AMATEUR COMPETITONS COMMITTEE REPORT...Golf Canada Board of Directors Meeting December 2013 . AMATEUR COMPETITONS COMMITTEE REPORT . Meetings since Last Report: October 10, 2013 Key

Golf Canada Board of Directors Meeting December 2013

AMATEUR COMPETITONS COMMITTEE REPORT

Meetings since Last Report: October 10, 2013

Key Activities:

Researching the implications on our championships of the drug testing protocol (CCES) Reviewing the field size and date of our Men's Mid-Am Championship

Reviewing the field size of our Junior Boys Championship

Reviewing the date of the Men's Senior Reviewing the date of our Men’s Amateur Initial research on the possibility of creating a National four-ball championship

Current Priorities: Reviewing our 2013 Amateur Championships and provide recommendations for 2014 and beyond

Reviewing the future venue schedule for 2014 and beyond Creating a document outlining the benefits of hosting a national championship and outlining

what championships are available for clubs to host and then working with Governors Council to educate them on the process.

Future Scheduled Meetings: Teleconference – December 5, 2013

Appendices:

Please refer to the next few pages which outline our 2013 Amateur Championship review and future recommendations report. Additionally, there are two documents included which are discussed within the recommendations report.

Submitted by, Barbara Allan Chair, Amateur Competitions Committee

Summary of Chair Reports & Future Recommendations

1) What worked well in 2013:

a. Format of Player Receptions b. Format of Closing Ceremonies c. Participation from President & VP at Amateur Championships d. Implementation of Coach Credentials (CNFL, Jr. Boys, Jr. Girls, Men’s Am,

Women’s Am) e. Player Recruitment Efforts (Men’s Am – now ‘B’ ranked event & Women’s

Am – remained an ‘A’ event) f. Invitations to Past Champions and Hall of Fame members to speak at

Player Receptions

2) What didn’t work so well in 2013: a. Championships held at ClubLink facilities (University/College & Junior

Girls) b. Media Intern c. Shipping problems (Women’s Senior) d. Pace of Play issues with National Team players (Women’s Am & Junior

Boys) e. Food Quality (Junior Boys) f. Issues with Pace of Play Clocks g. Lack of translated materials and speeches for tournaments hosted at

french speaking clubs (Women’s Am) h. Lack of special recognition of the 100th playing of the Women's Am. I. Lack of Provincial teams present @ closing Ceremonies j. Timing of Prairie Future Links event-ending on Sunday

3) Recommendations for 2014 and beyond:

Continue with our new framework for player (opening) receptions in 2014 and beyond. In addition, work with host club committees to secure relevant guest speakers for player receptions (i.e. Founder of Running Room at 2013 Mid-Amateur)

o Appendix 1 – ‘Memo–Opening Reception–Tournament and Rules Chairs’

Recommend and encourage our President & VP to attend amateur championships again in 2014 and beyond. We strongly feel that this is an important element of our championships and it reinforces the significance of our championship with media, spectators and the host club.

Implement phase 2 of our coaching credentials plan, recognizing PGA of Canada certified coaches and providing them with access to our practice areas.

o Appendix 2 – ‘Coaching Credentials – Internal’

Future venue selection subcommittee to review championship dates, future venue calendar and reassess the provincial rotation. We may need to look at a different approach, increasing the frequency of hosting in major city centers to attract more international players and attempt to fill all our championship fields.

o Specifically, the future venue selection subcommittee’s focus will include: field size for the Junior Boys, Men’s Mid-Am and Men’s Senior, as well as the dates of those championships; new four-ball championship; championship hosting at ClubLink facilities; and dates of the Men’s Amateur.

Increase communication between TD’s and media staff leading up to amateur championships. We need to meet in the off-season to ensure we’re on the same page and that we are fulfilling all media obligations pertaining to our championships.

Discuss the possibility of providing a rules workshop for the National Team players to provide an overview of pace of play, local rules and amateur status.

Continue to discuss the use of Distance Measuring Devices with the Rules Committee, to analyze the pros and cons of having an aligned policy between GC and the provinces at our respective championships.

Ensure all championship materials are translated (manuals, fact sheets etc.) in order to provide bilingual materials for French speaking clubs

Increase communication to provincial team members informing them of the history/importance of the provincial teams, and provide detailed schedule for awards ceremony for our Canadian championships.

Continue to review our duty rosters and try to reduce travel costs of our officials at all our championships.

o Recommend changes to the duty roster policy (i.e. reduce the amount of ‘Golf Canada’ starters/scorers at Canadian championships)

o Community Map – an internal tool was created that plots all our officials (rules, starters, scorers, and pace of play) on a map to determine their proximity to our championships.

http://www.communitywalk.com/amateur_championships_rule

s_officials_and_host_sites/map/1597627

2013 Amateur Championships Summary

Each year, Golf Canada conducts eight national championships, six CN Future Links Championships, three CN Canadian Women's Tour events, three regional qualifiers for the RBC Canadian Open and the qualifiers for our Open championships. Over the past few years, our Canadian amateur championships have been elevated to a new level. This year was extremely successful for our championships as we continued to attract more top international competitors, earn exemptions into major amateur championships and secure the top courses in Canada. With the commitment of key stakeholders in the golf industry and support from our national partners (RBC Wealth Management, Titleist and Footjoy), we have been able to maintain the competitor experience with complimentary breakfasts and lunches, full field player receptions, competitor housing, and live scoring. The addition of these enhancements over the years has significantly improved our events and enabled us to gain significant recognition on golf’s world stage, becoming best in class. Specifically, the Royale Cup Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship has retained its reputation on the world stage remaining an ‘A’ ranked event on the World Amateur Golf Rankings, the highest distinction behind the four elite ranked championships. The USGA has continued to grant an exemption to the 2012 Canadian Men’s and Women’s Amateur champions into their respective U.S. Amateur as well as the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links, U.S. Girls’ Junior, U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur and USGA Senior Women’s Amateur Championships if applicable. The CN Canadian Women’s Tour continued to be one of the world’s premier developmental tours for women, attracting rising Canadian and international female golf professionals as well as top female amateurs. Samantha Richdale was awarded as the Jocelyne Bourassa player of the year after winning the Tour’s Order of Merit and topping the money list. This tour is quickly becoming a big competitor for the LPGA Symetra Tour. Champions this year included current Team Canada member Brooke Henderson, Team Canada graduate Jennifer Kirby and LPGA member Samantha Richdale. And, our six CN Future Links stops across the country continued to attract the best junior golfers, while providing them the opportunity to develop and showcase their competitive skills at the highest level of tournament golf. New to the Championships schedule in 2013 was the PGA Tour Canada TOUR Championship of Canada presented by Freedom 55 Financial. This event was conducted by Golf Canada in partnership with the PGA Tour Canada. As 2013 was the first year Golf Canada conducted this Championship, we were slightly unsure of what to expect. There were a total of 135 players who teed it up at Sunningdale Golf and Country Club in London, Ontario and while the weather was not the kindest, the Championship ended as a great success. The champion this year was Max Gilbert, a graduate from the Université de Laval golf program, with a 4-day total of 268 (-20). With increased awareness, greater corporate hospitality opportunities and the continued support from the PGA Tour, Web.Com Tour, PGA Tour Canada and Freedom 55 Financial, 2014 and 2015 look bright for our new Championship. Season Highlights: • 33 International players participated in the Men’s Amateur Championship, representing 7 countries (United States,

Australia, Mexico, New Zealand, Indonesia, Colombia, and Peru). o Men’s Amateur competitors in WAGR’s Top 100: 7 (*3 additional players were registered but withdrew the

weekend prior to the tournament as they had already qualified for an exemption into the U.S. Amateur) o Men’s Amateur competitors in WAGR’s Top 250: 12

• 32 International players also participated in the Royale Cup Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship, representing 7 countries (United States, Australia, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Trinidad & Tobago, and Denmark).

o Women’s Amateur competitors in WAGR’s Top 100: 14 o Women’s Amateur competitors in WAGR’s Top 250: 23 o Tournament rank increased to ‘A’ ranked event on the WAGR (only 4 ‘elite’ tournaments are ranked higher)

2013 Overall Championship Registration:

Fiscal YTD (As Of Sep 21, 2013)

Registration Type 2013 2012 Change

# Amount # Amount # % Amount %

Tournament Registration 3,118 $610,877 2,891 $596,889 +227 +8% +$13,988 +2%

2012 Overall Championship Registration:

Fiscal YTD (As of October 20, 2012)

Registration Type 2012 2011 Change

# Amount # Amount # % Amount %

Tournament Registration 2,998 $596,889 2,381 $538,795 +617 +26% +$58,094 +11% Note: In 2012, entry fees increased by $25 for all tournaments, except the Women’s Tour events and the Canadian Open qualifiers. Additionally, the Canadian University/College championship team fees increased by $300 (from $700 to $1000). Three regional RBC Canadian Open Qualifiers (BC, AB & ON) were conducted in 2012, in comparison to two in 2011 (BC & ON). This small increase in entry fees and additional regional qualifier contributed to raise our total entry fee revenues by 11% from 2011.

CN Future Links Champions: Event Pacific Ontario Prairie Western Quebec Atlantic Jr. Girl’s Champ

Brooke Henderson*

Maddie Szeryk

Jaclyn Lee Sabrine Garrison

Annie Lacombe Krysta Schaus

Jr. Boy’s Champ

Kevin Kwon* Carter Simon

Zach Anderson Brett Pasula Etienne Papineau

Ryan Nowe

CN Canadian Women’s Tour Champions: Event British Columbia Ontario Quebec CN Canadian Women’s Tour Samantha Richdale Emily Childs Jennifer Kirby

Canadian Amateur Championships:

University/College Women’s Team Champions: Université de Montréal Low Female Medalist: Sabrina Sapone Men’s Team Champions: Laval Rouge et Or Low Male Medalist: Ugo Coussard # of Participants: 156 (165 in 2012)

Royale Cup Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship Amateur Champion: Brooke Henderson* Mid-Amateur Champion: Christina Proteau Mid-Master Champion: Helene Chartrand Inter-Provincial Team Champions: British Columbia # of Participants: 138 (56) (125 in 2012)

Royale Cup Canadian Junior Girls Championship Junior Champion: Maddie Szeryk Juvenile Champion: Brooke Henderson* Inter-Provincial Team Champions: Alberta # of Participants: 129 (2) (134 in 2012)

Junior Boys Championship Junior Champion: Kevin Kwon* Juvenile Champion: Andrew Harrison Inter-Provincial Team Champions: Alberta # of Participants: 156 (156 in 2012)

Men’s Amateur Championship Amateur Champion: Eli Cole Inter-Provincial (Willingdon Cup) Team Champions: British Columbia # of Participants: 250 (46) (240 in 2012)

Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship Mid-Amateur Champion: Kevin Carrigan Mid-Master Champion: David Bartman Inter-Provincial Team Champions: Ontario # of Participants: 156 (7) (156 in 2012)

Royale Cup Canadian Women’s Senior Championship Senior Champion: Mary Ann Hayward Super Senior Champion: Alison Murdoch Inter-Provincial Team Champions: Quebec

# of Participants: 108 (8) (119 in 2012)

Men’s Senior Championship Senior Champion: David Schultz Super Senior Champion: Walt Martin Inter-Provincial Team Champions: Alberta # of Participants: 156 (20) (156 in 2012)

Notes: • *Denotes a Canadian National Team Member • Participation numbers in parenthesis ( ) show number of international competitors in each event.

What players, officials and host clubs are saying about ‘AM CHAMPS’… “Thank you very much for the opportunity to play in your national championship. It was truly and honour and a privilege. Despite missing the cut, my wife and I still had a wonderful time in Victoria. I must say, I was very impressed with the event in terms of coordination, friendliness of volunteers, rules officials, and lastly the quality and condition of the golf courses. Both courses were in absolutely perfect shape. Overall, the event was just terrific. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of it and thank you to the Golf Canada for everything you do to support amateur golf!

Brad Wilder, Forth Wright, Kentucky – Men’s Amateur Participant

“I would like to thank you for the 2013 Canadian Junior Boys at Timberwolf. I had a great experience and like all Golf Canada events, this one was so world class. I developed so much through Golf Canada events and am proud to end my junior career with this title.”

Kevin Kwon - Champion Canadian Junior Boys

Thank you very much for an incredible experience at the Women’s Amateur this week. Although I unfortunately did not make the cut, I did make new friends and had an opportunity to see old friends. The golf course was in great shape and the tournament was beautifully run. I really appreciate being accepted into the field and being given the opportunity to test my game. It’s a wonderful honor and privilege. All the best,

Susan Podolsky - Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship

“Emerson had a great time, as did Andrea and I following him for the 3 days, something we’ve never done before. It was quite the experience to watch every shot and to see all the kids so focused and working so hard in what were pretty tough conditions (heat-wise).

In any event, on behalf of all of us, thanks for all the effort and hard work in creating such a unique and memorable experience. I told you that it is the best organized event we have participated in and the kids are made to feel so special – from the moment they arrived at the Registration Desk with the bag (and contents); the roped off areas around the putting green and driving range (players/coaches only); the announcements at the first hole; to the tents on the course and finish area; the scoreboard and trophy presentation. All first class. And totally professional. Clearly the staff at Milby put everything into it as well, from course preparation to food service etc. It was a great dress rehearsal for them leading up to the Canadian Summer Games.

Best wishes to you for the remainder of the season and we will look forward to seeing you next summer at hopefully more than one event!! “

Jaime Ross, Father of Emerson – CN Future Links Quebec Participant

“I just finished playing in the CN Women's Tour Event in Cowansville. I just wanted to thank you for all of the work that you and Golf Canada do in order to make the events happen. I absolutely had a pleasure getting to play. It was obvious that Golf Canada was a very player friendly tour. It was my first time playing in Canada and the hospitality was so very nice. Thank-you again for all of your hard work and I'm pumped for your next event at Ambassador Golf Club. Thank you thank you!”

Allie White, Participant CN Women’s Tour Quebec

“What an HONOR and a PRIVILEGE to be a part of the 2013 CN Canadian Woman's Tour ... an honored guest of Beach Grove Golf Club and The Members, south of the Fraser River opened in 1925.

What an amazing time we had in Canada.

Just 20 years old and still an amateur, and my very first experience playing golf in Canada, how wonderful to be so warmly welcomed with the hospitality of home from Golf Canada as well as Beach Grove Golf Club Staff and Members ... THANK YOU!

During my play at all times my conduct and behavior cast a positive reflection on the Golf Canada Team, Beach Grove Golf Club, and Beach Grove Golf Club Members extending courtesy and considerations to my opponents while 'leaving the course in better shape than I found it' ... my 'overriding principles'.”

Michele Chun – CN Women’s Tour BC Participant

From myself, husband, Mom, Dad and mostly Grace we want to thank you for all that you did to make the Canadian Girls Championship the success that it was. You organized and put on a fantastic tournament but more than that the support and kindness that you showed all the players and their families goes above and beyond.

Cherry Downs taught Grace a lot about her game and the fight that she has in her. She has grown in her game this week and has a ton of great shots, friendships and wonderful moments to keep in her memory.

Kathy St-Germain, Mother of Grace St-Germain – Junior Girls Championship

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Golf Canada very much for the superb Royale Canadian Senior Womens 2013 tournament in Vernon. This event was a tremendous success, due to a great deal from our National Sponsors - Royale, RBC Wealth Management and Titleist & Footjoy. The support from these sponsors was fantastic and the success of women’s golf is dependent upon these sponsors.

Penny Baziuk – Participant in the Senior Women’s Championship

Fantastic event! Great volunteers and hospitality. Really enjoyed the venue and the competition. Nice touches were availability of club storage and a locker, the hotel shuttles which were convenient, timely, and the drivers were great! Name signs on the range were nifty but unnecessary. Registration gifts were nice. My only criticisms: -small driving range and putting green (just a venue specific thing) -waiting until the day before to post day 1 and day 2 starting times made pre-planning non-golf activities difficult -a la carte lunch was nice, but players should have been informed that it was being done that way so as to allow enough time for lunch before teeing off. -player dinner was rather seafood-heavy (shrimp, mussels, and crab) which wasn't great for my shellfish allergy.

Survey Comment – Mid-Amateur Championship Participant

TO: Golf Canada Tournament Chairs and Rules Chairs

FROM: Barbara Allan, Amateur Competitions Committee Chair, Dale Jackson,

Rules Committee Chair & Adam Helmer, Manager, Rules and Competitions

CC: Golf Canada Tournament Directors

DATE: July 2, 2013

RE: Opening Receptions @ Golf Canada Canadian Championships

To all Tournament Chairs and Rules Chairs for 2013,

As we have recently changed our Opening Ceremonies from a Flag Raising Ceremony

to an Opening Reception and have done away with most "seated dinners" during our

Golf Canada Championships, we wanted to write to all of you and suggest the best

way for you to emcee the portion of the Opening Reception for those events that will

have stand up receptions.

We have found that at two recent events (2012 Men's Amateur & 2013 Canadian

University/College Championship), with the Opening Reception being a stand up

reception with little or no seating, it was impossible to catch the audience's attention

due to either an open bar or due to the food being served at various stations around

the room where the reception is being held. It very embarrassing for our Host

Committee Chairs, Club Presidents and sponsors to try to speak to a room where

there is loud noise and a lot of people moving around with their concentration not on

the speakers but on the food.

Amateur Competitions Manager Adam Helmer, Rules Chair Dale Jackson and I have

discussed the issue and we are proposing that for the remainder of this year that or

all Championships where we are not having a “seated” player dinner, we should

make all Opening Reception speeches during the mandatory Player meeting. This will

mean that you will need to work with the Golf Canada Communications staff person

assigned to your event to ensure that the Host Committee and the sponsors are in

attendance for the time set for the Player meeting. This way as all players are in

attendance, you will have their complete attention and this should ensure that any

speeches and presentations are received in the proper respectful fashion. You will

need to also coordinate with the Head Rules Official for your event to decide how

they would like the Player meeting to run. They may wish to go over the rules with

the players before you make your remarks and do any presentations or they may

wish to wait until you are finished and then proceed with covering the necessary

rules details with the players.

Whichever method you choose, we think you will find that the evening will flow much

better with this approach. While it will mean some club members, parents,

spectators and guests will not hear the opening remarks, it should prove to be a

much improved situation from the ones that I have experienced trying to talk to a

full and noisy room.

For the few events that will have a “seated' Player dinner, the mandatory player

meeting can continue to be a stand-alone separate event and all speeches and

presentations can be done throughout the actual dinner.

We look forward to reading your comments/feedback in your Tournament Chair

reports and certainly if you have any questions regarding the above, please do not

hesitate to contact one of us to discuss.

PGA of Canada Coaching Certification Requirements for Golf Canada Championships

Purpose To use our championship events to create awareness within the golf community of our support of the movement and importance of having trained and certified coaches within our sport system. Applicable Events

1) All 2013 CN Future Links Championships (6 events) 2) 2013 Canadian Junior Boys Championship 3) 2013 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship 4) 2013 Royale Cup Canadian Junior Girls Championship 5) 2013 Royale Cup Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship

Benefits to Coaches for 2013 Season

• Access to the following designated areas: o Practice ranges o Practice areas (chipping, putting and bunkers)

• If available, access to a “coaches room” inside the clubhouse in order to meet / debrief with players or meet with other coaches.

Coaching Credentials / Lanyards Coaching credentials and lanyards can be picked up at the tournament office of the events listed above. The minimum training / certification requirements for the various levels of coaching credentials are as follows: 2013 Credential Levels

1) PGA of Canada Member 2) PGA of Canada Coach – CNC Trained 3) PGA of Canada Coach – CNC Certified 4) PGA of Canada Coach – CDC Trained 5) PGA of Canada Coach – CDC Certified

2014 Credential Levels

1) PGA of Canada Coach – CNC Trained 2) PGA of Canada Coach – CNC Certified 3) PGA of Canada Coach – CDC Trained 4) PGA of Canada Coach – CDC Certified

Note: Beginning in 2014, the “PGA of Canada Member” level of credential will be phased out. Therefore, all PGA of Canada members will be required to have a minimum status of “Trained” in the Coach New Competitor (CNC) context in order to receive a “Coach” credential and access to the designated areas.

ACTION ITEMS 1) Amateur Championships to investigate whether a “coaches room” can be available in

the clubhouse for each event (ie; a room where only coaches with credentials have access to where they can debrief with players. – Adam H. – May 15th

2) Golf Canada to send communication out to players to inform them of this – Adam H - ASAP

3) PGA of Canada to provide an updated list of CNC Trained & Certified coaches 7 days prior to each event. – Morgan C.

4) PGA of Canada to provide a “one-pager” that could be distributed to PGA of Canada members at the events that articulates the coaching pathway and how to get started. – Morgan C. – May 8th

5) PGA of Canada to provide text copy for the back of the lanyard credentials. – Morgan C. – May 8th

6) Amateur Championships to design, print, assemble and distribute the lanyard credentials. – Adam H. – May 9th

a) PGA of Canada Member = white b) CNC Trained = red c) CNC Certified = red

7) PGA of Canada (Chris Fry) to put together a press release on this initiative and circulate it to their membership. – Morgan C. – week of May 6th

8) Golf Canada to send out to PA’s to inform them of this and see if any PA’s are going to follow this practice at their championships – Adam H.

9) Golf Canada to put together a “one pager” on this initiative that can be circulated at the events to raise awareness amongst the coaching community. – Dave S. – week of May 6th

Note: due to timing the FL Pacific Event – Golf Canada will make best efforts to implement but will be more flexible due to the fact there has been no communications around this.