PO Box 4306, Helena MT 59604-4306 (406) 458-3359 June 2017 - Volume 7, Issue 6 USGA’s PLAY9 Program Successful June Tournaments Mike Sweeney, USGA Director, Regional Affairs - West 6/2/17 Copper Cup Since 2014, the USGA’s PLAY9 program has been actively Old Works GC (Anaconda) educating and rallying golfers around the concept of the 6/2/17 - 6/4/17 nine-hole round as an important, yet simple, solution Montana State Match Play Champ to address busy lifestyles and everyday lives. PLAY9 is Green Meadow CC (Helena) important to the game and its health in that it promotes a 6/3/17 time-friendly option to engage with the game. Breast Cancer Prairie Farms GC (Havre) The USGA will once again host official PLAY9 Play Days usga.org/play9 | 6/3/17 on the ninth day of each month (May 9 through Octo- © 2017 United States Golf Association Chrome Bar ber 9), and any club or facility is also encouraged to host Stillwater GC (Columbus) 6/3/17 PLAY9 on the ninth, or any other day that may work best for them. Drive, Chip, & Putt Clinic - Juniors Missoula CC (Missoula) The USGA PLAY9 website has been updated at http://www.usga.org/play-9. 6/3/17 html. New content will be posted to this PLAY9 hub throughout the spring and Sidney Scramble summer. We know that many clubs will be conducting and supporting PLAY9 Sidney CC (Sidney) throughout the summer, and we’re encouraging all to ...Continued on the next page 6/3/17 St. Joseph’s Centennial Scramble Polson Bay GC (Polson) TWO Aces In ONE Round! 6/3/17 Trestle Creek Open Trestle Creek GC (St. Regis) 6/3/17 - 6/4/17 2-Man Steamboat Signal Point GC (Fort Benton) 6/3/17 - 6/4/17 PNWPGA Junior PGA Championship Canyon Lakes GC (Kennewick, WA) 6/4/17 Two Person Scramble Canyon River GC (Missoula) Jan Pisko, Jan Quessenberry, Mary Exner - Hole #12 Jan Quessenberry and Mary Exner - Hole #16 6/5/17 Montana State Jr Divisional District 4 On Thursday, May 25, Jan Quessenberry was playing golf at Eagle Bend Golf Lake Hills GC (Billings) 6/5/17 Club with three of her close friends - Jan Pisko, Mary Exner, and Irene Turley. PNWPGA (WMC) Pro-Am After an uneventful front nine, and tired of the wind, she considered stopping. Larchmont GC (Missoula) However, her friends encouraged her to continue. 6/5/17 RMSPGA (YC) Pro-Am When she came to hole #12, she knocked her ball in the hole from the tee with Valley View GC (Bozeman) her 3 metal - a hole-in-one!! Then, arriving at the ...Continued on the next page 6/6/17 PLAY9 ... from previous page TWO ACES ... from previous page Wacky Women’s Invitational keep the USGA PLAY9 team in- 16th hole, using her 7 iron, she hit Cottonwood Hills GC (Bozeman) formed of any interesting storylines another Ace! Two in one round! 6/7/17 about golfers, facilities, and person- Pretty amazing - especially after scor- Montana State Jr Divisional District 5 Sidney CC (Sidney) alities so that they can follow up and ing a hole-in-one in California this 6/8/17 - 6/25/17 highlight these stories. Please use the past March. vTour THE RAINMAKER SWING hashtag #PLAY9Golf when posting Register at msgavtour.golfnet.com any of your own stories to your social “It’s still hard to believe that I’ve been 6/9/17 media feeds. lucky enough that to get 3 hole-in- Farm and Ranch ones is the last two months. I just Marias Valley GC (Shelby) For any facilities or clubs interested wonder why, after 50 years of playing 6/9/17 in hosting a PLAY9 day or promoting golf, it happened all at once. I think Grizzly Athletic Association 9-hole rounds, please check out the that is probably enough for a lifetime. Canyon River GC (Missoula) online toolkit which contains promo- My foursome was not playing well 6/9/17 Par 3 Tournament tional tools to help set up your event, on the front 9 that day, and I sug- Livingston GC (Livingston) and other useful information: http:// gested that we just quit and go have a 6/9/17 - 6/11/17 www.usga.org/content/usga/home- cocktail. I’m certainly glad they didn’t Bud Light Women’s Open Golf Tourn page/play-9/play9-toolkit.html. listen to me!!!!” Forsyth CC (Forsyth) 6/10/17 307 Tourney Congratulations to our newest Stillwater GC (Columbus) Ace Club Members! 6/10/17 Drive, Chip, & Putt Clinic - Juniors Did you get a hole-in-one? Go to www.msgagolf.org to see Missoula CC (Missoula) how to get your MSGA Hole-in-One Certificate! 6/10/17 Eagle Falls Men’s Association John Egan, 5/30/17, Whitefish Lake GC, Hole #3 S, 140 yds, 9 Iron Eagle Falls GC (Great Falls) Eric Dirk, 5/29/17, Meadow Lark CC, Hole #4, 133 yds, Pitching Wedge 6/10/17 Jan Quessenberry, 5/25/17 (#1), Eagle Bend GC, Hole #12, 124 yds, 3 Metal ECCS Scramble Jan Quessenberry, 5/25/17 (#2), Eagle Bend GC, Hole #16, 101 yds, 7 Iron Madison Meadows GC (Ennis) Brandon Trust, 5/26/17, Whitefish Lake GC, Hole #16 S, 125 yds, 9 Iron 6/10/17 Dave Streeter, 5/22/17, Whitefish Lake GC, Hole #15 S, 159 yds, Clev. Hybrid 3i IB/Nemont Scramble Mike Spint, 5/10/17, Whitefish Lake GC, Hole #15 N, 143 yds, 6 Iron Scobey GC (Scobey) Robert Padilla, 9/26/15, Judith Shadows GC, Hole #13, 105 yds, Sand Wedge 6/10/17 No Lights Athletic Schol Foundation Prairie Farms GC (Havre) Reflections From Boatwright Orientation 6/10/17 Lauren Hausauer, USGA Boatwright Intern Ryder Cup vs Glasgow Airport GC (Wolf Point) As the MSGA Boatwright Intern, I had the opportunity to travel 6/10/17 - 6/11/17 Glacier Bank 2 Person Better Ball to New Jersey to the USGA Boatwright Intern Orientation. This Polson Bay GC (Polson) orientation was designed to train and equip interns from around 6/10/17 - 6/11/17 the nation so that we can better serve our own state and regional Hankook Lisac’s Tire Hitchcock Mem golf associations. Butte CC (Butte) 6/10/17 - 6/11/17 The orientation was incredible and Old Works Amateur gave me the opportunity to network with other Old Works GC (Anaconda) interns, learn information from the USGA, and 6/11/17 share some of the successes of the MSGA with Dick Seddon Memorial Scramble other organizations. 2017 USGA Boatwright Interns Buffalo Hill GC (Kalispell) 6/11/17 Two Lady Best Ball There were several speakers at the orientation who presented strategies to get Canyon River GC (Missoula) more people involved in golf, especially juniors. I grew up playing in the MSGA 6/12/17 Junior Golf Programs, and I am very passionate about finding ways to give back Junior Clinic and introduce more juniors to golf. I spoke with Beth Major, the head of com- Canyon River GC (Missoula) munity outreach for the USGA, to get ideas for how ...Continued on the next page - 2 - BOATWRIGHT ... from previous page 6/12/17 the MSGA can promote junior golf. She was eager to speak with me and we Montana State Jr Divisional District 1 discussed programs such as The First Tee, LPGA/USGA Girls Golf, PGA Junior Missoula CC (Missoula) 6/12/17 League, Special Olympics, Youth on Course, and Montana State Jr Divisional District 2 Drive, Chip, and Putt. All of these programs help Meadow Lark CC (Great Falls) introduce juniors to golf, help them learn golf rules 6/12/17 and etiquette, and give them the opportunity to Montana State Jr Divisional District 3 compete. Riverside CC (Bozeman) 6/12/17 I also learned from the crew in charge of setting up PNWPGA (WMC) Pro-Am the courses for USGA championships, such as the Northern Pines GC (Kalispell) U.S. Open. I learned how to use course conditions, USGA Golf House 6/12/17 hole locations, and teeing grounds to ensure that RMSPGA (YC) Pro-Am Bridger Creek GC (Bozeman) the tournament is a complete and ultimate test of golf. I will share this informa- 6/13/17 tion with the MSGA and we will consider how to make our own tournament Battle of the Bars courses the best that they can be. Red Lodge Mtn GC (Red Lodge) 6/13/17 In addition, they spoke about how they organize other tournament necessities Missoula Junior Golf Tour such as volunteers, rules officials, player registration, player hospitality, and Hamilton GC (Hamilton) transportation. I am the captain of the Montana Girls Junior America Cup 6/13/17 team, and the Montana team will be responsible for hosting the national tourna- PNWPGA (WMC) Pro-Pro ment in 2020. Information from these speakers will be very helpful as I work Meadow Lake Golf Resort with the MSGA to host the GJAC tournament. 6/13/17 - 6/16/17 CSGA High School Academy Missoula CC (Missoula) At the Boatwright Orientation, I also had the op- 6/14/17 - 6/15/17 portunity to visit the USGA Testing Center and the Big “I” Junior State Qualifier USGA Museum. My favorite exhibit in the museum Bridger Creek GC (Bozeman) was the Arnold Palmer Center. The main display was 6/15/17 “Gratitude,” a portrait by Jim Chase. From a distance, MT Senior Olympics the portrait looks like a black and white drawing of Polson Bay GC (Polson) Arnold Palmer.