Until Monday, that is.

That’s when Laura Robinson, who has served as the acting executive director for the last five-plus months, had the “acting” portion of her title officially removed. So she becomes the fourth E.D. in CWGA history, joining Maggie Giesenhagen (1988-1991), Robin Jervey (1992-2014) and Ann Guiberson (2014-15).

“I feel like the luckiest person,” Robinson said Monday, when she was serving as a starter at the U.S. Women’s Open qualifier at Heritage at Westmoor. “This is a dream job. It’s sports. It’s golf, which I love. It’s non-profit. It’s working with women and goals. It’s working with a great group of volunteers and the staff — Kate (Moore) and Matthew (Walker) and Aaron (Guereca); they’re a wonderful group to work with. So it just feels like a dream job.”

The volunteer CWGA board, which leads the organization, was impressed with Robinson’s work over her time as acting executive director.

“We’re proud and pleased and so excited” with Robinson’s appointment, said CWGA president Juliet Miner. “When you’re looking for an executive director for a golf organization, you really need someone with business experience and background, and she has that. She’s challenged the staff, and they’ve blossomed under her.”

Robinson has a Masters degree in Business Administration from the London Business School. In addition to her duties at the CWGA, she’s been teaching at Colorado Women’s College at the University of Denver as the chair of the information technology studies program.

So what are Robinson’s priorities now as the full-fledged executive director of the CWGA?

“My objectives in any job I’ve had have always been to work very very hard to deliver great products and services, and to have fun,” she said. “And that hasn’t changed. I think the goal for right now is to make sure this (centennial) season comes off successfully. All of us in the office want to make sure that we’re serving our members, we’re adding value, and we’re running great tournaments.”

Robinson has been an avid sports participant for her whole life. She’s skied, run (finishing both the New York City and London Marathons), played squash, and been a cyclist.

She gave golf a go about a decade ago, participating in a “Get Golf Ready” session at Hiwan Golf Club, where Robinson and her husband, Paul, have been members since 2004 — and live nearby. Given how she’s picked up sports relatively easily in the past, she thought it would be the same for golf.

But suffice it to say that things didn’t go quite according to plan.

“I was completely humbled and went back to cycling,” recalls Robinson, who at the time served on the board of directors for Team Evergreen Cycling.

But in 2009, while living in Evergreen, she was cycling near Soda Creek during rutting season for elk. A bull started to charge, which she noticed out of the corner of her eye. Going about 35 mph down a hill, she hit the brakes and took a nasty fall, breaking her pelvis and some ribs. Evergreen Fire and Rescue transported her to St. Anthony’s Trauma Center, where she spent the next three days.

Robinson got back in the saddle — literally and figuratively — for the 25th Ride the Rockies the next year, but shortly after that, she went to the driving range at Hiwan. And with that, she was hooked on golf for good.

“It was time to learn something new,” she said. “I’m one of those people who focus and set goals. And to become good, you really have to pick your sport.”

And now, somewhere around 500 rounds of golf later, Robinson finds herself as the executive director of the CWGA.

Robinson first played a role for the CWGA in the summer of 2014, when she volunteered to help Guiberson develop an IT strategy at the association. Then she joined the CWGA’s volunteer board of directors more than a year ago. (CLICK HERE to see all the board members.)

Robinson and her husband moved to Colorado in 1998, after she spent much of her early life in the greater New York City area before she and Paul relocated to London for eight years.

“The culture shock of moving from New York City to London is not nearly as great as it was moving from London to Evergreen,” she notes.

But in 1998, after having been to Colorado just a few times, Robinson and her husband were on a ski trip with friends and decided to stay.

“I saw blue sky, sun and mountains,” she said, recalling her thinking.

Since becoming a resident, Robinson has worked as a principal consultant at CSC Consulting, as a senior program manager at McData, and as director of product management at MX Logic before becoming a co-owner at PWR Consulting and teaching at Colorado Women’s College at DU.

And, as noted, Robinson loves golf. In her first round of nine holes, she shot a 74 in 2010. But she’s been devoted to improving, and those hundreds of rounds over the last six-plus years seem to be doing the trick. At Hiwan, she was named most improved golfer twice — for the nine-hole group in 2011 and for the 18-holers in 2012.

“And I’m really disappointed I haven’t won it again (since),” she said with a chuckle.

Robinson also received a “rising star award” from fellow Hiwan member — and current CWGA vice president — Kathy Malpass in 2014. Robinson regularly competes for the B team at Hiwan in interclub competitions.

Administratively, Robinson has served as the tournament chairperson for the Hiwan Women’s Golf Association.

“I love golf in Colorado,” she said.

And now Robinson will have a role in helping shape it.

Robinson, the CWGA’s acting executive director, has been an avid sports participant for her whole life. She’s skied, run (finishing both the New York City and London Marathons), played squash, and been a cyclist.

She gave golf a go about a decade ago, participating in a “Get Golf Ready” session at Hiwan Golf Club, where Robinson and her husband, Paul, have been members since 2004 — and live nearby. Given how she’s picked up sports relatively easily in the past, she thought it would be the same for golf.

But suffice it to say that things didn’t go quite according to plan.

“I was completely humbled and went back to cycling,” recalls Robinson (pictured), who at the time served on the board of directors for Team Evergreen Cycling.

But in 2009, while living in Evergreen, she was cycling near Soda Creek during rutting season for elk. A bull started to charge, which she noticed out of the corner of her eye. Going about 35 mph down a hill, she hit the brakes and took a nasty fall, breaking her pelvis and some ribs. Evergreen Fire and Rescue transported her to St. Anthony’s Trauma Center, where she spent the next three days.

Robinson got back in the saddle — literally and figuratively — for the 25th Ride the Rockies the next year, but shortly after that, she went to the driving range at Hiwan. And with that, she was hooked on golf for good.

“It was time to learn something new,” she said. “I’m one of those people who focus and set goals. And to become good, you really have to pick your sport.”

And now, somewhere around 500 rounds of golf later, Robinson finds herself as the acting executive director of the CWGA, having succeeded Ann Guiberson, who left the E.D. position in November after about 20 months on the job. Robinson, who teaches at Colorado Women’s College at the University of Denver as the chair of the information technology studies program, plans to stay in the CWGA position until a new permanent director is hired.

Robinson first played a role for the CWGA in the summer of 2014, when she volunteered to help Guiberson develop an IT strategy at the CWGA. Then she joined the CWGA’s volunteer board of directors a year ago. (CLICK HERE to see all the board members.)

As acting executive director, Robinson is in the midst of helping organize the CWGA’s annual meeting (Feb. 27 at the Inverness Hotel), preparing for a board retreat Jan. 23, planning for the CWGA’s presence at next month’s Denver Golf Expo, and finalizing the 2016 CWGA tournament schedule and the courses that will be rated by the association this year.

“I’m just keeping things running,” she matter-of-factly.

And many of the tasks CWGA leadership are focusing upon have taken on some added significance this year with the CWGA celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2016.

“This is an exciting year for us, celebrating the past 100 years and looking toward what we want to be in the next 100,” Robinson said. “I’m very excited to do this, particularly in the centennial year. We all hope to grow the game and extend it to more girls and women.”

Robinson and her husband moved to Colorado in 1998, after she spent much of her early life in the greater New York City area before she and Paul relocated to London for eight years. There, she received her Masters in Business Administration from the London Business School.

“The culture shock of moving from New York City to London is not nearly as great as it was moving from London to Evergreen,” she notes.

But in 1998, after having been to Colorado just a few times, Robinson and her husband were on a ski trip with friends and decided to stay.

“I saw blue sky, sun and mountains,” she said, recalling her thinking.

Since becoming a resident, Robinson has worked as a principal consultant at CSC Consulting, as a senior program manager at McData, and as director of product management at MX Logic before becoming a co-owner at PWR Consulting and teaching at Colorado Women’s College at DU.

And, as mentioned earlier, Robinson loves golf. In her first round of nine holes, she shot a 74 in 2010. But she’s been devoted to improving, and those hundreds of rounds over the last six years seem to be doing the trick. At Hiwan, she was named most improved golfer twice — for the nine-hole group in 2011 and for the 18-holers in 2012.

“And I’m really disappointed I haven’t won it again (since),” she said with a chuckle.

Robinson, who recently returned from a Florida trip where she played 24 rounds of golf over seven weeks, also received a “rising star award” from fellow Hiwan member — and current CWGA vice president — Kathy Malpass in 2014. Robinson regular competes for the B team at Hiwan in interclub competitions.

Administratively, Robinson serves as the tournament chairperson for the Hiwan Women’s Golf Association.

“I love golf in Colorado,” she said.

As if there was any doubt.

It’s been almost a half-century since Colorado hosted the NCAA golf national championship finals — at any level — but the drought will soon end.

Both the men’s and women’s NCAA Division II tournaments will be coming to the Centennial State next May as part of the 2016 DII Spring Championships Festival that brings national finals in several sports to a single venue over a six-day period.

In the case of May 2016, the NCAA has announced that Metropolitan State University of Denver will host DII nationals for men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s tennis, women’s lacrosse and softball.

As for the golf, the women’s DII nationals are set for May 18-21 at CommonGround Golf Course (above) in northwest Aurora, while the men’s DII finals will be May 17-21 at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club in northeast Denver.

The only NCAA golf national finals held in Colorado have been hosted by the Broadmoor Golf Club in Colorado Springs, which held the men’s Division I championships five times between 1953 and ’69. So next year will mark the first Colorado visit for an NCAA women’s golf national finals or a men’s or women’s NCAA DII golf nationals.

It should be noted that Colorado has hosted NCAA men’s and women’s regional tournaments, most recently at Colorado National Golf Club in Erie in 2012 (women) and 2011 (men).

“This is another feather in the cap for the state that we can host this kind of championship golf, like we have with amateurs, juniors and pros,” said Kevin Laura, the president of Green Valley Ranch Golf Club (left).

Indeed, the announcement of the DII national golf venues comes as both courses get ready to host significant championships. The AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, presented by MusclePharm, will be played at CommonGround Tuesday through Thursday, while the HealthOne Colorado Senior Open is set for Green Valley Ranch Wednesday through Friday. CommonGround is owned and operated by the CGA and CWGA, and served as the second stroke-play course for the 2012 U.S. Amateur, along with host Cherry Hills. GVR, meanwhile, is home to all three HealthOne Colorado Open championships — the Colorado Open, Colorado Women’s Open and Colorado Senior Open.

“We are extremely excited for the NCAA Division II Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships to be hosted in Denver at Green Valley Ranch and CommonGround as part of the 2016 NCAA Division II Spring Championships Festival,” said John Baldwin, assistant director of championships and alliances for the NCAA. “We are confident that our student-athletes will enjoy competing on courses with great championship pedigree, and we look forward to crowning a couple of national champions in May 2016.”

Ben Portie, winner of the 2011 Colorado Open, was responsible for getting the ball rolling on setting the golf venues for the DII Spring Festival. Portie has been the women’s golf coach at Metro State for the past two seasons — the Roadrunners don’t have a men’s golf program — and he led his team to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference title this year.

CommonGround and GVR both serve as home courses for the Metro State women’s team, and both courses have been proven as solid championship venues. The NCAA agreed after paying a visit to the two sites.

“They fit the right mold,” Portie said. “GVR hosts the biggest events in state, and that’s what the NCAA looks for — courses that have hosted big events. And the same for CommonGround. It’s hosted CGA championships and helped with the U.S. Amateur.”

Portie likes the thought of golf national championships coming to Colorado, especially with the state not having had a chance to host any NCAA finals in many decades.

“The national championships are in May, and a lot of times they go to warmer weather sites,” he noted. “But (the University of Colorado) has hosted men’s and women’s regionals. I think it’s pretty neat we are able to hold both national championships in our city. The two facilities will be great for them. GVR will probably be set up similar to a Colorado Open, and CommonGround held up nicely for a U.S. Amateur.”

Both Ed Mate and Ann Guiberson, respective executive directors for the CGA and CWGA, are looking forward to the associations’ home course hosting the best women’s players in Division II.

“It’s great to have a national women’s event at CommonGround,” said Guiberson, who played college golf at the University of Nebraska. “It’ll be interesting to see how they score and how they set it up. It’ll be fun. And I think Division II has gotten stronger players (over time).”

Mate believes having a high-level women’s national tournament at CommonGround presents many possibilities for course set-up.

“I’m really excited that we’re going to host the women here because I think it’s a great golf course for women,” he said. “The beautiful thing about setting up the course for women is you’re not looking behind you all day, thinking we’ve got to build another set of tees. You can look at the tees that are there and start mixing and matching. I’m really looking forward to seeing how the course plays for a higher caliber of women player. It’s exciting and it’s just further testament of what this golf course was built for — programming, but also great championship golf. That’s just further validation of everything we aspire to be.”

NCAA Division II has held its own national championship in men’s golf since 1963 and in women’s golf since 2000. From 1996 through ’99, Division II and III women competed in a combined championship.

One of the top DII women’s golfers in the country goes to school in Colorado. Leina Kim, who will be a senior at Colorado State-Pueblo, finished 12th this spring in the DII nationals.

While the women’s tournament will be 72 holes of stroke play, the men’s event features a mixed format, with three days of stroke play and two days of team medal match play, with quarterfinals, semifinals and finals on tap. The men’s competition will include 108 golfers, while the women’s championship will feature 72.
 

When it comes to running LPGA-USGA Girls Golf of Northern Colorado, Kim Stiner says her husband, Gale, is known as “Coach Fun”.

Which, of course, makes him perfect for the LPGA-USGA Girls Golf program based at the Olde Course in Loveland.

The national LPGA-USGA Girls Golf concept has been a big hit in recent years — it’s grown from 5,000 participants to about 50,000 in just the last five years — and a big reason is that key ingredient: the fun part.

“We focus hard on making it fun,” said Kim Stiner, the LPGA head professional at the Olde Course and the director of LPGA-USGA Girls Golf of Northern Colorado. “Gale says it’s almost like we trick them into learning through fun. We use contests, games, anything we can think of. If you’re just hitting balls on the driving range, it can get pretty boring, so you need to push creativity. A big part of the success is the fun the kids have.”

The Northern Colorado chapter (see photos) is one of 10 LPGA-USGA Girls Golf programs in Colorado. There are several in the Denver metro area — the one started and operated by the CWGA at CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora, along with others at The First Tee of Denver, The First Tee of Green Valley Ranch, Golden/Westminster, Valley Country Club, and the Family Sports Center in Centennial.

Other sites around the state include Northern Colorado in Loveland, Colorado Springs at Cherokee Ridge Golf Course, Montrose at Black Canyon Golf Club, and the Pueblo YMCA. CLICK HERE to see all the sites and contact information. 

Some of the 2015 programs start as soon as this week. Most at least run through the bulk of the summer when many kids are out of school. At CommonGround, which is owned and operated by the CGA and CWGA, the program will be held weekly on Friday afternoons beginning June 12.

The CWGA has a big stake in the developmental junior program’s success, not only at CommonGround but around the state. After all, it’s an ideal portal for bringing girls into the game — and helping them develop — through fun activities, instruction and simply playing on the course.

“LPGA-USGA Girls Golf programs have great potential for girls to participate together in a group environment and to have fun,” said CWGA executive director Ann Guiberson. “It’s very social. Girls participation in the game is growing, but we have to keep at it. We have to keep encouraging girls.  They are a demographic that can lead the next generation of golf.”

Kim Stiner oversees one of the more successful local LPGA-USGA Girls Golf programs. It’s been in place at the Olde Course since 2005.

“The first year, I had no idea what to expect,” Stiner said. “The LPGA said we’d probably have no more than 20 girls. We had 75. I was like, ‘Wow, this is awesome.’ We’ve been as high as the 90s (one year). The last few years it’s been around 50. We haven’t done any advertising other than flyers in schools. It seem to get a lot of word of mouth. It’s a nice size, manageable.

“Before we started this, our town had three courses but not really anything (specifically) for girls. They were just thrown into a mix of mostly boys. With this, we’ve tweaked it over the years and made it our own program. It’s a work in progress. We (Kim and Gale) both call it our labor of love.”

The Northern Colorado chapter draws girls (age 7-17 of any golf skill level) not only from Loveland but from other neighboring communities. And Stiner and her husband, who’s the clubhouse manager at the Olde Course, have certainly seen it pay dividends. For instance, six girls on Loveland-area high school golf teams this week qualified for one of the two state tournaments. (Coincidentally, the 5A state meet this year is scheduled for the Olde Course, on May 18-19.)

But the Northern Colorado chapter draws all sorts of participants.

“Some have maybe been in other programs, others may not have touched a club,” Kim Stiner said. “Some may be entering high school golf. What’s nice is there’s something for everyone (including 3-hole, 6-hole, 9-hole and 18-hole play days). I feel strongly about girls that they’re very social and want to fit in, and we make that possible. They don’t have to worry or stress about not being good enough.”

Different LPGA-USGA Girls Golf programs run things differently, but in Loveland, they devote one day per week in June and July to playing on the course, and one to practice, instruction and games.

Moving forward, Guiberson would like to see more coordination among the different programs in the state. “We want to pull all the programs together to see where we can share some best practices and resources,” she said.

Though LPGA-USGA Girls Golf is a countrywide program — grants are provided from the national organizations — it’s administered locally. That takes shape differently at various local chapters.

“We have to do quite a bit locally to get the participants and to knock on doors of school districts and the Girl Scouts to try to get to the audience,” Guiberson said.

Besides having various chapters in Colorado, LPGA-USGA Girls Golf owes some of its organizational success to a Coloradan, former USGA president Judy Bell, a Colorado Springs resident. Bell facilitated the link-up between the LPGA Foundation and the USGA.

“She was of our advocate with the USGA,” said Nancy Henderson, president of the LPGA Foundation. “She was the one who said the USGA needed to partner with us on this program. Since then, we couldn’t have asked for a better partnership. It not only adds credibility, but to have a presence at the U.S. Women’s Open means so much to us.”

Nowadays, about 300 communities around the country have LPGA-USGA Girls Golf programs. The initiative, which took form in 1989, has directly affected several big-name players, including one-time participants Brittany Lincicome and Morgan Pressel, both prominent LPGA Tour players.

Accompanying the post was a photo of Jervey’s badge as a rules official at the 2011 Masters. In all, she served in that capacity in four Masters, from 2008 through ’11.

But even without visiting Augusta National, this spring — and summer — will be eventful for Jervey. On May 31 at Pinehurst Country Club, she’ll receive the Distinguished Service Award from the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame. (To see all those who will be honored that night, CLICK HERE.) Then on Sept. 4, Jervey plans to marry Scott Whitcomb, director of field operations for the Massachusetts Golf Association.

Indeed, change has been the norm for Jervey since the beginning of 2014 after a lot of stability during her time in Colorado. A little more than a year ago, she ended her 22-year run as the CWGA’s executive director, with former USGA regional affairs director Ann Guiberson replacing her at the CWGA helm. Then she relocated to the East Coast, where she grew up, and started her new job as director of event management for JBC Golf — and the Legends Tour, the 45-and-over LPGA senior circuit.

“I didn’t know what to expect stepping into it,” Jervey said in a phone interview this week while fighting some traffic in the Boston area. “Personally it’s been terrific with my fiance here and my parents (in the area) six months a year. Professionally, working for a woman-owned business (JBC was founded by former LPGA player Jane Blalock) with a small, all-female staff is the same dynamic as with the CWGA. But the job is quite different.”

Jervey manages operations for the Legends Tour, which this year features 10 tournaments from March through November, with stops in Arizona, Florida (four), Georgia, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Jervey’s new hometown of Plymouth, Mass. (Note: Starting in 2018, many Legends Tour players will be competing in the new U.S. Senior Women’s Open, conducted by the USGA for competitors 50 and older.)

For the Legends Tour, Jervey handles everything from shipping loads of equipment from site to site, to setting up offices and tents at each venue, to dealing with player hospitality, signage and sometimes an expo area for sponsors, etc., etc.

“Basically all the stuff not inside the ropes,” Jervey said.

Ironically, the one thing Jervey doesn’t handle is Rules of Golf matters at the tournaments. After all, she once scored 100 percent on the Rules test, and she’s officiated at U.S. Opens, U.S. Women’s Opens, U.S. Senior Opens and other USGA national championships, in addition to the Masters.

One aspect of the work Jervey has certainly enjoyed is interacting with the Legends players. For example, the field for last month’s Walgreen’s Charity Classic in Sun City West, Ariz., featured Nancy Lopez, Amy Alcott, Pat Bradley, JoAnne Carner, Juli Inkster, Betsy King, Patty Sheehan, Sandra Haynie, Jan Stephenson, Sandra Palmer and Donna Caponi, among others. Also a regular on the tour is three-time U.S. Women’s Open champion Hollis Stacy, who lived in Lakewood almost two decades and who stayed in Jervey’s home during a Legends event last year.

“It’s neat to get to know people I grew up idolizing,” Jervey said. “And they’re similar to my age. They were huge LPGA players, but you realize they’re just like you and me.

“There’s a fair amount of (interaction) with players. They mingle and hang out at venues. At our Handa Cup event, which is our equivalent of the Solheim Cup, last year I really got to know the players. The event was in a small town in Mississippi and (the group) spent pretty much the whole week together. We were at the club pretty much 24/7. It was fun. They’ve been friendly and welcoming.”

In between stops on the Legends Tour, Jervey will return to her old stomping grounds, with fiance Scott, to accept the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame’s Distinguished Service Award for the impact she made in Colorado golf during her 22-year tenure as the CWGA’s executive director.

“I’ll have a few friends there, and (2015 inductee) Christie Austin is a good friend and I’m sure she’ll get a slew of support. And a lot of her friends are my friends,” said Jervey, who will be making her third trip back to Colorado since leaving the CWGA. “It’ll be nice to see those people. I’m looking forward to it.”

Indeed, though Facebook has made it easier to stay in touch with old friends, co-workers and volunteers in Colorado, Jervey said that not seeing them is one of the things she misses most about no longer being the CWGA executive director. There were also some perks that went by the wayside when she left her position, such as working USGA championships as she had to step away from prominent USGA committees.

“I was given a tremendous opportunity to serve in Colorado and nationally,” said Jervey a former president of the International Association of Golf Administrators. “I was appreciative of that opportunity. It was a wonderful experience.”
 

The choice of Pete Bevacqua as keynote speaker for the second annual G4 Summit wasn’t just serendipitous, but in some ways it seemed ideal given the nature of the gathering.

After all, this was an event designed so that Colorado’s top golf organizations could join forces to combat issues that keep golf from realizing its full potential in the state.

And who better to talk about what can be achieved by teaming up than someone who has held major leadership positions at both the PGA of America and the USGA? Bevacqua has seen the game from both sides — as well as from having been a caddie, a caddiemaster and a golf shop attendant.

Especially given his background, he realizes that organizations staking out territory often is counterproductive, especially when they share the overarching goal of growing the game of golf.

Bevacqua (left) has noted the possibilities when groups such as the PGA of America, the USGA, the PGA and LPGA Tours, and Augusta National collectively attack an issue.

“We all come at it from slightly different angles, but the similarities so vastly outweigh the differences, so what we can do is profound,” he said Tuesday in a speech at the Broadmoor Resort in Colorado Springs. “And I think collaboration is at an all-time high.”

While Bevacqua, now the CEO of the PGA of America, was speaking about the national golf organizations, his words fit just as well on a local level in Colorado.

At the Broadmoor, representatives from the CGA, CWGA, Colorado PGA, the Rocky Mountain Golf Course Superintendents and the Mile High Chapter of the Club Managers Association came together in an effort to help make the game in Colorado take a step or two in the right direction.

And certainly something must have struck a chord for those in the golf industry as about 300 people — up from a little more than 125 last year — attended the second G4 Summit.

“The collaboration is better than it’s ever been,” noted Eddie Ainsworth, executive director of the Colorado PGA. “We’re in control of our future, and I’m excited about it.”

Asked his reaction to how the day played out, CGA executive director Ed Mate said, “I would just say ‘home run’. You plan a day like today — it’s a team effort; it was truly the G4. Really what it shows is when you work together you get better results. … It’s going to be a tough act to follow, frankly, for future years. It was an A-plus.”

The main speakers covered a wide variety of topics, all very important to golf’s future. Hunki Yun, who as director of strategic projects with the USGA helps oversee pace-of-play issues for the organization, detailed that problem and ways to combat it. “The more (data) you have about what’s happening, the better,” he said. “It’s crucial to have control over the system.”

Sandy Cross (left), senior director of diversity and inclusion at the PGA of America, discussed the importance of understanding generational attributes in trying to attract young, middle-aged and older players — as well as both women and men — to the game. “It has dramatic implications for what (golf) is trying to accomplish,” she said. “Marketing must evolve. We have to adapt.”

And some ingrained ideas are simply outmoded, Cross said, citing for example the idea of selecting tee boxes based on gender rather than ability. “That’s deeply flawed. It’s denigrating and not welcoming.”

And Bevacqua not only spoke about the PGA’s strategic plan, but in steps the organization has taken recently to grow the game and become more inclusive. He cited Suzy Whaley becoming the first national female officer of the PGA of America, working with the LPGA to create the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, the national PGA being more open to ideas emanating from the PGA Sections, and PGA programs such as Get Golf Ready, PGA Junior League and the Drive, Chip & Putt Championship.

“It was a great day of education and exchanging information and best practices,” said CWGA executive director Ann Guiberson, who was attending her first G4 Summit after being hired early last spring. “It was very informative, with some top speakers. And I think the mix of speakers appealed to a wide audience.”

Given that nationwide, the National Golf Foundation reports that only about 21 percent of all golfers are women, the CWGA was especially interested in getting Cross’ perspective on growing the game among females. To that end, the CWGA leadership met with Cross to exchange information, ask questions and “get some more ideas as to what we can do to grow women’s golf in Colorado,” Guiberson said.

In addition to the presentations, there was a panel discussion in which Bevacqua, Yun, Cross and J.D. Dockstader, chief business development officer of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, addressed a wide variety of golf industry-related topics (photo at bottom).

While many major hurdles remain for golf, they don’t seem quite as insurmountable when the golf industry throws its collective weight behind trying to implement solutions.

“Combined, we can make golf all it can be,” noted CGA president Phil Lane, who served as an unofficial host at his home club at the Broadmoor.

All in all, what came to fruition Tuesday gave the organizers a sense of satisfaction in taking a noteworthy step forward.

“This is something Ed Mate and I have been passionately working on (along with the CWGA, superintendents and club managers) for several years now,” Ainsworth said. “We are singularly focused on moving the needle together.”

Notable: The CGA provided a sneak preview of its new logo to those in attendance at the G4 Summit. The full-scale public unveiling will be coming shortly. … The Colorado PGA reported the Golf in Schools Program, a joint effort of the Allied Golf Associations in Colorado, has now reached 30,000 kids through P.E. classes over the last five years. … To date, 29 Colorado golf facilities have signed up for PGA Junior League Golf, where the idea is to bring a Little League atmosphere to junior golf competition for boys and girls of all skill levels. … Local qualifiers for the 2015 Drive Chip & Putt Championship will take place in June and July, with a sub-regional planned for CommonGround Golf Course on Aug. 30. The competition is open to boys and girls age 7-15. For a list of the Colorado qualifying sites, CLICK HERE.

Not coincidentally, the inaugural Match Play was conducted the same year the CWGA was founded, 98 years ago.

But with interest dwindling in competing in the oldest continuously-held statewide women’s golf championship in Colorado, CWGA leadership decided to cancel the 2014 CWGA Match Play Championship “due to low entries”. It was scheduled for June 23-26 at Lone Tree Golf Club, with the first round being qualifying to set the match-play bracket.

The CWGA had extended the entry deadline for the Match Play twice, but still had drawn only 43 players between the open-age and senior flights. Last year, 54 started the event. A full field for the Match Play as currently configured would be 96 players. (The CWGA Match Play trophy is pictured above.)

“It’s a traditional championship and historical, but it’s OK to stop and get feedback,” said Ann Guiberson, the CWGA’s new executive director. “It may be time to stop and rebrand.”

Guiberson added that “we want to continue to have it because it’s one of the oldest championships.” But, according to the notice that the CWGA sent to 2014 Match Play entrants, the CWGA Tournament Committee “will further review the format, timing and participation in this championship over the course of this season. We welcome your input.”

Guiberson indicated the numbers simply weren’t there to support a full-scale, multi-flight championship. With 16 players in the open championship-flight bracket and eight in the senior championship flight, a total 19 players would have been left for the non-championship-flight brackets on the open and senior side.

“It’s just in fairness to the players and the (Lone Tree) club,” Guiberson said. “You’ve got to take into consideration the course; they would have lost tremendous revenue.”

Looking forward, the CWGA will consider how heavily it promotes the championship, and how it’s presented. There are two champions crowned — open division and seniors — “but it’s presented as one,” Guiberson noted.

There’s also the issue of timing. The CWGA Match Play was scheduled to be contested just two weeks after a very popular team match play event — the just-completed CWGA Mashie, which drew 192 competitors.

“Are they too close?” Guiberson asked. “We have to look in relation to other events.”

Colorado Sports Hall of Famer Joan Birkland, a four-time winner of the CWGA Match Play in the 1960s, admits she doesn’t know why competitor interest in the championship is dropping, but she has a guess. “The players of college golf age are so good that older players figure it’s not worth playing,” she said.

The last open-division CWGA Match Play champion who won when she was 25 or older was Kim Eaton in 2004.

Among the most successful players all-time in the CWGA Match Play, Phyllis Buchanan won six times in the 1930s, and Birkland, Marcia Bailey and Carol Flenniken claimed the title four times each in the 1960s and ’70s.

Players who entered the 2014 Match Play will receive a full refund.
 

That’s certainly been the case with Colorado golf since Schwartz was awarded a P.J. Boatwright internship in 2004, working for the CGA’s Youth Programs Department. And after one year away from the golf business, she joined the CWGA staff, where she’s been a fixture for more than eight years.

But that run will end this week — Friday, to be precise — when Schwartz will leave the CWGA to become an association account manager for Interactive Management Incorporated. IMI — whose CEO, Gary Leeper, is executive director of the Rocky Mountain Golf Course Superintendents Association — performs executive, management and administrative functions for trade and professional associations.

“I saw it as a great way to advance my career and get some different experience,” said Schwartz, director of member programs for the CWGA, who’s also done similar work in the last year for the CGA. “Also, it’s closer to home (she lives in Firestone and will work in Westminster). That was a huge reason after just getting married last year. Life changes, and it will definitely make things a lot easier on my family to be closer to home. It’ll allow me to spend more time with my family.”

Schwartz becomes the third member of the full-time CWGA staff to depart this year, following executive director Robin Jervey and tournament and junior golf operations manager Kelley Mawhinney. New CWGA executive director Ann Guiberson, who formally came on staff April 1, said on Saturday that the association is “trying to reorganize the staff and what we do now, and see what we can do to bring in some additional staff. We’re right at the beginning of looking into that.”

Schwartz has played an integral role the last several years in the CWGA’s push to get more women into the game through social golf events. This year, the association has partnered with a variety of courses and the PGA Tour Superstore in scheduling more than three-dozen such events: CLICK HERE. Schwartz helped solidify those partnerships and the CWGA’s social golf efforts in general.

“We’ll definitely miss Kim and her great innovation and enthusiasm for women’s golf and the CWGA,” Guiberson said.

Jervey, who hired Schwartz during her 22-year run as the CWGA’s executive director, likewise believes the association is losing a very valuable asset.

“She is a very creative and talented young woman and will be sorely missed,” Jervey said in a text. “The departures of Kelley and now Kim for personal reasons creates a huge void on the staff. It will take some time to identify, hire and develop the technical skills needed.”

Schwartz played college golf at the University of Wyoming and she majored in marketing and minored in public relations and communications. So what’s she’s done at the CWGA — and what she will do at IMI — are right in her wheel-house.

“I’m extremely proud of getting the (Women’s Golf) Experiences off the ground and getting momentum and building partnerships with these other social golf events,” she said. “I feel like I’m most proud that I’ve made golf accessible for women. I’ve increased membership for the CWGA because of that. My efforts have made a big impact. I’ve helped women enjoy something positive in their lives.”

(Schwartz is pictured above, at right, during last weekend’s Women’s Golf Experience in Westminster.)

Before becoming director of member programs for the CWGA, Schwartz served as director of rules and competitions for the association, then as assistant executive director.

“The golf community is a family in itself, but I don’t see those relationships going away,” she said. “I feel like I can have relationships with the golf community even if I’m not working in it. I’m definitely going to miss all the relationships and the memories. But it’s one of those things where sometimes you need to change.”