BARRIE — The Golf Association of Ontario (GAO) and its community partners officially launched the Golf Barrie Community Golf initiative on Jan. 20. The day featured a pair of events, beginning with a stakeholders meeting followed by the official launch.

Barrie was selected as the first Golf Community by the GAO because of its diverse number of private and public course, strong community ties, festivals and events, and its engaged golf industry.

The community golf project aims to get individuals of all ages and backgrounds playing golf and creates a bridge between courses, community partners and golfers. The goal is to bring more people to the game and keep them playing for life. The movement also addresses the national need to develop all stages of the Long Term Athlete Development model.

Wednesday’s event began with a stakeholders meeting at Tangle Creek Golf & Country Club, where the golf club owners finalized the foundation for 2016 activities. The event was well received with members from 23 area courses in attendance.

The event then shifted to the Kenzington Burger Bar where the initiative was officially presented to the public. On hand was City of Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman who talked about the benefits of golf and voiced his support for the project and stated that his office will be available to help make the project a success.

GAO Executive Director Mike Kelly laid out the GAO’s goals for the project and stressed that the association is here for the courses to help them execute it to its maximum potential. “This is a special project that is being done for the first time. Barrie as a community should feel extremely proud that they are pioneering such an initiative.”

GAO Director of Marketing and Communications Kyle McFarlane went on to speak about the project itself. “Golf is more than just a game, it builds character, values and life skills while promoting healthy active living. It builds relationships on and off the course and helps to connect family and friends.”

Emphasized at the event was the Try, Learn and Play aspect of the initiative. Golf Barrie will be present at numerous events in Barrie and Simcoe County, beginning in February to introduce people to the sport, with an emphasis on fun. This can be through opportunities such as Golf in Schools, which the local golf industry has already sponsored 24 local schools, festivals and through current programs like She Swings She Scores/ He Swings He Scores, which brings golf into hockey arenas to introduce minor hockey players to the sport.

The Learn aspect is where the clubs will come in and offer their own programming by matching the individual from a Try initiative with a Learn program at a course near them. The aim is to help people take that next step in golf. Finally, the Play aspect is having those people who have now learned to play the game get out to the courses and play.

To help bridge the events and opportunities in Barrie, Golf Barrie will launch a website that will feature a schedule of events that Golf Barrie will have a presence at to Try golf, a list of Learn opportunities at Barrie courses, a course directory and local golf news. However, that is not the only thing that will be set up. Golf Barrie plans to roll out the Commit to Golf Barrie pledge, which golfers will be able to register for, take the pledge as to how many times they hope to play in 2016, and then be entered in draws for prizes for meeting those goals.

An important aspect of the project is its partnership with Georgian College and its Golf Management Program. The college has already committed one of its classes to be trained to help with the Golf In Schools program. This will allow those students to go to schools, with a certified instructor, to deliver programs. A community Golf Coach certification course has also been planned and spots have already been reserved for Georgian students.

“This partnership is extremely important to us,” said McFarlane. “What we have observed in Barrie is that facilities that don’t offer programs for beginners not because they don’t want to but rather because they don’t have someone on staff all season to teach the programs. By training the instructors and having courses in the area share them, more programs at the Learn level can be offered. By having the students take certification programs, more qualified individuals will be available to teach these programs.”

Georgian College also has a capstone project that will develop a consumer behavior profile for Golf Barrie. The group will identify who the golfers are, what they want out of the local industry and any current barriers. This way Golf Barrie will be able to make adjustments for future initiatives.

In 2016, the Golf Barrie initiative hopes to deliver more than 70 golf awareness event days, host a Family Golf Festival, support and promote Learn programs at golf courses and establish community relations to ensure stability. With these objectives, it is hoped that more than 15,000 people can be exposed to golf.

UXBRIDGE— The Golf Association of Ontario (GAO) is proud to announce its Championship schedule for 2016. Once again, many great courses have provided their grounds to GAO Championships and will host the best players in the province. Here are some of the notes and highlights for the 2016 season.

The championship season officially begins on May 12 with the Men’s Better-Ball at Toronto’s Oakdale Golf & Country Club. The first junior events will be the Investors Group Junior Spring Classic being hosted by Wooden Sticks Golf Club (Boys) in Uxbridge and Grey Silo (Girls) in Waterloo on the Victoria Day weekend (May 21-23).

Returning in 2016 is the George S. Lyon Team Championship at The Club at Bond Head on May 31. The event was not run in 2015 in order to move the event from the fall to the spring. GAO tournament staff are hoping that by playing the tournament in the spring, more teams will compete.

Also earlier this year will be the playing of the Investors Group Women’s Senior and Mid-Amateur Championship. The 2016 event will be held June 7-9 at The Briars Golf Club in Sutton West. The early season move will only last for 2016, before the event returns to its mid-summer spot on the schedule for future years.

The Men’s Match Play Championship has a new home for 2016, after nine years at the Lake Joseph Club. The event will be held at Huntsville’s Grandview Golf Club, June 7-10.

The Bantam tour for U15 aged players, has been redesigned as a Peewee U13 tour for 2016. This change was made to encourage the development of players as they gear up for the GAO’s Peewee Championship, which made its debut last year. The four-event tour should help to strengthen the field for the Peewee Championship when it returns to the Puslinch Lake Golf Course in Cambridge, July 25-26.

2016 also features the Ontario Sumer Games, as the best U17 golfers will compete for the gold medal and Ontario Juvenile Boys’ and Girls’ Championships. This year the Games are being hosted by the City of Mississauga and BraeBen Golf Club will welcome the golfers Aug. 10-12.

The Investors Group Ontario Junior Girls’ Championship will be held July 4-7 at the Loyalist Country Club in Bath. A note with this event is that since play begins on Monday, the practice round will be held Sunday, July 3.

Another event that will see play on a weekend is the Investors Group Senior Men’s Championship. The event (Aug. 4-6) wraps up on a Saturday from The Marshes Golf Club in Ottawa.

Of course all eyes will be on the Investors Group Ontario Amateur and Investors Group Ontario Women’s Amateur, which will both be contested July 12-15. The men will return to the GTA and take to the Thornhill Golf & Country Club for the first time since 1987. Meanwhile, the women will embark on Ambassador Golf Club in Windsor, which will host the event for the first time. With so much history between the two events, it will be interesting to see who hoists the trophies in 2016.

The start of the season is less than four months away. Soon new players will be added to the history books as they are crowned champions in 2016.

For a full list of all GAO tournaments and qualifiers see here.

Tournament Registration for the 2016 GAO season will go live Monday, January 25th at noon. More information on tournament/qualifying sites and dates will be posted on gao.ca before the registration site is accessible, so golfers will have a chance to plan out which qualifiers they wish to participate in. Click here to to see tournament schedule as it goes live soon.

Former GAO President Barb Allan was announced as one of the five 2016 inductees into the Kingston and District Sports Hall of Fame on Jan, 11. Allan will enter the hall as a builder for her work in the sport of golf. Allan and the other inductees will be honoured on May 6 at a ceremony at Lady of Fatima Parish Hall.  The GAO would like to congratulate Allan on this honour.

Excerpt From the Kingston Whig Standard: 

Allan moved to Kingston in 1976 and almost immediately became a member at Garrison Golf and Curling Club. Her nominators described her as passionate and committed to golf.

Allan served as president and as a governor for the Golf Association of Ontario. She also been been active with Golf Canada at the executive level. Locally Allan helped establish the player development program for the Kingston’s district.

In 2014 Allan was recognized by Golf Canada with a distinguished service award for her “significant impact on the game.”

UXBRIDGE — The Golf Association of Ontario (GAO) is pleased to announce the hiring of Andrew Moss to fill the newly created role of High Performance Director. Moss joins the GAO’s Sport Department after High Performance Manager Mary Ann Hayward’s retirement announcement and former Director Mike Kelly’s move to the role of Executive Director.

“I am thrilled to be joining the GAO at this important time for golf,” said Moss. “With the upcoming Olympic Games, and the great pool of talent we have in Ontario, there is a fantastic opportunity to grow the participation in our sport, and see more and more golfers come through our clubs, and through our high performance pathways.”

Moss brings 25 years of experience to the GAO as a coach, provincial and national sport administrator, consultant and most recently, Lead of High Performance Athlete Development at the Canadian Sport Institute Ontario (CSIO). At the CSIO, Moss was responsible for overseeing a portfolio of National and Provincial high performance programs with some of Canada’s top Olympic sports, such as Rowing, Athletics, Swimming, Cycling, and Figure Skating.

Having started out as a swimmer, golfer and sailor in Kingston, Moss pursued a coaching passion over a 15-year career. Following retirement from coaching, he moved to sport administration as Program Director at Swim BC, and Director of Domestic Operations with Swimming Canada. In both roles, Andrew oversaw the development and implementation of athlete, coaching, and club development programs, along with implementation of online performance tracking systems.

“We received an incredible amount of interest for this new position and following a very thorough process, we are thrilled to welcome Andrew to our team,” said Kelly. “His background in sport, passion for golf and experience at the renowned Canadian Sport Institute Ontario will be a massive benefit to Ontario athletes, PGA of Canada coaches and clubs.”

“I appreciate the confidence Mike Kelly has shown in me, and I am confident that the unique experience I bring will help build on the great work done by Mary Ann Hayward and the GAO team over the past six and a half years,” added Moss. “I’m excited to help shape a great future for our high performance programs, and the other exciting initiatives underway at the GAO, Golf Canada and the Government of Ontario.”

Moss will begin the new role February 1, 2016.

The GAO’s Team Ontario is taking part in their first training camp of 2016 in Coral Springs, Florida. The team arrived on Saturday and will be there for five days. The first and last day they will train at Heron Bay GC and the middle three days will be at TPC at Eagle Trace.

The team will train for half the day and play 18 holes each day as well. Both physical training and technical training are emphasized at the camp.

The team had a cool surprise yesterday when they ran into LPGA pro Lexi Thompson – as she was on the course trying out a few new drivers. Each group got to sit and chat with her and she hit a few shots for each group. 

This was the second year the team got to meet Thompson as she was hanging out at Eagle Trace last year and played a few holes with each group. It was an unexpected but great surprise for the team.

Below: Team Ontario members Isabella Portokalis, Alyssa DiMarcantoinio, Sam Meek and Ty Celone pose with Thompson.

GUELPH— The Golf Association of Ontario (GAO) was saddened to learn of the passing of 2014 GAO Scholarship recipient Grace Glofcheskie who was struck by a car on Dec. 13 in Guelph. Glofcheskie, a former member of the Guelph Gryphons golf team, and part-time assistant coach, was just 24-years-old.

According to the police report, Glofcheskie was walking home on Woolwich Street, when she was hit by a stolen car. Glofcheskie was transported to the Guelph General Hospital, but sadly succumbed to her injuries. The driver of the vehicle originally fled the scene on foot, but was arrested on Dec. 15 and faces numerous charges.

Glofcheskie recently graduated with her Master of Science degree and had been offered a golf biomechanics research position at the prestigious IMG Academy in Florida to continue the work that she pioneered at the University of Guelph.

Originally from Arnprior, Glofcheskie played five seasons on the golf team (2010-14) with her best season coming in 2013 where she notched five top-10 finishes.

The GAO sends its deepest sympathies to Glofcheskie’s family and friends during this difficult time.

UXBRIDGE— It was a week to remember, Dec. 5-12, for all of the participants of the Golf Association of Ontario’s (GAO) Inaugural 2-Ball Invitational in St. Kitts and Nevis. The Caribbean island hosted a group of 20 golfers from Ontario, who not only played in a two-day tournament, but also got to experience everything that the island has to offer, thanks to the St. Kitts Tourism Authority, a partner of the GAO.

“It is so important to have partnerships, like the one with the GAO, because golf is one of our niche markets,” said Racquel Brown, C.E.O. of the St. Kitts Tourism Authority. “We want to promote golf, but also increase our visitor arrivals. We are hoping to see this partnership grow from year-to-year.”

After arriving at the Marriott Resort, the trip began with rounds of golf at the Royal St. Kitts Golf Club, host site of the St. Kitts 2-Ball Invitational. The 18-hole, par 71 course had many interesting features for the golfers to experience including fantastic views and holes that run along side the Atlantic Ocean and face the Caribbean Sea. Originally built in 1976, it was redesigned to highlight these features a decade ago by renowned designer Thomas McBroom. The course, just a short cart ride from the Marriott, seemed to be a big hit with the golfers.

“The course is absolutely beautiful! It is so picturesque, the weather is awesome and it is just a lot of fun to play, we are having a great time out here,” said Lindsay Knowlton, one of the golfers on the trip. “My favorite part was the third hole, hitting out towards the Caribbean Sea was so beautiful. The scenery is great and the course is in amazing condition. Even though it is Bermuda grass you can still get some pretty good lies.”

After experiencing the Royal St. Kitts, the group got the chance to see the country’s second course at the Four Seasons on the island of Nevis. A newer course that opened in 1991, the Four Seasons Golf Course featured even more outstanding views. On the front nine golfers climb the mountain towards Nevis peek and then descended on the back to wonderful ocean views.

“It is extremely important for us to have a good relationship with golfers. We realize that golfers not only look for a facility with a course but also a spectacular course,” said Mac Kee France, Director of Recreation at the Four Seasons Nevis. “We make sure that our course is ready to accommodate even the most discerning golfer.”

Those goals seemed to have been met after speaking with some of the participants. “This course is beautiful! There’s great scenery, it is in great condition, the fairways are lush, the greens are nice, there really isn’t anything to complain about,” said Christine Schlecht. “I like the up and downs and the water shots, you can just take a picture on every hole.”

After a day of touring the island and getting to see historical sites like the Botanical Gardens at Romney Manor and Brimstone Hill, site of a British Fortress now a world heritage site, the two-day tournament began at Royal St. Kitts.

Joining the golfers from Ontario were three local pairs to really give the event an international flavour. The format was a modified net stableford where the lower score between partners on the hole was used to determine points. After the first round there was a tie for the lead at 43 points between Knowlton’s team, paired with Anand Harridyal, from St. Kitts, and Harry Harridyal and Sylvia Jones, also residents of St. Kitts.

The second day saw some great scores on the golf course including a 66 by Knowlton, which earned her the ladies’ course record. Her amazing day helped her team finish in a tie atop the standings with the team of Dave Ramsumair and Lorena Clark. After going through the GAO tiebreaking procedure, the local team was awarded the trophy as the first winners of the St. Kitts 2-Ball Invitational.

That night an awards ceremony was hosted at the Marriott and featured a special guest, the Hon. Mr. Lindsay F.P. Grant, St. Kitts and Nevis Minister of Tourism, International Trade Industry and Commerce. The minister talked about how happy he was to see a travel group experience the island. “All I have heard are a lot of accolades: the golf has been fantastic, the friendliness of the people and helpfulness of the staff, along with the warmth of the atmosphere, the nightlife and restaurants. I think everyone on this trip has had a wonderful time. I went around and spoke with people on the trip and many said they would definitely come back and try to bring some of their friends too, to make it a much bigger occasion. We are grateful for not only the GAO but for the entire golfing community in Canada. St. Kitts is grateful for the partnership and collaboration between the two groups.”

This year’s event may have come to a close, but all indications are that the event will continue to grow and become bigger and better. St. Kitts is working on two more courses for golfers to experience Irie Fields at Kititian Hill and Christophe Harbour.

Irie Fields is expecting completion in 2016 and will be a 100 per cent organic, edible course. The course will feature numerous fruit trees so that golfers can taste a variety of fruit during their round before returning to the clubhouse on Belle Mont Farm for a fresh meal sourced from the farm itself.

As for Christophe Harbour, this course is set to be one of the jewels in the Caribbean. Designed by Tom Fazio, the course is hoping to be one that gets the island on the world golfing stage.

“At the moment we have two courses but in the next 18 months we plan to have two more come on stream and therefore will put us in the category of a golf destination. I think that is what golfers want to see so that when they come for a week they can experience four unique courses with two islands being experienced, which is something I don’t think to many other places can offer,” added Minister Grant.

The GAO would like to thank all of those who participated in the trip. Also, a huge thanks to the St. Kitts Tourism Authority for giving the group a first class experience of the island. From cultural sites, to the fine restaurants, they truly helped make it a memorable experience. In addition, thanks to the courses and resorts themselves for hosting the group. Stay tuned for details on next year’s St. Kitts 2-Ball invitational for your chance to experience St. Kitts.

UXBRIDGE— The Golf Association of Ontario is pleased to welcome the three new members who will be inducted into the Ontario Golf Hall of Fame at a ceremony tentatively set to take place on May 4, 2016 at Wooden Sticks Golf Club in Uxbridge. Dave Mills, John Gordon, and Patty Howard will become the 73rd, 74th and 75th members of the Hall.  In addition, Bill ‘Skip’ Johns will be receiving the Lorne Rubenstein Award, which is presented annually to accredited members of the Ontario media for “major contributions to golf.”

The Ontario Golf Hall of Fame is dedicated to the recognition of extraordinary contributions and accomplishments in the game of golf in Ontario. Founded in 2000 by the Ontario Golf Association and the Ontario Ladies’ Golf Association, the Ontario Golf Hall of Fame is housed at Wooden Sticks Golf Club in Uxbridge.

2016 Ontario Golf Hall of Fame Inductees

Dave Mills

Dave Mills has been involved with the GAO/OGA since 1986. He served on the board of directors from 1989-1997, before being appointed Executive Director in 1997. He turned around an association that was experiencing significant financial and administrative challenges.

Mills led several initiatives during his time as Executive Director including: the GAO Scholarship Program, educational seminars, Golf in Schools, learn to play clinics, new provincial championships, Team Ontario, participation in Canadian and Ontario Summer Games, a partnership with Ontario Golf Magazine to be official magazine of Association, led the process to establish Ontario Golf Hall of Fame and helped to have golf recognized as an “Official Sport” by Sport Canada. Perhaps one of his greatest accomplishments was leading the process to amalgamate the Ontario Golf Association with the Ontario Ladies Golf Association to create one of the largest amateur golf Associations in North America.

Mills is also a certified rules official and has volunteered his expertise at numerous GAO events and at the Canadian Open, Canadian Amateur and Telus Skins Game. He retired from the GAO in 2014, but continues to volunteer at provincial events.

John Gordon

John Gordon left the Canadian Press to become managing editor of SCOREGolf in 1986 and has been involved in the golf industry ever since. Recruited by the Royal Canadian Golf Association (now Golf Canada) in 1990, he initiated their communications and member services departments and was the founding editor of the Golf Canada Magazine. After a stint as executive director of the Golf Association of Ontario, he founded The Gordon Group, specializing in communications and consulting for the golf industry, in 1994. He has contributed to the National Post and Toronto Sun and appeared on multiple television stations as a golf analyst. He has also provided Rogers Sportsnet with online material and served as an associate editor of the Sportsnet Magazine.

Gordon is a past chairman of the NGCOA Canada and has conducted golf-related seminars and presentations across Canada, the U.S., and Scotland. Gordon was a founding board member of the Professional Golf Management program at Georgian College, where he also taught. In 2008, he was hired by ClubLink to build an in-house communications department, re-launch their member magazine and build out more than 50 web sites.

Gordon has written hundreds of articles for golf consumer and trade publications and is the author of eight golf books. John recently has returned to freelance golf writing.

Patty Howard

Patty Howard achieved success as professional golfer and as a teacher. She notched three provincial championships: 1988 Ontario Ladies Professional Championship, 1988 Ontario Ladies Summer Championship and the 1991 Ladies Professional Summer Championship. She also captured a pair of wins on the Florida Mini Tour (now Symetra Tour).

Howard’s impact on the game stretched past her playing career. She was the first female head professional at a private mixed club in Canada. She originally joined the PGA of Canada in 1975 and received Class A status in 1981. She was the first female to sit on the PGA of Ontario Board of Directors.

Howard has been recognized on numerous occasions for her work in the game. Honours she has received include: 2001 YWCA London Women of Excellence Award for Sport, Fitness and Recreation, 2007 Ontario Club Professional of the Year, 2007 Canadian Club Professional of the Year, 2007 Score Golf Club Professional of the Year, 2008 London Sports Person of the Year, 2009 London Sports Hall of Fame Induction, and 2013 London Heart Award.

Bill ‘Skip’ Johns- Lorne Rubenstein Award

Skip Johns began a career in journalism at the Niagara Falls Review in 1957. In 1972 he moved on to the Kitchener-Waterloo Record to continue his top priority: Sports Journalism. Throughout his 58-years in sports journalism, Johns always had a passion for golf. His work also included writing for Ontario Golf News and Golf Scene. Even now at 77-years-old, Johns continues to cover golf online. In 2002, John was honoured, where he started, as he was inducted into the Niagara Falls Virtual Wall of Fame.

The Fall/Winter Issue of Ontario Golf News is now available. Click here to read!