But some years have more change than others. And 2017 figures to be one of those “more change than usual” years for the Denver Golf Expo, which will be held for the 24th time.

Let’s hit upon some of the significant alterations for this winter’s show, which will be held Feb. 10-12 at the Denver Mart (58th and I-25):

— After two years of the Expo being held in the second half of February, the show will be moved up 10 days or so, to its more traditional dates. And with no conflict with the Super Bowl or Valentine’s Day, Expo owner and operator Mark Cramer hopes a boost in attendance is in the works — assuming the weather cooperates.

“We’re expecting a huge year on attendance — fingers crossed,” he said last week. “We had two brutal years (due to a snowstorm in 2015 and unseasonably warm temperatures last year). And we’re back to the week after the Super Bowl. Traditionally, that’s been good dates for us — and good Expo weather. Hopefully, there’s pent-up demand.”

The last two years, the three-day show has attracted 7,195 (2015) and 8,130 people (2016). That’s not up to the Expo’s traditional norm. The show has hit five figures, attendance-wise, on several occasions, with the all-time high being 11,202 in 2008.

— As far as activities at the Denver Golf Expo, some of the biggest changes fall under the purview of the CGA. A two-day Rules of Golf Workshop was a fixture at the Expo for years, but was discontinued after 2010. However, it’s back this year, on Feb. 11-12, and as of last week the event was virtually a sellout via pre-registration. Among those scheduled to speak at the Rules Workshop are Mark Passey from the USGA, CWGA and USGA rules official Karla Harding, and various CGA officials.

“The (workshop) has been a complete home run. It’s big for us to bring that back,” said Dustin Jensen, managing director of operations for the CGA.

Also during the Expo, the CGA is helping member clubs transition to the USGA’s new Tournament Management software.

Meanwhile, gone this year from the Expo is the CGA Used Club Sale, which had proven to be quite a labor-intensive endeavor. Instead, the CGA will focus on the Rules Workshop and engagement with members and potential members at the Expo. Filling the Used Club Sale’s usual spot at the Denver Mart will be a minature golf area, adjacent to Junior Golf Central. The CGA and the Colorado PGA, founding partners of the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado, will team up for junior golf-related efforts at the Expo, most notably Junior Golf Central, which will have a “Drive Chip & Putt” theme again this year.

— The Colorado PGA’s free 10-minute lesson area, which had long been a fixture near the back of the Expo area, will move much close to the entrance this year for the first time, between the seminar stage and Junior Golf Central. Taking the space the PGA instruction area/Junior Golf Central formerly occupied will be the First Tee of Denver’s pitching contest.

The list of seminars that will be conducted by Colorado PGA members, CGA officials and others are listed below.

— Among the new exhibitors at the Expo this year will be the 2018 U.S. Senior Open, set for The Broadmoor Golf Club in Colorado Springs. The Senior Open will mark the first USGA championship held in Colorado since the 2012 U.S. Amateur.

Meanwhile, here’s what’s planned at the CGA and CWGA booths, both located near the front entrance of the Expo:

CGA: With the CGA launching a new-look website with additional features during Expo week, the association will be informing Expo visitors about its new online “Member Zone”, which will go live with the new website. The Member Zone will give members access to discounts and special offers related to golf, travel, and business products and services. Among the businesses participating in the Member Zone will be Office Depot, Avis and Budget, Wyndham Hotels and Imperial, which will offer CGA headwear.

CGA members who stop by the association’s Expo booth will receive a goodie bag. Those who join the CGA for the first time during the Expo can spin a prize wheel for larger gifts, including complimentary golf at the associaton-owned CommonGround Golf Course.

CWGA: The CWGA, which launched a new website of its own at the very end of 2016, will roll out an expanded lineup of CWGA Experience events at the Expo. Experience events, which debuted in 2010, provide female golfers with high-quality group instruction from LPGA and/or PGA professionals in a friendly and welcoming environment. Featured are separate sessions on full swing, chipping, putting, and basic of the Rules of Golf, along with lunch.

This year, for the first time, five CWGA Experience events are planned: May 13 at Overland Golf Course in Denver, May 20 at Pelican Lakes in Windsor, June 3 at Tiara Rado in Grand Junction, July 8 at City Park in Denver, and Aug. 6 at Fossil Trace in Golden.

“The feedback from all the Experiences has been wonderful,” said CWGA executive director Laura Robinson. “We’re trying to broaden our reach to new golfers, and the Experience is a great way to do that.”

At the Expo, the CWGA will be holding a raffle in which the winner and a friend can attend a CWGA Experience event for free.

The CWGA is also kicking off fundraising — through the sale of its centennial water bottles — for the 2018 Girls Junior America’s Cup, which the association will host at Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen.

Generally speaking at the Expo, “We’re looking to have a large presence to encourage more women to play golf,” Robinson said.

Cramer loves that the major golf associations in the state buy into the Denver Golf Expo so wholeheartedly.

“We’re so blessed to have the people that we have here, with the (PGA) Section, the CGA, the Junior Golf Alliance and the CWGA,” Cramer said.

This year’s Expo will feature a grand prize — valued at $9,000 — of a trip for four to Bandon Dunes in Oregon. Attendees that register will be automatically entered in the grand prize drawing.

Denver Golf Expo
Highlights, Essentials for 2017 Show

What: 24th annual Denver Golf Expo.

When: Feb. 10-12.
 Open Friday, Feb. 10, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
 Saturday, Feb. 11, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
 Sunday, Feb. 12, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Where: Denver Mart (58th Ave., just east of I-25).

Tickets:
Adults, $13; Seniors, $11; Military/Vets with I.D., $11; Kids 16 and Under, $3.
Available at King Soopers and by CLICKING HERE, or the Denver Mart during Expo days.

Scheduled Educational Seminars:
— Using your Wedge the Way It Was Designed (Nathan Morris, GolfTEC), Friday 10:15-10:45 a.m.
— Taking Your Game the Extra Degree (Ty Walker, GolfTEC), Friday 11-11:30 a.m.
— Rules of Golf Explained (CGA), Friday noon-12:30 p.m.
— Swing TRU Motion Study: The Most Comprehensive Fact-Based Swing Study Ever Conducted (Nick Clearwater, GolfTEC), Friday 1-1:30 p.m.
— Ground Force, For More Speed (Jason Witczak, Green Valley Ranch GC), Friday 2-2:30 p.m.
— Ground Force, For More Speed (Jason Witczak, Green Valley Ranch GC), Saturday 10:15-10:45 a.m.
— Rules of Golf Explained (CGA), Saturday noon-12:30 p.m.
— Plan, Think and Work Your Way to Better Golf (Doug Wherry, Jake’s Academy), Saturday, 1-1:30 p.m.
— Live Lesson with Audience Member (Trent Wearner, Trent Wearner Golf Academy), Saturday, 2-2:30 p.m.
— Why Your Ball Curves and What You Need to Do to Fix It (Trent Wearner, Trent Wearner Golf Academy), Sunday 10:15-10:45 a.m.
— Ground Force, For More Speed (Jason Witczak, Green Valley Ranch GC), Sunday 11-11:30 a.m.
— Swing Like a Girl — How to Get More Distance Off the Tee (Alex Phillips), Sunday, noon-12:30 p.m.
— How Does Your Body Really Work for Golf (Doug Wherry, Jake’s Academy), Sunday 1-1:30 p.m.

Major Colorado Golf Organization Booths: CGA #1215; CWGA #1218; Colorado Golf Hall of Fame #1306-1308; the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado #1330.

Junior Golf Central, including the Drive Chip & Putt activities, will be located immediately to the right upon descending the stairs from the main entrance to the Expo. The area where Colorado PGA professionals will give free 10-minute lessons to all interested Expo attendees is adjacent to Junior Golf Central.

For a full list of exhibitors, CLICK HERE. 

Expo floorplan: CLICK HERE. 

For more information: CLICK HERE.  

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.”
 

But as she noted at this month’s Denver Golf Expo, she doesn’t consider any of those things her favorite memory regarding the game.

“My greatest memory in golf to this day is walking nine holes with my mom (while) carrying a bag on my back,” Mallon said. “I want every kid and every parent to have that experience.”

Like most people in the golf business, Mallon has seen the worrisome statistics about golf participation trends, especially among females and junior players. According to the National Golf Foundation, the number of female golfers in the U.S. has dropped more than 27 percent, from 7 million in 2005 to 5.1 million in 2011. And the number of junior golfers in the country decreased more than 36 percent (3.8 million to 2.4 million) over the same period.

That’s certainly concerning to those in the golf industry — and really anyone who cares about the game. (So are declines among men since 2005, but those have been significantly less pronounced.)

So how can these trends be reversed, and more girls and women be successfully welcomed into the game?

“Access, access, access,” said Mallon, the American captain for the Solheim Cup that will be contested at Colorado Golf Club in August. “We need to open up our facilities, our golf courses, to get kids more involved. We see countries like Korea and Sweden and now China — it’s all about kids playing golf. This country has not embraced that as much as they should.

“I’m biased. It’s the greatest game in the world. It teaches ethics, morals, the right thing to do, how to get along with people. What greater avenue (than) to teach children the game of golf? So we need to, as adults, make sure that that happens.

“… It’s a hard game. It’s a time-consuming game. You have to give the kids the love of the game so they want to be out there playing. … Make golf fun. It’s not supposed to be like going to the dentist.”

This is also a major issue in Colorado, especially to organizations like the CWGA, CGA, CJGA and the Colorado PGA. Not surprisingly, making inroads in attracting girls and women to the game — or back to the game — will be one of the major themes at Saturday’s CWGA Annual Meeting at the Inverness Hotel. And there are numerous initiatives and efforts designed to combat the problematic trends.

“The goal is to promote women’s golf and grow women’s golf,” said Kim Nissen, membership programs and marketing manager for the CWGA.

“We’re trying to make (the game) as inviting as we possibly can,” said Eddie Ainsworth, executive director of the Colorado PGA, noting that it’s OK to play three or six holes of golf instead of the more traditional nine or 18. “We believe once we get them there, the golf bug will bite them.”

Here are some of the programs and plans that major golf organizations in Colorado hope will make inroads in building a strong foundation in golf with girls and women:

— The Colorado PGA, CWGA and other local organizations will put on a Girls Golf Fair on May 11 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at CommonGround Golf Course. The free event is for girls age 5-17 and their families, and is billed as “a fun-filled event geared to energize junior girls about the game of golf.”

The day — also sponsored by the CGA, LPGA-USGA Girls Golf, The First Tee at Green Valley Ranch and Girl Power Golf — will include family golf instruction, education on the Rules of Golf and etiquette, lunch and nutrition information, Solheim Cup-related fun and photos, sun protection and fitness tips, games and exhibitions.

— The CWGA continues to significantly expand its social golf outings, designed to attract women more interested in the game as a social activity rather than as competition. This year, there are nine such late afternoon/evening outings planned — seven “Ladies Nights Out” at the Greg Mastriona Golf Courses at Hyland Hills, and one similar event each at Foothills Golf Course and Meridian Golf Club. The activities usually include short clinics or instruction, some playing time on the golf course, help from the CWGA on rules and etiquette, and a get-together with food and/or beverages after. For more details, CLICK HERE.

In addition, a larger number of CWGA Experience outings (four) will be offered this year, all in the spring, with ones in Aurora, Colorado Springs, Thornton and Grand Junction. Experience events include group lessons from LPGA and/or PGA professionals — with rotating instructional areas, each focusing on a different area of the game — lunch and welcome gifts and prizes. For more details, CLICK HERE.

— Seeing many of the best women’s golfers in the world up close and personal is sure to inspire some girls and women, and help increase the game’s reach. That’s where this summer’s Solheim Cup matches between the U.S. and Europe at Colorado Golf Club could make a difference. And helping facilitate that will be the fact that kids 17 and under will be admitted to the event free of charge when accompanied by a ticketed adult.

— The Colorado PGA Golf in Schools program, a joint initiative with the CGA, CWGA and other organizations, continues to expand its reach in bringing golf to students through P.E. classes at their schools. Ainsworth said the Colorado PGA has partnered with P.E. teacher Kenny Webb in the effort, “and the things he’s teaching us on how kids learn is phenomenal. What we’re modeling here in Colorado will go across the country. I like to call us the tip of the spear in what we’re doing with growth of the game.”

— The CWGA has added a new membership identification that will help the association reach out to new golfers for education purposes. Handicap chairpersons at women’s clubs can note an “N” membership type on the Golf Handicap and Information Network (GHIN). Then the CWGA can send these “N” members periodic communication regarding etiquette, the Rules of Golf, and handicap system tips and information. The idea is to make newer women golfers feel more comfortable with the game.

— The Colorado PGA has created a new full-time position — funded by the Colorado PGA Foundation — with the title of junior development director. Erin (Hall) Diegel, a graduate of the Evans Caddie Scholarship program at the University of Colorado and a former CU women’s golfer, will fill the new position, which also will encompass other matters related to women’s and girls golf. Diegel founded Girl Power Golf, which Ainsworth said will be rolled into a Colorado PGA program.

— A “Connecting With Her” Committee” has been formed by the Colorado PGA, which is receiving input from groups such as the CWGA, the Executive Women’s Golf Association and Sassy Golf. And, in trying to build the partnership between women’s clubs and PGA professionals, the CWGA has asked the Colorado PGA’s new director of player development, Keith Soriano, to conduct one of the breakout sessions at Saturday’s CWGA Annual Meeting.

“We’re trying to give women’s clubs reasons to enhance their relationships with their PGA professionals,” Nissen said.

Nissen, meanwhile, will join with Metropolitan State University professor Kathy Malpass in conducting a breakout session on how women’s clubs and leagues can attract new membership. Another breakout will include discussion on how fitness workshops and camps can help add golfers to women’s clubs. And club presidents will share practices that have proven effective in attracting new members and retaining them.

Meanwhile, the Colorado PGA is also partnering with the Solheim Cup in an effort to get more businesswomen involved in the game, and related efforts.

— On a local level in Colorado Springs, the Colorado PGA is planning to work with girls high school golf programs, with PGA and LPGA professionals partnering with coaches. The idea is for the professionals to provide golf instruction, while the coaches focus on the coaching and organizational parts of the job.

In a related matter, Ainsworth said “we’re probably going to look at eventually lobbying to move girls high school golf from the spring” to the fall because of the more-advantageous weather and course conditions.
 

But there’s also another set of annual CWGA events that’s been growing rapidly in recent years.

With the association putting an increased emphasis on the social side of golf, this year it has a dozen social events on the calendar, starting with the CWGA Night at the PGA Tour Superstore on Wednesday (April 4).

The CWGA Night, open to members and prospective members alike, will run from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Tour Superstore in Greenwood Village, located at 9451 E. Arapahoe Road. The event will include door prizes, discounts, light food and refreshments, Rules of Golf and etiquette sessions provided by CWGA staff, putting tips from the Superstore’s Jerry Walters, and information on upcoming CWGA events.

It’s an ideal lead-in to an expanded social golf schedule for the CWGA.

“Women’s golf is very social in nature,” said Kim Nissen, assistant executive director for the CWGA. “We want to get women playing and keep them playing and having fun. That’s the big push.”

It’s no secret that golf in general is facing plenty of challenges in trying to grow the game. And, based on what the National Golf Foundation reports, it’s especially challenging regarding women’s golf. The NGF says that the number of female golfers in the U.S. dropped about 23 percent from 2005 to 2010.

A number of initiatives, including the PGA of America’s Golf 2.0 and Get Golf Ready, have been developed to try to give golf a jumpstart, and the CWGA aims to assist in those growth-of-the-game efforts on the female side.

The association figures it can make some inroads by attracting women to the game who have no interest in competing or in having a USGA handicap, but who would enjoy the social aspects of the game.

Two years ago, the CWGA began pushing its social golf initiatives, including offering a less costly Affiliate membership for women who don’t want a USGA handicap but are interested in the benefits and discounts that CWGA membership provides. These days, those social-golf efforts have increased several fold.

— This year, the association will expand its CWGA Experience (pictured above) to include stops across the state. The Experience features women-only group golf instruction (full swing, chipping and putting) conducted by LPGA and PGA professionals, along with some socializing over food and refreshments.

The association will hold three CWGA Experience events this year and will take the Experience to the Western Slope for the first time. On the calendar are CWGA Experiences May 5 at CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora, and May 19 at both the Country Club of Colorado in Colorado Springs and Bookcliff Country Club in Grand Junction.

To sign up for the CWGA Experience, CLICK HERE.

— Eight CWGA Nine-Hole Social Golf Outings will be held from June through early September at courses throughout the metro Denver area. The casual outings are scheduled after work so as to attract women who are too busy to make it during the day.

The Social Golf Outings are planned for June 21 at the Green Valley Ranch par-3 in Denver (in conjunction with a clinic conducted by Lana Ortega); June 27 at The Homestead in Lakewood; July 12 at Heritage Todd Creek in Thornton; July 18 at Saddleback in Firestone (in conjunction with a clinic conducted by Scott Sommers); Aug. 9 at Emerald Greens par-3 in Denver; Aug. 23 at the Kennedy par-3 and West Nine in Denver; Aug. 30 at the Columbine par-3 in Littleton; and Sept. 4 at South Suburban Family Sports in Centennial.

Between the CWGA Experience events and Social Golf Outings, the association hopes its Affiliate membership continues to grow. More than four times as many Affiliate members signed up in 2011 compared to 2010, and CWGA officials hope for another jump this year.

“We’re obviously picking up some momentum,” Nissen said.

In addition, the CWGA is planning to help others in the golf business in their efforts to promote the game. For instance, Nissen said the association will soon be sending out letters to all Colorado-based LPGA and PGA professionals offering to help them promote instructional events, tournaments etc., by distributing information through the CWGA’s database, which includes more than 18,000 people.