A year after the USGA and R&A proposed changes that would modernize, simplify and streamline the Rules of Golf — and after a subsequent six-month comment period — a final set of Rules were announced on Monday that will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2019.

Three current or former CGA staffers serve on the USGA Rules of Golf Committee which played a key role in the Rules modernization process — CGA executive director Ed Mate and former CGA staff members Thomas Pagel and Pete Lis. Pagel is the USGA’s senior director of rules and amateur status, and Lis is the manager of rules and competition for the LPGA.

It turns out that the six-month period of public feedback — which resulted in about 30,000 comments — did have an effect, leading to a few changes to what was proposed on March 1, 2017.

“I think it was handled masterfully,” Mate said of the whole process. “The USGA was in a damned if we do and damned if we don’t situation. But they gave a legitimate chance for people to comment, and they listened and responded (with some alterations). It wasn’t just wink, wink.”

For instance:

— Instead of allowing ball drops from any height — as was proposed a year ago — what will be implemented is dropping from knee height.

“A number of comments we received from all levels of the game wanted to see a certain amount of randomness maintained so that when you drop a ball, you’re not sure what kind of lie you’re going to get,” Pagel said. “But how do you ensure that randomness? Do you take it back to shoulder height? It was really about finding a balance of maintaining that randomness while also allowing the player to identify a relief area, drop there as quick as possible and play on.”

— And instead of taking relief in a given situation based on 20- or 80-inch measurements — which was proposed — the rule will be one club length for free relief and two for a drop with a penalty.

“I think of all the changes, that one is the real concrete example of we listened,” Pagel said. “This feedback period, we were sincere in asking for people’s views. Because the fixed measures, philosophically, make total sense, but from a practical standpoint with people saying ‘I’m scratching my head a little bit. I’m not sure how I’m going to measure this,’ we had to step back and say, ‘OK let’s change.’ “¦ It’s a lot easier if I just use my club length. And so we just went back to the drawing board.”

In addition, there are other tweaks since the proposed rules announcement from last year:

— There will be no penalty for accidentally double hitting a ball on a given stroke — a la T.C. Chen at the 1985 U.S. Open. Instead, the player will simply count the stroke made to hit the ball, and the ball will be played as it lies.

— Also, there’s a new local rule that will be available — but not for professional or elite-level amateur play — in which a golfer can drop a ball in the vicinity of where it went out of bounds or was lost, incurring a two-stroke penalty instead of the current stroke-and-distance. That local rule is designed to speed up recreational play.

“This addresses the issue you hear at the club level about the practical nature of going back and playing under stroke and distance that just doesn’t work. It has a negative impact on pace of play, and so how can we introduce something to resolve that? That’s what this local rule is about,” Pagel said. “You simply estimate where it’s out of bounds or where your ball is likely to be lost, you can go all the way out to the fairway and drop anywhere behind. “¦ But the primary objective here is to keep the player moving forward, and we think that’s the real benefit of this.”

There’s also a new unplayable ball relief option in which a player may take relief outside a bunker by dropping a ball back on the line from the hole through where the ball was at rest in the sand — with a penalty of two strokes.

The biggest topic broached in the public comment period reportedly was golfers asking for relief when their ball is in a divot. But no changes were made in that area.

“One of the primary objectives for the overall initiative is to make the rules easier to understand and apply, but to also make sure we maintained the traditions and principles behind the game,” Pagel said. “And the principles are to play the ball as it lies and the course as you find it. So to write a rule that allows a player to sort of deviate from that was not something we were wanting to do.”

Among the previously announced proposed rule changes that will go into effect on Jan. 1 — part of what the USGA calls the biggest Rules overhaul since at least 1984:

— Searches for a lost ball will be limited to three minutes rather than the current five.

— A caddie will no longer be allowed to line up a player.

— There will be no penalty if a ball you hit strikes you, your caddie, or your equipment.

— There will be no penalty for a ball — struck on the putting green — hitting the unattended flag in the hole.

— Spike marks and almost all other damage on a green can be repaired. But note: existing pace-of-play rules will remain in place.

— A club can be grounded and loose impediments removed in a penalty area.

— Loose impediments can be moved in a bunker;.

— There will be no penalty for accidentally moving your ball while searching for it or for accidentally moving your ball or ball marker when it’s on the putting green.”¨

All told, starting next year there will be 24 rules instead of 34 thanks to this rules modernization process, which began in 2012.

“It was a fascinating process in which I had a chance to provide some input and that I had an opportunity to preview,” said Mate, who noted that he tried to always keep in mind that he served on the USGA Rules of Golf Committee as a representive of state and regional golf associations. “The modernization is still golf. None of the changes that were made fundamentally change the game. Some thoughtful, intuitive things have been added.

“It’s been awesome being part of this. When Thomas Pagel called me to serve (starting in the fall of 2015), I would have been thrilled to death if that call came in any year, as someone who’s studied the Rules as long as I have. But to be in the room when those things were discussed, and when the most significant rewrite of the Rules (in a long time) was being done, is incredible. We’re not talking about changing decisions; this was a fundamental rewrite. Everything was being challenged. I much prefer coversations of ‘why’, which is what this was. I’ll always cherish being a part of it.”

For more information from the USGA on the Rules changes, CLICK HERE. And for the USGA Rules page, CLICK HERE.
 

With Wednesday’s joint announcement by the two governing bodies about detailed proposed changes to the Rules that are planned to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2019, Mate could provide an insider’s perspective on the overhaul process that’s taken place.

After all, the CGA executive director — along with former CGA staffers Thomas Pagel and (just recently) Pete Lis — serve on the USGA Rules of Golf Committee, which is on the ground floor of the proposed changes that were announced on Wednesday.

“It’s exciting to finally have the duct tape off my mouth because I’ve been sworn to secrecy the last two years,” Mate said on Wednesday. “This is a lot of fun and pretty cool.”

The initial stages of the Rules modernization project predate Mate joining the USGA Rules of Golf Committee in 2015, but he’s been intimately involved in the process since then.

Among the changes that are proposed for 2019 implementation: searches for a lost ball would be limited to three minutes rather than the current five; players could drop a ball from any height rather than the current shoulder height; a caddie would no longer be allowed to line up a player; there would be no penalty if a ball you hit struck you, your caddie, or your equipment; also, no penalty would result for a ball — struck on the putting green — hitting the flag in the hole; spike marks and almost all other damage on a green could be repaired; a club could be grounded and loose impediments removed in a penalty area; loose impediments could also be moved in a bunker; there would be no penalty for accidentally moving your ball while searching for it or for accidentally moving your ball or ball marker when it’s on the putting green.

For more detail and specifics, CLICK HERE.

“The overriding theme is that we were hearing from golfers at all levels that the Rules were just complex (and) they were hard to understand,” said Pagel, the USGA’s senior director of rules and amateur status. “We are listening. The Rules have become dense and, for many, too confusing.”

Mate likewise welcomes the whole Rules modernization effort.

“I just think it’s really exciting,” Mate said. “This is historic. It’s never happened where the USGA and the R&A have come out and said, ‘What do you think?’ Never has there been a more cool opportunity because the game needs to be more approachable. What better way to do it than say, ‘We want your input.’ The USGA is looking for your feedback — good, bad or otherwise.”

By midday on Wednesday, Mate had already talked to numerous golfers about the proposed changes.

“The excitement people have and the passion they have to know that the Rules are really going to be more approachable … Those people are more engaged,” he said. “It will be interesting to see how much confusion there is over, ‘All right, when do these take effect?’ This is a long time (until 2019). This isn’t (the same as the process that led to the banning of) anchoring. Everybody knew that it was probably a fait accompli that anchoring was going to go away, but it was a way to ease people into it. This is the opposite. (People may think) ‘I don’t want to ease into these; I want to start now.’ So it’ll be interesting to me to see how much pressure the USGA and the R&A get to move up that date from 2019 to 2018. In the meantime maybe what will end up happening, rather than that, is clubs will start adopting them right now. They’ll say, ‘We’re playing by the 2019 Rule book.'”

Overall, what was announced on Wednesday “is unprecedented and it’s in step with the times,” Mate added. “The term ‘modernization’ is a great global label to put on this project. It’s also modern from the standpoint of giving the game a new face. The new USGA (is) more player-friendly and actually cares what you might think. Instead of keeping these things under wraps — secrecy and ivory tower — they’re being brought down to you, every golfer in America. So it’s really cool.”
 

The U.S., Canada, The Bahamas, Brazil, Scotland, England, France, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, China, Thailand and Australia.

And if he’s forgotten a nation or two, that’s understandable. Things can become a bit of a blur when racking up frequent-flyer miles at roughly a six-figure-per-year pace.

But now, his command of the Rules of Golf will bring him back home in a sense — to a place where he laid his foundation in the golf business. You see, for a decade before being hired by the LPGA, Lis worked for the CGA, spending the last seven years of that stint as the association’s director of rules and competitions.

And now, after being named by the LPGA late last year to serve as its liaison on the powerful USGA Rules of Golf Committee, Lis will attend his first committee meeting in about three weeks as part of the USGA Annual Meeting in Washington D.C. And though the business at hand will be very important — with the Rules modernization and simplification project going full throttle — it will be a “family” reunion of sorts. After all, three of the roughly dozen committee members worked at the CGA together a decade ago — Ed Mate (who remains the CGA’s executive director), Thomas Pagel (currently the USGA’s senior director of Rules of Golf and Amateur Status) and Lis (a manager of rules and competition for the LPGA Tour).

“On a personal level, I take great pride in that,” Mate said last month. “For a long time, Colorado has had strong representation with the USGA. And it’s nice because you can be candid with friends.”

Indeed, among the other Coloradans in recent decades who have served on the USGA Rules of Golf Committee are Will Nicholson Jr., M.J. Mastalir, Jim Bunch, Robin Jervey and Christie Austin. Nicholson, Mastalir, Bunch and Austin have all chaired the committee, with Austin being the first woman to have done so.

Both Mate and Lis serve as “advisory members” of the committee, with Mate representing state and regional golf associations and Lis the LPGA.

“It’s a unique and unbeliebable opportunity,” Lis said in a phone interview last month. “I remember when Ed, Thomas and I would talk Rules at a mediocre level (while with the CGA). Now, I’ll be sitting there with those guys and some of the best Rules minds in the world. Hopefully I’ll have an opportunity to provide a little insight and help out.

“I’m excited to do it. I’m sure there will be a little nerves about when to speak up. But I’m there as an LPGA liaison. Hopefully I can help them from the tour’s perspective.”

Lis and Mate, both relative newcomers to the Rules of Golf Committee (Mate joined in the fall of 2015), have come on board at a key time as the USGA and R&A are in the midst of a special project designed to simplify and clarify the Rules of Golf. The new Local Rule that eliminates the penalty when a ball is accidentally moved on the putting green is a working example of the simplification.

For Lis, filling a role on the USGA Rules Committee is a good fit, given his current role with the LPGA, his former role with the CGA, and his long association with the USGA.

What does it say about the CGA to have three current or former staffers now serving on one of the golf world’s top rule-making bodies?

“It goes back to Ed Mate and what a great leader he’s been,” Lis said. “You look at the entire staff and where people have gone. He did a great job challenging us. It was the same with Thomas (Pagel).

“It’s an honor. All of Colorado in general has had good representation on the committee with M.J., Christie, Will and Jim Bunch.”

These days, Lis said he works about 25 LPGA Tour-related events each year, putting him on the road about 29 weeks with the preparation involved. (He’s pictured above, in green, alongside Stacy Lewis at the 2013 Solheim Cup at Colorado Golf Club in Parker.) Last year, one of the events he worked was in Brazil for the women’s Olympic tournament, which (along with the men’s competition) marked the return of Olympic golf after a 112-year hiatus.

“It was much better than it was billed,” Lis said of the Summer Games. “I didn’t see one mosquito. It was cool to be a small part of history. I was fortunate to walk with Shanshan Feng (of China), the bronze medal winner. And I had the distinction of (giving out) the first pace of play penalty in the Olympics — to a Brazilian player, unfortunately. But I managed to get out of there alive.”

All told, Lis doesn’t mind all the travel he does for work.

“I really enjoy going to all the places,” said Lis, who is based in the Milwaukee area along with his girlfriend, Kelley Mawhinney, a former CWGA tournament and junior golf operations manager. “Fifteen hours (traveling overseas) is a long trip, but it’s a pretty special opportunity.

“I love what I do. I love the interaction with players, volunteers and staff. I feel the exact same at the LPGA as I did with the CGA. We’re all brothers and sisters. It doesn’t feel like a job, but kind of a traveling circus.”
  

The headline was in reaction to the USGA and R&A’s joint announcement that, starting Jan. 1, a new Local Rule can be implemented to eliminate the penalty when a ball or ball marker is accidentally moved on the putting green.

The Local Rule will be utilized by the top tours around the world and at all USGA and R&A championships, qualifying tournaments and their international matches. It’s expected that many tournament committees — including at the course/club level — will likewise enact the new Local Rule, which has a good chance of becoming part of the Rules of Golf when the next edition is issued.

The Local Rule could affect many golfers — from those who compete in events at their local courses or clubs, to the highest level of tournament play. And it also has an additional local angle given that CGA executive director Ed Mate and former CGA staffer — and current USGA senior director of Rules of Golf and Amateur Status — Thomas Pagel both serve on the USGA Rules of Golf Committee, which reviews such matters very carefully before any such changes are announced.

Of course, last week’s announcement directly addresses situations such as the one that occurred in this year’s U.S. Open, where Dustin Johnson’s ball moved slightly on the fifth green at Oakmont Country Club during the final round as he was preparing to address it. As the pertinent rule indicated at the time, if the weight of evidence indicates it’s more likely than not that a player caused the ball to move, then a penalty must be assessed.

Johnson notified a USGA official and told him he didn’t believe he caused the ball to move, but after other officials reviewed close-up video, DJ was notified on the 12th hole that the matter would be settled after the round. That, of course, left things in limbo for both Johnson and the rest of the competitors. But despite a one-stroke penalty being assessed after the round, Johnson still won by three. That didn’t stop a torrent of criticism regarding the USGA’s handling of the matter.

“For a long time this summer, it’s all people (in the golf community) wanted to talk about,” Mate noted on Friday. “So yes, there was a ton of feedback. Everyone, including the USGA, agrees it was handled poorly. The second thing was, rules officials agree almost unanimously that Dustin Johnson caused the ball to move, while everyone else seemed to think clearly he didn’t cause it to move. I thought the ruling was correct regarding the rules in place at the time. With the preponderance of evidence, I thought he caused ball to move. (Similarly), rules officials thought the ruling was right but was handled poorly.”

Whatever the case, with the situation involving the leader of a major championship during the final round, it was one of the biggest stories of the year in golf. Indeed, Golf World recently ranked it — along with another rules-related controvery at the U.S. Women’s Open — the No. 5 Newsmaker of the Year.

“We’re golfers too, and when we saw players penalized for minor movement of a ball on the putting green, it didn’t sit well with us,” said Pagel, who worked on the CGA staff from 2003-08 and was the assistant executive director of the association for two years before being named executive director of the Utah Golf Association in 2008. “I do hope people are excited about the change and it’s well-received.”

Pagel and Mate both noted that the issue about a ball accidentally moving on the putting green has long been on the USGA Rules of Golf radar, with the Johnson situation bringing it to the forefront. And that resulted in last week’s announcement, which was a relatively rare situation in which a rules alteration was made in between formal revisions of the Rules of Golf.

But this change is part of a larger project of Rules modernization and simplification being undertaken by the USGA and R&A. According to a Q&A on USGA.org, “we plan to preview a comprehensive set of proposed changes in 2017.”

“Would this be happening if not for Dustin Johnson? I don’t think so,” Mate said of this new Local Rule. “But it was a smart PR move and consistent with the overall modernization project.”

“It’s a complete review,” Mate said of the modernization initiative. “Everything is looked at, including clubs, balls, equipment, swinging of the club … No stone is left unturned. (Potentially) there will be lots of changes.”

For more information from the USGA on the new Local Rule, CLICK HERE.
 

Ed Mate had been to Augusta National Golf Club during Masters week once before, about a decade ago. But that was as a spectator for the practice rounds.

This time around, the CGA’s executive director left feeling like he’d wrung the whole nine yards out of the Masters experience.

“I did take full advantage of being there,” Mate said on Monday after serving as a rules official for the four rounds of the Masters. “The whole thing was a lot of fun. It was a lot more enjoyable and less stressful than I anticipated.

“I would describe everything about the tournament as welcoming. They’d ask, ‘Do you have anything you need?’ ‘Is there anything we can do for you?’ They appreciate you being there, and anybody there will tell you that. They just make you feel good. And if everyone around you treats you courteously, you can’t help but reciprocate.”

As with former CWGA executive director Robin Jervey from 2008-11, Mate earned the chance to be a Masters rules official by virtue of serving as an advisory member of the powerful USGA Rules of Golf Committee, representing state and regional golf associations. Mate, the CGA’s executive director since 2000, joined the Rules of Golf Committee last fall, and figures to serve up to four years on it.

According to the Augusta Chronicle, while dozens of people served on the Masters Tournament Rules Committee in 2016, the only representative from Colorado this year was Mate, though former Coloradan Thomas Pagel was also on the committee.

In his rules official role, Mate said he worked the par-4 17th hole on Thursday, the par-3 sixth on Friday, the par-4 ninth on Saturday, and the par-4 third on Sunday. He said he had just three interactions with competitors overall — with Charl Schwartzel on Friday, Dustin Johnson on Saturday and low-amateur Bryson DeChambeau on Sunday.

“It was very simple stuff, but enough to make you feel you contributed,” Mate noted.

Schwartzel’s ball at No. 6 on Friday ended up right next to a pair of sunglasses, leading to an interaction with Mate, though Schwartzel was just confirming how to proceed. He marked his ball, moved the sunglasses and played on.

As for Johnson, after he hit his approach on Saturday right of the hole on No. 9, he couldn’t get his ball to stay in place on the sloping green when he tried to replace it in front of his ball mark, and asked Mate about the proper procedure. Mate told him to find a spot as close as possible where the ball would stay put, and Johnson did just that.

On Sunday, DeChambeau hit his ball behind a temporary immovable obstruction on No. 3, and Mate helped him find his point of relief.

“I felt comfortable” overall, Mate said. “All the rulings I had were so straightforward. I’ve worked a couple of U.S. Opens, and it’s still just golf. I didn’t think of the potential of everyone watching. And I knew if I did have any doubt (about a ruling), I’d just go on the radio.”

Indeed, this certainly wasn’t Mate’s first rodeo — which is to say, major championship. He worked the U.S. Open in 2009 and ’10, and has also served as a rules official at U.S. Women’s Opens and U.S. Senior Opens. He likewise had the opportunity to work this year’s U.S. Open at Oakmont, Pa., but can’t commit to that one.

At Augusta National, Mate also enjoyed interacting with — and picking the brains of — rules officials who have worked dozens and dozens of major championships over the years. Also memorable from last week was just the general feel of being at the Masters.

“It was amazing — everything you’ve heard about the Masters,” Mate said. “From the experience standpoint, it’s unlike anything, so unique. It’s like you’re in a time warp, with no cell phones (allowed for fans on the grounds) and the food costs ($2.50 for a Masters club sandwich, $2 for a soft drink and $1.50 for a Georgia Peach ice cream sandwich). It’s the spirit of Bobby Jones and Cliff Roberts: They don’t measure themselves against what everyone else is doing. They do stuff their own way. It’s not a coincidence they’re viewed the way they are.

“There was a great quote (uttered) at a rules meeting: ‘We strive for everything to be the best, and if it’s not, we’ll figure out how to make it the best.’

“And then when you come up to 9 and 18 (greens), there are no corporate sky boxes. On 9 you’re struck by the fact the only things around the green are a bunch of chairs. It’s like a well-attended CGA Stroke Play.”

Mate took advantage of being situated on hole 17 Thursday to take in the experience of the ceremonial opening tee shots by Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, with Arnold Palmer also on hand.

“That was a highlight to be there,” Mate said. “How many other times are you going to get to see (those three greats together)? It was packed. And (Masters chairman) Billy Payne exudes charisma. He’s very impressive, so well spoken and gracious. He didn’t drone on (in introducing Palmer, Nickland and Player), but said just enough.”

All in all, suffice it to say Mate is looking forward to a return trip to Augusta National next spring. After all, as they say, it’s a tradition unlike any other.
 

By the time the USGA and R&A released their 2016 edition of the Rules of Golf on Oct. 26, CGA executive director Ed Mate had already returned from meetings in Far Hills, N.J., that began to set the stage for the next edition.

Basically, it’s an ever-evolving process, and the personnel working behind the scenes on such matters come and go.

Mate (left), who’s headed up the staff of the CGA since 2000, is one of the newcomers to the Rules of Golf decision-making process.

In fact, with his recent appointment to the USGA Rules of Golf Committee, he becomes the first CGA staff member to ever serve on the committee. He’s one of five advisory members on the 13-member committee as he’s filling the slot reserved for a representative of the state and regional golf associations. Former CWGA executive director Robin Jervey served in that same position several years ago.

Being the first CGA staffer on the USGA Rules of Golf Committee “is not a compliment to me, but to the CGA,” Mate said. “We have a good reputation” with the USGA.

Indeed, two living Coloradans have been presidents of the USGA, Will Nicholson Jr., and Judy Bell. And in the last quarter-century, several other residents of the Centennial State have served on the powerful USGA Executive Committee, including M.J. Mastalir, Jim Bunch and Christie Austin.

Nicholson has been a fixture on the USGA Rules of Golf Committee since 1974 and is among those currently serving alongside Mate. Other Coloradans who have been on the committee in the relatively recent past are Mastalir, Bunch and Austin, all of whom have chaired the committee, and Jervey. Austin was the first female chair of the Rules of Golf Commitee, which works with the R&A in establishing and interpreting rules standards worldwide.

For Mate, having a hand in the process is a dream come true.

“I’m very excited to be on the committee,” he said. “I can tell you how welcome I felt and how sincere (others on the committee) were in welcoming my input. I didn’t know what to expect, but I have every opportunity to contribute.”

The invitation to serve on the committee came from a person with whom Mate is very familiar, Thomas Pagel. Pagel has been the USGA’s senior director of Rules of Golf & Amateur Status since 2011. He worked on the CGA staff from 2003-08 and was the assistant executive director of the association for two years until being named executive director of the Utah Golf Association in 2008.

Pagel asked Mate during this year’s U.S. Women’s Open if he’d like to join the USGA Rules of Golf Committee. And, after checking with the CGA board, Mate couldn’t say yes quickly enough.

“It’s pretty much a no-brainer for me,” he said. “I’m a self-proclaimed Rules geek. I’ve always been interested in the Rules since I got involved in the game. So to be part of process is amazing.”

The USGA Rules of Golf Committee, along with its R&A counterpart and their executive committees, are currently attempting to streamline the Rules as much as is practical.

“The stated objective is to find a way to simplify the Rules,” Pagel said on Oct. 26. “That’s our primary focus moving forward. … Are there wholesale ways to help simplify it?”

The USGA Rules of Golf Committee typically includes advisory reprepsentatives from the PGA of America, the Mexican Golf Federation, the PGA and LPGA Tours, and from state and regional golf associations. They and the rest of the committee normally meet three times per year.

To read about the changes made for the 2016 edition of the Rules of Golf, CLICK HERE.
 

So much that he once had them ingrained on his chest.

Well, sort of.

When Lis and Dustin Jensen first worked for the CGA, they shared an apartment. Even now, Jensen can’t help but chuckle when recalling one episode regarding Lis.

“He was a diehard about the Rules of Golf,” said Jensen, now the golf coach and associate director of alumni relations at Jamestown College in North Dakota. “He sat out on the patio at our apartment and was reading the original Rules of Golf or a book like that and happened to fall asleep. He was catching a suntan and had his shirt off. He fell asleep with the book laying on his stomach, and he ended up having the outline of the book burned into his stomach. We thought that was pretty funny. He loved the Rules of Golf to the point that he would burn them into his chest.”

Considering Lis’ deep involvement with the Rules, who could be surprised that after being highly respected in his seven years as the CGA’s director of rules and competitions, he’s earned his way onto a bigger stage?

After wrapping up an almost-decade-long stint with the CGA on Friday (April 19), Lis will go to work — starting Monday — as an LPGA Tour rules official. In fact, he’s scheduled to make his debut at next week’s North Texas LPGA Shootout in Irving.

So how well does Lis (pictured) know the Rules of Golf?

He has gotten ever so close to perfection — without quite reaching it — the last couple of times he’s taken the PGA/USGA Rules of Golf exam.

He said he’s scored 99 on the test twice, tantalizingly close to perfect scores. Considering a 92 or better is good enough to qualify for officiating at a U.S. Open, a U.S. Women’s Open or a U.S. Senior Open, a 99 is pretty rarefied territory.

“He’s as good as I’ve ever seen in a Rules situation — and I mean that,” said CGA executive director Ed Mate. “He’s like a five-tool athlete; he can do it all. He understands the Rules and the principles behind them. He’s a people person and he works well in a group. And he’s level-headed.

“It’s tough to lose him, but it’s gratifying to see people like Pete and Thomas Pagel (a CGA staffer from 2003-08 who is now senior director, Rules of Golf & Amateur Status, for the USGA) achieve their goals. It says a lot about them, and about the CGA.”

With Lis not being officially hired by the LPGA Tour until April 1, Mate said that the current CGA staff will handle his tournament and related duties during the 2013 season. CGA director of operations Briena Goldsmith will take the lead in that regard, but Mate and other staffers will be juggling tasks also this year. Then Mate will look to fill Lis’ position in the 2013-14 off-season.

As for Lis, he’ll be one of eight regular LPGA Tour rules officials. In that regard, he’ll be fulfilling a longtime professional aspiration.

“My career goal has been to work on a tour,” the 32-year-old said. “It’s bittersweet (leaving the CGA) but it’s the perfect time in my career to have this opportunity, especially as a single guy. But the Colorado golf community has been great to me. (The CGA staff) is like my family. I’ve gotten to know them not only professionally but personally. I owe this opportunity to the CGA and USGA for taking a chance on me as a Boatwright intern in 2003. They taught me so much.”

As with the majority of the CGA staff, Lis came on board as a USGA P.J. Boatwright intern. The internship “is designed to give experience to individuals who are interested in pursuing a career in golf administration, while assisting state and regional golf associations, as well as other non-profit organizations dedicated to the promotion of amateur golf, on a short-term, entry-level basis.”

Before he received the internship at the CGA, Lis had been an assistant golf professional in Massachusetts, and he had never before been to Colorado. But of the five or six state and regional golf associations he was interested in for a Boatwright internship, the CGA was the one that responded to his queries.

So Lis started his year-long internship in February 2003, and late in 2004 he joined the CGA’s full-time staff as assistant director of course rating and handicapping, a post held held until 2006. Then he took took over the rules and competitions job he held for seven years.

“Every event I was doing what I love to do,” he said. “On the golf course is my favorite place to be, talking to players and hearing stories.”

But it certainly wasn’t all easy. After all, Lis often had to make the final call regarding enforcement of the Rules and handing out penalties. Lis wasn’t afraid of making those tough calls, even if it involved penalizing a defending champion at the HealthOne Colorado Open, or some players in contention at a CGA championship.

Although Lis sometimes received “blowback” in such situations, he knows it comes with the territory.

Overall, he’ll look back on his experience with the CGA very fondly. And based on the feedback Lis has gotten since telling people he was leaving to take the LPGA job, the feeling is mutual.

“I’ve heard from staff, rules officials, players, and they’ve all been very supportive,” Lis said. “It’s been overwhelming. They’ve thanked me for my time here, and I’ve thanked them for helping me learn. I’m going to miss everyone in Colorado, though I’m going to be around for a while.”

Indeed, Lis said he plans to live in Colorado until probably the late summer or early fall. And, yes, he said he is scheduled to work the Solheim Cup Aug. 16-18 at Colorado Golf Club, where the best female golfers from the U.S. and Europe will square off in their biennial matches. Sometime after that, Lis plans to move to the Orlando area, where he has some family, and which isn’t far from LPGA headquarters in Daytona Beach.

In the meantime, given that he has off weeks here and there, Lis said he may even volunteer for a CGA championship or a USGA qualifier sometime this year.

Speaking of tournaments Lis has worked over the years, some have left an indelible memory. Eric Wilkinson, now the CGA director of junior competitions, remembers Lis getting his Rules cart stuck in the mud at Heritage Todd Creek Golf Club during the 2010 CGA Senior Match Play.

“I think in his efforts to get the cart out, he completely caked himself in mud,” Wilkinson recalled.

Wilkinson also remembers working the 5A boys state high school tournament with Lis at Eisenhower Golf Club in 2008. When the two arrived at the gate to the Air Force Academy, the sentry wouldn’t let them pass since the tags on the CGA van had expired. The guard didn’t believe Lis when he said they were there to run the tournament, so one of the club professionals came to the gate and drove Lis and Wilkinson in so Lis could conduct the rules meeting a day before the tournament started.

Wilkinson recalls Pete saying, “How the (heck) are you supposed to convince a guard with an M-16 that you are there to run a golf tournament?”

To avoid another problem when they returned for the first day of the tournament, Lis drove all the way back to Greenwood Village that night to switch out the vans.

It’s all in a day’s work for a person who lives by the Rules.