Former Executive Director of Golf Ontario, Warren ‘Skip’ Williams, passed away peacefully on May 6, 2019 at 82 years of age. Skip was born in Hamilton, Ontario, and after moving to Victoria B.C at a young age, he quickly became a natural athlete. He excelled at swimming and hockey, but it was golf where he really shone. He eventually made his way back to Ontario, where he worked at numerous well known golf courses in various capacities, eventually becoming head pro. He also won a handful of professional tournaments along with the long drive championship in 1972.
Warren was always very supportive of growing programs for junior golfers. Many of the golfers who are now in Golf Ontario’s Hall of Fame were junior golfers during Warren’s time, and many honed their skills at his junior camps. He devoted his time to developing the junior golfer’s skills, and had a vision for what they could become.
Warren’s love for golf also led him to be the Executive Director of the Ontario Golf Course rating system designed by the USGA. He was also part of the group that started the IAGA. “Skip played a key role in the development of the International Association of Golf Administrators,” said Dave Mills, former Executive Director at Golf Ontario. “He was a golfer, a character and a friend to golf throughout Ontario, Canada and North America. He will be fondly remembered by many golfers and golf clubs.”
After leaving the OGA, he and his wife Joanne spent the winter months in Lakeland, Florida where he continued to hone his golf skills on a daily basis. He was a very lucky man to be able to play the sport he loved so much, and the sport that loved him back.
Warren’s impact on the game of golf is undeniable, and his life will be remembered by it for years to come. He will be missed dearly by his family, friends, and all of the Golf Ontario family.
Ryan MacKenzie
rmackenzie@gao.ca
Cookstown Central Celebrates Adopt a School Week
Peter MacKellar
On April 25th, Innisfil Creek Golf Club and Golf Ontario visited Cookstown Central Public School to teach their students about golf. In celebration of the ‘Adopt a School’ program, every time this year Innisfil Creek brings in a pro alongside Golf Ontario to get the youth in their area more comfortable with the sport.The day consists of teaching the students proper golf stance, how to putt, chip, drive, and even what to do when someone yells ‘fore’.
“What do you do when you hear someone yelling that there’s a golf ball coming at you?” asked one of the instructors.
“Try and catch it?” responded one of the students. It was safe to say that this was quickly corrected.
With five different classes coming in at different time slots, the day was packed with fun. Skills were quickly developed and excitement grew more and more with every class.
“It’s such a treat to be around the children, and seeing them have a good time,” said Nick Torkos, owner of Innisfil Creek Golf Club. “It’s a beautiful thing to see such a great response.”
The ‘Adopt a School’ program was made to partner golf clubs with schools, so that they can introduce the sport to younger demographics and build interest from a young age. Clubs pay a $500 fee and Golf Ontario matches the club with a nearby school. Golf Ontario and the partnered club then host events on a yearly basis to introduce and promote the sport to the students. Not to mention, the school gets to keep a set of practice clubs and balls to use during recess.
“We’ve been a part of this initiative for five years, and when we first heard about the program, we were really excited,” said Torkos. “We felt that the golf industry had not done enough to promote golf at these younger levels.” Torkos explained that most camps at golf courses don’t start until the ages of eleven, so it’s hard to get the younger ages invested in the sport.
Children develop interests much earlier than the age of eleven, so when they become old enough to join the camps, they have already developed other hobbies that take up their time. Therefore, visiting them at an earlier age at their schools will develop an interest at an earlier age, and promote the sport for years to come.
The program relies on courses like Innisfil Creek to deliver the program. Innisfil has developed deep connections with their sponsored schools, visiting them twice a year and providing them opportunities throughout the summer, which is what the program is all about.
Jasmine Ly from Kingsville Golf wins the Investors Group Ontario Junior Girls’ Championship
Peter MacKellar
Jasmine Ly started out the front nine -1 with an eagle and a bogey and finished off the back nine +1 with two bogeys and a birdie in order to finish her round with a 72 “I worked really hard this entire year to get these last rounds, the harder ones” – Jasmine Ly. She went 72-70-74-72 to win the championship with a total of 288.
At the awards ceremony, Jasmine thanked the coaches, parents, competitors, and course volunteers for an amazing week. She talked about how she was grateful for her win, and that staying positive and grateful was one of the ways she was able to win the championship, “I try to stay grateful for everything, and there are going to be negative things that go on during a golf round, but I remember all the things that I’m grateful for” – Jasmine Ly
In second place was Taylor Kehoe of West Haven Golf and Country club who also shot a 72 today, and went 70-73-76-72. Sarah Beqaj of Toronto Golf Club went 72-67-78-76 for third.
The top three (3) 2018 Ontario Junior Girls’ Championship finishers comprise the Ontario Junior Girls’ Team. The team will represent Ontario at the Canadian Junior Girls’ Championship. The team will be made up of Jasmine Ly, Sarah Beqaj, and Hailey McLaughlin.
The host club, Maple City Golf and Country Club had 4 Junior Girls who participated in the event, Brooke MacKinnon who placed 9th, Tess Scaman, Maddux Swayze, and Karolyn Rombouts.
Golf Ontario would like to thank the competitors, their families, and everyone who attended and supported this championship. We would also like to thank our title sponsor of this event Investors Group, as well as the Maple City Golf and Country Club for their excellent course and hospitality in hosting this event.
About the Investors Group Junior Girls’ Championship
The Investors Group Ontario Junior Girls’ Championship is contested annually and features Ontario’s best amateur female golfers age 18 and under. Established in 1927, The event has a wealth of notable past champions including World Golf Hall of Fame member Marlene Streit, Sandra Post, Sue Hilton, Alena Sharp, Jennifer Kirby and Brooke Henderson.
Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and Like us on Facebook, @TheGolfOntario for updates of the Investors Group Ontario Junior (U19) Girls’ Championship.
Amber Morley
Marketing and Communications
Amorley@gao.ca
Former LPGA Tour Player Being Inducted Into Hometown Hall Of Fame
Peter MacKellar
Former LPGA Tour Player Stephanie Sherlock was inducted into the Barrie Sports Hall of Fame on Wednesday night.
The central responsibility of the Board is to provide good governance, stewardship and related policies for the Association. It oversees management of the business and affairs of the Association, taking into account the interests of the various stakeholders (including various government ministries, golf associations, sponsors, employees, etc.) It appoints and supervises the Executive Director to run the day-to-day operations of the Association.
In fulfilling their role, board members are legally obliged to:
Act honestly and in good faith with a view to the best interests of the Association, and
Exercise care, diligence and skill that a reasonably prudent person would exercise in comparable circumstances.
The board carries out its responsibilities directly and through committees in performing the following duties.
Compliance with the provisions of the Association’s By-Law
Establishing the criteria for selection of Directors
Establishing committees, setting their mandates, and selecting members
Approving recommendations for inductions into the Hall of Fame
Establishing Association governance by-laws, policies and practices and annually review these with a view to incorporating improvements
Maintaining an orientation program for new Directors and continuing education program for all Directors
Assessing the effectiveness of the Board as a whole, the president, committees, and committee chairs
Delegating duties and responsibilities to the Executive Director
Meeting regularly to ensure Board responsibilities are executed in a timely manner
Conducting in-camera sessions as necessary
Ensuring the Board functions independently of Management and remains completely objective with respect to its governance and oversight responsibilities
Executive Management and Human Resources
Strategic Planning
Financial stewardship and systems integrity
Hiring, communicating with and setting goals for and evaluating the ED
Performance monitoring
Risk Management and critical events
Stakeholder relations and communications
Golf Barrie Photo Gallery
Peter MacKellar
Photos from various events that Golf Barrie has attended.
Reminder to register for the 15th Annual General Meeting
Peter MacKellar
The 15th Annual General Meeting of the Members and Awards/Recognition Ceremony Saturday January 23rd, 2016 at Weston Golf & Country Club. Please click here for more information and to register.
2015 vTOUR – Recap and Grand Prize Winner
Peter MacKellar
In total, the Golf Association of Ontario crowned 12 Leaderboard Champions (six men and six women) during the 2015 season. In addition, the GAO selected over 125 prize winners who received great items from TayorMade, Turkish Airlines, Muscle Milk, and TED Books. The GAO is truly thankful to all of the sponsors for their support of the vTOUR.
As the 2015 edition of the GAO vTOUR closed out, the GAO is very happy to announce that the Grand Prize winner of a trip for two to participate in the GAO 2Ball Invitational this December in St Kitts, courtesy of the St Kitts Tourism Authority, is Nancy Vince from the Ladies Golf Club of Toronto.
Congratulations to Nancy, the GAO looks forward to hosting you and your guest in St Kitts. There are still a few places available to join the 2Ball Invitational and more information can be found here.
GAO Skills Combines – register now
Peter MacKellar
The GAO Skills Combines are of a series of assessments in Full Swing, Short Game, Putting and Physical Fitness Screening and that are conducted by PGA of Canada Regional and Provincial Coaches. Each participant that attends the skills combine gets a complete report of their test results as well as a chart that shows how their results compares to other athletes in Ontario of the same age & gender.
