Each of the top golf organizations in Colorado can — and does — accomplish plenty in its own right. But there’s certainly something to be said for collective efforts.
That’s the idea behind the new G-4 Summit, which is billed as “a coming together of the golf industry in Colorado”.
The inaugural G-4 Summit will take place Tuesday (Feb. 11) at the Inverness Hotel & Golf Club in Englewood. Though similar events have been held in recent years — most notably, the Colorado Golf Summit — this effort is a little more concerted than in the past.
“I’m a firm believer that the more we work together, the more we accomplish in Colorado golf,” said Eddie Ainsworth, executive director of the Colorado PGA. “We’ve proven that with the Golf in Schools program and the Colorado Open Golf Foundation.”
Added Ed Mate, executive director of the CGA: “This is a recognition of the Allied Golf Associations that we need to work more collaboratively on issues the industry faces, especially with the decline in the number of golfers in recent years. Player development will always be a focus of the Summit.”
The G-4 Summit is a joint effort of the CGA, CWGA, Colorado PGA, Rocky Mountain Golf Course Superintendents Association and the Mile High Chapter of the Club Managers Association. (For those keeping track, the CGA and CWGA are counted as one organization out of the four for the purposes of the G-4 Summit.)
Tuesday’s initial Summit will feature a variety of meetings, sessions and roundtables. The three biggest sessions will focus on teamwork, the future of junior golf, and equipment’s impact on golf participation. The latter will be presented by John Spitzer, the managing director of equipment standards at the USGA.
The day will conclude with a meeting of the state’s public course operators.
“We hope this (Summit) leads to idea generation and sharing of best practices,” Mate said. “The objective is getting people working together (even more) on the state level. We’re encouraging facilities to bring their golf professional or general manager, and we’ll be the facilitator.”
With player development being such an integral mission of the Colorado PGA, the Section has come up with numerous initiatives it plans to roll out, with much of the emphasis placed on junior golf.
“We’re fixing to launch a comprehensive junior program to help build the base and supplement what the CJGA does,” Ainsworth said.
