PGA of BC

E-NEWS

JANUARY 31, 2024

Accent Inns is a family-owned, BC hotel chain with heart! There are Accent Inns located in Victoria, Burnaby, Kelowna, Kamloops and in Richmond at the Vancouver Airport. You will feel instantly at home at Accent Inns with their family-vibe plus they don’t take themselves too seriously, you will appreciate their humour sprinkled throughout your experience. Who couldn’t use a laugh right now?!

Stay at Accent Inns when traveling to PGA of BC championships and events, as well as for business and personal accommodations. Members are eligible for discounted stays for any purpose; visit the Member Benefits & Corporate Discounts page for full details (log-in required).

Accent Inns is a Bronze-level Preferred Partner of the Association. Click here to learn more or reserve a room today!

The PGA of BC is pleased to present the results of the Association’s 2024 Board of Directors election.

Listed alphabetically, the following candidates were the five members receiving the most votes. Voting took place January 24-30.

The following members were elected to two-year, non-renewable terms:

• Callum Ashby, Head Professional, Highland Pacific Golf
• Courtney Campbell-Leveck, Head Professional, Gleneagles Golf Course
• Drew Scollon, Class "A" Professional, Point Grey Golf & Country Club
• Ryan Tofani, Head Professional, Chilliwack Golf Club

The following member was elected to a one-year, non-renewable term:

• Steve Liddicoat, Head Professional, Northview Golf & Country Club

Congratulations to each of the Directors-Elect for being named to the Board by their peers. Membership of the 2024 Board of Directors will become official and the Directors-Elect will be sworn in during the PGA of BC Annual General Meeting taking place on Monday, February 5 at 4:15pm PT at the River Rock Casino Resort.

The PGA of BC would like to thank outgoing directors Lindsay Bernakevitch (Victoria Golf Club), Padraic O'Rourke (Marine Drive Golf Club), and Bruce Vermee (Harvest Golf Club) for their service and dedication to the PGA throughout the duration of their terms on the Board.

Bernakevitch, O'Rourke and Vermee will serve out the remainder of their terms on the Board of Directors until next week's AGM.

Thank you to all members who put their names forward as candidates in this election and to all Professionals who cast ballots to help determine their Association's elected leaders. Congratulations once more to the successful candidates. 

We are excited to announce a new collaboration with Golf Supply House as a Preferred Partner of the Association. Golf Supply House will support the Association’s many programs throughout the 2024 season.

To learn more about Golf Supply House and the products they carry, please visit their website HERE , or contact their BC Territory Representative, Kevin Kyle, at kevin@gshcanada.com. Members are encouraged to visit with Golf Supply House at next week’s Education Seminar.

The Association is thrilled to announce Club Prophet as the supporting sponsor of next week's Social Hour, taking place Monday, February 5 at 4:00pm at the River Rock Casino Resort theatre foyer after the Education Seminar for attendees.

Club Prophet strives to help golf course operators provide an amazing experience to golfers through the use of technology. They offer services related to Point of Sale, Tee Sheets, Member Management and much more.

Members are encouraged to visit with Club Prophet National Sales Director, Torrey Schultz, during the Social Hour. Schultz can be reached at torrey@clubprophet.com for more information.

The PGA of BC and Groundwork Athletics are pleased to provide members with fitness and nutrition benefits once again in 2024.

Included in your Member Benefits package, Groundwork Athletics continues to offer to all PGA of BC Professionals one free personal training session, one free in-person or virtual nutrition assessment with 50% off your first month, as well as meal ideas and stretching routines upon request. New this year, our partner will also offer to all members one complimentary fitness consultation and assessment, and one complimentary group fitness class.

For more information, check out the Member Benefits & Corporate Discounts page (log-in required), or contact Groundwork Manager and Personal Trainer, Donny MacQuarrie, at donny@groundworkathletics.ca.

Did you know the PGA of BC runs a Career Advisory Program to offer new Apprentice Professionals of the PGA of Canada in British Columbia the opportunity to connect with an established Class “A” member of the PGA of BC, to provide as-needed mentorship as they become accustomed to their new career path?

Many long-tenured PGA of BC members with a variety of skill sets, experience, education and leadership abilities are involved in the mentoring of new Apprentices and helping them to succeed as PGA of Canada Professionals. Dependent upon each Apprentice's career aspirations and location, they will be matched with a Class "A" Professional best-suited to provide insights relevant to the Apprentice's emerging career path. 

The CAP is available to all members. Apprentice Professionals seeking a mentor through the program, as well as Class "A" members interested in serving as a mentor, may contact Business Development Manager Dan Czerwenka at dan@pgabc.org for more information.

There will be a New Member Orientation taking place next Tuesday, February 6 at 4:15pm following the Education Seminar at the River Rock Casino Resort theatre. No registration is necessary, all professionals are welcome. For more information on the New Member Orientation, please contact Executive Director Mark Strong at mark@pgabc.org.

BC university and college golf teams will return to competition soon. We look forward to continuing our updates upon the return of competitive play.

For more information on BC's collegiate golf programs, including their 2023-24 results and schedule, please visit the links below:

UBC Men's | UBC Women's

SFU Men's | SFU Women's

UVic Men's | Uvic Women's

UBCO Men's | UBCO Women's

UFV Men's | UFV Women's

If you would like to place an advertisement in the Classifieds section, please contact Marketing & Communications Manager Graham Abraham at graham@pgabc.org to place a listing.

MEMBERS ON THE MOVE

Dylan Johnstone has transferred from the Alberta Zone and joins Golf Town (Victoria) as an Apprentice Professional



Adam Van De Walle has left Kamloops Golf & Country Club and join Cranbrook Golf Club as an Apprentice Professional

Myles Johnson has left Hillview Golf Course

Austin Bosquet has left Shuswap National and joins The Rise as an Apprentice Professional

Shawn Keough has left Big Sky Golf & Country Club

Jeff Wills has left Hirsch Creek Golf & Winter Club and joins The Redwoods Golf Course as Executive Professional

Scott Cameron becomes Head Professional at The Redwoods Golf Course

Dennis Bradley has left Copper Point Golf Club and transfers to the Alberta Zone

Cory Renfrew has left Modern Golf (Vancouver) and joins Pacifc Golf Academy (Richmond) as a Class "A" Professional 

For all Members on the Move information, please click HERE.

Head Golf Professional - Big Sky Golf Club

Assistant Golf Professional - Richmond Country Club

Associate/Assistant Golf Professional - Fairview Mountain Golf Club

Lead Coach - First Tee - British Columbia

For any job postings that have been approved and published on the PGA of BC website, the Association will share relevant social media posts to assist your facility in the search for a candidate. We will share one post/story per job posting. Please ensure that you tag the PGA of BC's social media account in any post or story relevant to the posting. To ensure that we share the post/story in a timely matter, please also reach out to Communications & Marketing Manager Graham Abraham at graham@pgabc.org to notify us of the post.

For all job opportunities listed on the PGA of BC website, please click HERE (Log-in required).

For all job opportunities listed on the PGA of Canada website, please click HERE.

February 5 & 6

River Rock Casino Resort, Richmond, BC

Education Seminar

February 6, 4:15pm (Following the Education Seminar)

Ace Performance Centre, Richmond, BC

Interactive Education Series presented by Foresight Sports Canada:

Ralph Bauer - "Reading Greens with Tour Read Golf"

Registration Capacity Reached

February 7, 9:30am - 3:00pm

Mayfair Lakes Golf & Country Club, Richmond, BC

National Golf Course Owners' Association (NGCOA) Spring Conference

Register Here

February 21

Virtual Education Series presented by Foresight Sports Canada:

Dottie Pepper - "My experiences as a Tour Player, On-Course Analyst, and Golf Legend"

Register Here

February 26

Elite Golf, Richmond, BC

Interactive Education Series presented by Foresight Sports Canada:

Mike Aizawa - "How muscle activation and other exercises can influence the golf swing"

March 12

Virtual Education Series presented by Foresight Sports Canada:

Michael Caan - "Growing your Social Media Presence from the Ground Up"

Register Here

CONTACT THE PGA OF BC OFFICE TEAM