From the NCGA President by Lee Gidney T
A Memorable 2015, and a Bright Future
he end of the year is fast approach- ing, and it seems that my term as president of your association has passed very, very quickly. As I reflect
on 2015, it has been a year full of chal- lenges and accomplishments. Of course each year brings with it another season of exciting tournament golf. We should nev- er forget that the genesis of the Northern California Golf Association in 1901 was to field a team to participate in the Pacific Coast Amateur Championship, and as the NCGA grew, so did the competitive opportunities available to all members. Once again, we lead the nation in the number and variety of events staged for our golfers. More than 500 days of professionally run competitive golf were conducted in 2015 for our membership, representing all abilities, ages and gender. As I look back at this year’s cham-
pions, I am struck by some simply outstanding accomplishments. This year’s NCGA Amateur Match Play Championship—our U.S. Open if you will—was won by Maverick McNealy, a former member of our Junior Tour of Northern California. McNealy, who is a member of the Stanford University golf team, was also the winner of the Haskins Award, which recognizes the Collegiate Golfer of the Year. Bryson DeChambeau, another former JTNC member, won the 2015 U.S. Amateur Championship as well as the NCAA Division I title earlier in the year. Yet another former JTNC member, Hannah O’Sullivan, won the U.S. Women’s Amateur in Portland, Ore., while Karen Garcia from Cool won the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur in Tennessee. And finally, McNealy and DeChambeau teamed with Corey Pereira, another alum from the JTNC, to win the Morse Cup, the team competition of the Pacific Coast Amateur Championship. Pereira was last year’s Pac Coast Am individual champion by an astounding eight-stroke margin! Golf in Northern California is certainly alive and well, turning out phenomenal champions.
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NCGA.ORG / FALL 2015 The staff of the NCGA, in concert
with the Board of Directors, has been hard at work exploring ways to better serve all of the golfers of Northern Cali- fornia. In very short order, the NCGA membership department should be roll- ing out new and easier ways for golfers to join our association. It has gone to great lengths to explore what golfers want from a golf association, so we can satisfy their desires and enable the NCGA to fully support every golfer in our area. Finally, by the time you read this the
NCGA will be prepared to welcome Joe Huston as its new executive direc- tor (see page 17 for more information). I would be remiss if I didn’t take this opportunity to thank Vaughn Kezirian for his service to the association as our executive director for two years. Frankly, Vaughn’s commitment to the NCGA far exceeds that time. Beginning as a volun- teer tournament official working at our competitions, he subsequently became a member of the Board of Directors, and rose through the “chairs” as the Secre- tary-Treasurer, Vice President and then the President of the NCGA. After retir- ing from his career in construction and having finished his term with the Board of Directors of the NCGA, Vaughn was asked to become involved with our Junior Tour of Northern California as the manager of the program in its early years. His skill and dedication led to the rapid growth of that program and its great success. Finally, when approached to serve as the executive director on an interim basis, he graciously accepted and has led the Association on a highly successful upward trajectory since taking on the responsibly of leading our full- time staff. Now, as he looks forward to spending more time on the golf course and with his lovely wife Ann and their expanding family of grandchildren, the NCGA family and I owe him a hearty thank you for all of the years he has dedicated to our Association and wish him the very best going forward. Thank you, Vaughn!
NCGA GOLF
The official publication of the Northern California Golf Association Volume 35, Number 3
Editorial & Business Office Northern California Golf Association 3200 Lopez Road, Pebble Beach, CA 93953 P: (831) 625-4653; F: (831) 625-0150
NCGA.org;
ncgainfo@ncga.org
Editorial Staff Scott Seward – Editor & Publisher
Richard J. Cerame, Laurie Lee, Kevin Merfeld, Jerry Stewart
Advertising Managers Tom Black, Jim Whittemore
Contributing Writers Tom Dellner, Ron Kroichick, Brian Murphy, Alan Shipnuck, Jay Stuller, Stephanie Wei, Josh Zander
Contributing Photographers Joann Dost, Lindsey Novitzke, Aaron Olson, Evan Schiller, Terry VanderHeiden
NCGA Staff Joe Huston – Executive Director, NCGA Adam Heieck – Executive Director, NCGA Foundation
Alex Anderson, Toivo Betancourt, Jim Brady, Richard J. Cerame, Kelly Cimino, Ben Coronado, Jim Cowan, Ryan Dunham, Ryan Farb, Mark Fitch, Aana Fitzgerald, Lenny Fudenna, Martin Fuentes, Svetlana Gavrilenko, Jason Gilbert, Evelyn Gomez, Otis Goodwin, Jeremy Gray, Ryan Gregg, Aaron Hartesveld, Maryjane Hatch, Joe Huston, Keenan Jones, Vaughn Kezirian, Steve Latos, Rick Leoncio, Michael Lowe, Jillian MacDonald, Kevin Merfeld, Helen Nicolayev, Lindsey Novitzke, Malinda Oliver, Jean Quismundo, Rick Rangel, Sam Staton, Scott Seward, Jerry Stewart
NCGA Board of Directors Lee Gidney (President), John A. Ronca (Vice President), Patrick N. Quinn (Secretary/Treasurer), Brian D. Morse (Immediate Past President)
Stacey Baba, Brad Bell, Thomas E. Bone, Thomas H. Carter, John A. Dodsworth, Gary Fox, Robert J. Goldstein, Samuel A. Gross, Susan Morse, Michael J. O’Donnell, David L. Pearson, Gail A. Rogers, Michael W. Weeks, Richard M. Wise, Paul F. Yost Jr.
Golf Courses Owned by the Northern California Golf Association Poppy Hills Golf Course P: (831) 622-8239; F: (831) 626-5421
PoppyHillsGolf.com;
info@poppyhillsgolf.com 3200 Lopez Rd. Pebble Beach, CA 93953
Poppy Ridge Golf Course P: (925) 456-8202; F: (925) 455-2020
PoppyRidgeGolf.com;
info@poppyridgegolf.com 4280 Greenville Rd. Livermore, CA 94550
NCGA Golf (ISSN-1524-4385) is published quarterly by the Northern California Golf Association, 3200 Lopez Road, Pebble Beach, 93953. All rights reserved, including right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Members pay an annual subscription fee of $1. Printed in U.S.A. Please send change of address notice on Member Change form (available at your club). Periodical postage paid at Pebble Beach, CA and additional mailing offices. Advertising contained herein does not constitute endorsement by the Northern California Golf Association. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to NCGA Golf, P. O. Box NCGA, Pebble Beach, CA. 93953-1157.
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