that included speakers such as Masters, U.S. Open and Walker Cup contestant Doug Ballenger, Top 50 Teacher Rob Akins, Tony Morgan of KVest and other top golf professionals of the MAPGA. Each seminar was very well attended. The Nike Teaching Summit led the way with over 170 PGA Professionals attending this seminar hosted at Congressional Country Club. The presenters were a who’s who list of Hall of Fame Instructors; Bob Toski, Chuck Cook and Doctor Bob Rotella. Don is currently working to earn selection from the speakers program and selection as an adjunct instructor for The PGA of America.
Within his community, Don has volunteered his time to many local organizations to promote golf and build the image of The PGA of America. He is a member of the Chamber of Commerce, representing his course and The PGA at all meetings and functions. Don is a frequent speaker at civic clubs (Rotary & Lions) reinforcing the values and integrity of the PGA. Don is the co-chair of an annual golf charity tournament, The Patty Pollatos Fund, hosted at Clustered Spires GC. Over the last ten years, the Tournament has raised in excess of $1.1 million for the fund that supports multiple local charities.
Along with his commitment to education, Don has devoted much of his time to teaching and growing the game of golf. In 2013, Don was named the MAPGA Teacher of the Year for his outstanding achievements with junior and senior programs. Teaming up with the Frederick County School system, Don hosts the Frederick County High School District Championship at Clustered Spires and has created a summer program specifically for high school-aged girls who want to learn golf. This program alone has increased girls participation in Frederick County by 25%. Furthermore, Don and his team of instructors have developed a program specifically for Seniors that targets flexibility and vision improvement. Working with a local physical therapist and optometrist, Don and his team have received much praise from the Senior students for improving their quality of life.
In 2014, Don became acquainted with The Boys & Girls Club of America. In large part to his tireless efforts, the Frederick Maryland Chapter was awarded a grant by The PGA of America in 2014 to fund the introduction and instruction of golf to those children. Don instructed and inspired over 100 new juniors to the game of golf. Instead of having all of the instruction at the children’s school, Don made sure that they came out to Clustered Spires Golf Course for some on course experience.
Through his leadership and expertise, Don has had four of his assistant golf professionals advance to Head Professional positions, another assistant moved to become a golf club representative and 12 former junior students become PGA Members.
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:
Eric Southard
esouthard@pgahq.com
(540) 720-7420 ext. 101
