PGA of BC

E-NEWS

JANUARY 4, 2024

Six years after engineering its award-winning launch monitor technology into a best-selling simulation-focused model called “GCHawk”, Foresight Sports, the leading developer of professional-grade launch monitors and a Vista Outdoor Inc. (NYSE: VSTO) brand, has announced the 2024 release of its much-anticipated evolution, the Foresight Falcon. Built on the same photometric technology found in the GCHawk, the Falcon’s design includes a full complement of cutting-edge simulation capabilities in a more powerful form factor roughly half the size of its predecessor.

According to Foresight Sports Co-President, Jon Watters, the Falcon is a direct response to the ever-growing simulation technologies that have appeared in the wake of the GCHawk.

“Our GCHawk had the same game-changing effect on the simulation golf market in 2018 that our GC2 had on the broader launch monitor market in 2010,” Watters said. “In both cases, we were able to open golfers’ eyes with technologies that were incredibly accurate, robust, and durable. The Falcon packs everything you expect from a Foresight product into a smaller, lighter model that beats every competitive newcomer feature by feature. In the simulation space, the GCHawk was the category creator. The Foresight Falcon will be the category expander for those looking for a simulator expression that fits their space, use case, and budget.”

Built on a reinforced aluminum framework that’s 10 pounds lighter and 45 inches shorter than the GCHawk, the Falcon’s quadrascopic camera technology delivers an impressive list of features that includes a hitting zone nearly twice the size of other ceiling mounted launch monitors, rubberized impact protection, three connection options (Ethernet, USB-C, Wifi), and an integrated power supply. Standing behind its unmatched product build quality and industrial design, Foresight Sports has equipped the Falcon with a two-year warranty – longer than that of competing products.

But perhaps the Falcon’s most outstanding capability is also the one you most expect.

“The Falcon delivers more than a dozen points of ball and club performance data with each shot,” said Foresight Sports’ Chief Technology Officer, Padu Merlotti. “That’s nearly twice the data of any other overhead-mounted launch monitor in the market with the exception of the GCHawk.”

The Foresight Falcon will be offered at a base price of $20,299 Canadian, including our FSX software, and Club Data. It is available for purchase on January 3, 2024.

Press contact:

Steve McLeod

Marketing Manager | Foresight Sports Canada

steve@foresightsports.ca

The PGA of BC is thrilled to share that Keri Moffat (Mayfair Lakes Golf & Country Club), Brian McDonald (Fairview Mountain Golf Club) and Kevin Stinson (Cheam Mountain Golf Course) have been named as recipients of PGA of Canada National Awards.

Keri is recognized as the 2023 Ben Kern Coach of the Year. She has been a provincial coach with BC Golf, coach with the University of British Columbia, sat on the Golf Canada Future Links Junior Golf Board, attended numerous conferences, facilitated numerous coaching sessions, and has won many Team Championships with UBC, including five NAIA titles. A leader in every sense of the word, after 13 years of coaching the UBC Women's Golf Team, there has been an increasing number of graduating athletes following in Keri’s footsteps, noticing her passion, and joining the association, knowing there is a place for them in the PGA of Canada. Keri has succeeded in creating a welcoming environment for young women to fall in love with golf and continue their participation in the sport throughout their lives.

Brian is recognized as the 2023 Dick Munn Executive Professional of the Year. In addition to overseeing golf operations (Golf Shop, Food and Beverage, and Grounds Department) and mentoring senior staff, Brian takes on duties beyond those expected of GMs. These include project management, interior/exterior design, financial planning, and club advocacy, creating a culture of striving for excellence through teamwork. An active member of the community, Brian also ensures the club is involved in charitable events. Brian works to maintain the club's fiscal viability, a difficult task considering it is one of two 18-hole facilities in a very small community.

Kevin is recognized as the 2023 Mike Weir Male Player of the Year. He claimed the BetRegal PGA Championship of Canada at Bigwin Island in June, shooting 11-under-par across the two-round tournament and winning the Championship on his second playoff hole. Kevin also finished as runner-up in the season-long 2023 PGA of BC Kal Tire Order of Merit, putting forth several impressive finishes at PGA of BC Championships.

Congratulations to these three inspiring PGA of BC professionals! Winners will be celebrated during Canada Night at the PGA Show in Orlando on January 24. Registration for the event can be found here.

Information via the PGA of Canada

Click here to apply

Together with Golf Canada, the PGA of Canada is pleased to announce the continuation of the Women in Coaching program and formally open applications for the 2024 cohort.

Now entering its fourth year, the Women in Coaching program improves the balance of female high-performance coaches to better reflect the Canadian golfing community. To date, the program has supported 25 coaches and aims to increase the number of trained female high-performance coaches through intentional delivery of professional development opportunities.

The year-long program is focused on four main areas: virtual learning sessions, individualized learning plans with monthly check-ins led by coach developer Beth Barz, coach shadowing opportunities, and an in-person technical development session.

The program is financially supported through the Jocelyn Bourassa Legacy Fund (JBLF), a fund created to provide critical educational opportunities for women who are developing their careers as professional coaches, thereby helping to increase the number of Canadian women who are prominent leaders and role models for golf in our country.

The Women in Coaching program is led by Emily Phoenix (Golf Canada’s Manager of High-Performance Sport), Jennifer Greggain (Associate Coach, Team Canada – Women), Salimah Mussani (Team Canada Stollery Family Women’s Head Coach), and Beth Barz (Master Coach Developer).

The 2024 cohort will kick off with an in-person session February 24-27 in Phoenix, Ariz., where participants will shadow national team coaches during a training camp and engage in two days of technical skill development education.

Coaches interested in the Women in Coaching program can click here to apply and are encouraged to reach out to Emily Phoenix (ephoenix@golfcanada.ca) with any questions.

Applications close on Sunday, January 7 at 11:00 p.m. ET.

The G&G Winter Series at Haus of Golf returns for its third event of the season, set to take place January 15-26. Competitors will play virtually at 2022 Canadian Open host St. George's Golf & Country Club.

Tournament play will follow the Next Golf Tour format, where players can play at their convenience throughout the timeframe.

The last event, played at Hero World Challenge host Albany in the Bahamas, saw Cory Renfrew, Shingo Akizuki and Will Byrne share the victory at 2-under-par.

For more information, please contact Haus of Golf General Manager Jared Siminoff at jared@hausofgolf.ca.

PGA of BC partner INDOCHINO is proud to offer a January partner discount of 20% off any purchase to Association members.

This offer is valid from January 5-15, visit indochino.com to shop online or schedule your showroom appointment today. To access the discount code, please visit the Member Benefits & Corporate Discounts page on our website (log-in required).

Did you know the 2024 KPMG Women's PGA Championship is coming to Washington's Sahalee Country Club on June 20-23, 2024?

The PGA of BC has partnered with the KPMG Women's PGA Championship to offer PGA of BC members the exclusive opportunity to serve as marshals on Hole 13 throughout the Championship.

Registration for KPMG Women’s PGA Championship volunteers opened September 12, 2023 and will run until 2 weeks prior to the Championship. 

HOW TO REGISTER: 

· Visit the official Volunteer Portal

· Click ‘Register Here’ on the right-hand side of the page 

· Select ‘Adult Volunteer’ as your volunteer type

· Create a username and password and fill out all necessary contact information

· When prompted to select a Committee Choice, select "Marshal Hole 13 - PGA of British Columbia" from the drop down box, enter the security code PGABC2024, and complete the entire registration process

* Using this code ensures that all members of your club will be assigned to the correct hole.

For more information, 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.

Callum Ashby becomes Head Professional at Highland Pacific Golf

Rodrigo Pena Collado has left Point Grey Golf & Country Club and transfers to the Alberta Zone

Mason Lafrance becomes Head Professional at Langara Golf Course

Zachary Anderson's application to the PGA of Canada has been approved and he becomes an Apprentice Professional at Nanaimo Golf Club

Alexander Webber's application to the PGA of Canada has been approved and he becomes an Apprentice Professional at Musqueam Golf & Learning Academy

Sanggyun Lee's application to the PGA of Canada has been approved and he becomes an Apprentice Professional at Tour Development Academy

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

Associate/Assistant Golf Professional - Ledgeview Golf Club

Apprentice/Assistant Golf Professional - The Vancouver Golf Club

Assistant/Associate Golf Professional - Cordova Bay Golf Course

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.

January 18, 10:00am

Virtual Education Series presented by Foresight Sports Canada:

Allan Kehler - "Find Your Voice, Find Your Power: Prioritizing mental health, balance and resilience"

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"

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

River Rock Casino Resort, Richmond, BC

National Golf Course Owners' Association (NGCOA) Spring Conference

February 21

Virtual Education Series presented by Foresight Sports Canada:

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

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"

CONTACT THE PGA OF BC OFFICE TEAM