Congratulations to our 2011 Indiana PGA Special Award recipients, who work very hard to continuously improve themselves and their clubs to better serve their players and members. Award winners will be recognized at the Indiana PGA Spring Business Meeting at the Holiday Inn North in Indianapolis on March 7.

Professional of the Year

Chip Essig

Essig Golf Management

Chip Essig has worked hard over the years to meet with numerous golf professionals from around Indiana and the United States to improve his facilities, officiate championships, and promote the game. The network of professionals he has formed allows him to see what trends are working in other parts of the country as well as what is not. As Director of Golf at Hickory Stick and owner of Essig Golf Management, Chip oversees three head professionals, one director of instruction and four apprentices. The facilities he oversees do over 85,000 rounds of golf annually. He also continues to give golf lessons to students he has taught for many years.

His service to the Indiana Section includes being a member, an officer, or committee chair on the Board of Directors for 12 years, culminating in his service as President from 2006-2008. Additionally, he has instructed at several Play Golf America Days, junior clinics, and helped orchestrate Special Olympics.

His service at the national level revolves prominently around rules officiating. Essig served on the PGA Rules Committee and officiated 2-5 events a year including 15 major and senior major championships. In the winters, he coordinates and instructs USGA/PGA Rules Workshops. His vast knowledge of the rules has also served his Indiana fellow-professionals as well. He shares his stories and expertise at Section meetings, local workshops, clubs, and high school coaches meetings.

Teacher of the Year

Jon Hoover

Wood Wind Golf Academy

In 2010, Jon Hoover improved the game of players of all ages and ability levels by offering over 1700 lessons and clinics. Over 250 of these were juniors who participated in his junior golf program. Almost all of his students take instruction through a series of multiple lessons or on a monthly retainer fee so that he can best evaluate their abilities, identify weaknesses and construct a program to improve their game. His comprehensive approach includes full swing analysis with video feedback, TrackMan analysis to evaluate numerous angles and planes, short game education, putting analysis in the SAM Lab, green reading through AimPoint, club fitting, and on-course evaluation.

Hoover also works with area high school teams such as Brebeuf, Westfield and University High Schools. In 2011 he will serve as head coach for Westfield and work to develop their middle school program. For the juniors who wish to pursue competitive golf beyond high school, he is working to develop “The Leading Edge”, a junior development program designed for juniors 12-18 years of age. Additionally, based on the Suzuki method of learning how to play musical instruments, Hoover co-wrote a publication named “PAC Golf (Parents as Coaches)”.

Students of note who have been instructed by Hoover include Seth Fair, Erich Johnston, and Nels Surtani, a nationally ranked 9-year old.

Bill Strausbaugh Award

Greg Havill

Woodstock Club

Since 1988, Greg Havill has been the Head Golf Professional at the Woodstock Club, and during his tenure he has mentored numerous assistant golf professionals that have gone on to further their careers as golf professionals and salesmen in the golf industry. He works hard to equip his assistants with all of the skills they need to succeed as a head professional, from merchandising and tournament operations to golf cart maintenance and customer service. Havill also encourages his assistants to improve their playing ability to build credibility and attract students for lessons.

His service to the Indiana Section goes beyond training and educating future professionals at his club. Greg served on the Indiana Section Board of Directors from 1993 to 2002, and he served as president from 2001-02. Some of his board term was spent chairing the Apprentice Committee, and he conducted several apprentice meetings to provide guidance and offer support to many through the apprenticeship process.

Havill has also received the 1992 Indiana PGA Player of the Year, 2001 Indiana Teacher of the Year, and 2005 Golf Professional of the Year awards.

Horton Smith Award

Chad Cockerham

Otter Creek Golf Course

The Indiana PGA and the Board of Directors have benefitted from Chad Cockerham’s service for the past three years. He has worked directly with the Education Committee to secure key note speakers for Section business meetings and participated as a panelist during break-out sessions at those same gatherings.

He has also served as the Growth of the Game committee chair for the past three years. During that time he has organized 12 Play Golf America Days in Indiana.

Junior Leader Award

Bryan Crouch

Thatcher Golf Course

Indianapolis Junior Golf Foundation

Bryan Crouch founded the Indiana Junior Golf Tour in 2000, which serves central Indiana youth as part of the Indianapolis Junior Golf Foundation. The program has grown to over 350 players and 20 events. Free instruction and rules clinics are also offered as part of the program, and he has reached over a thousand juniors through these means.

Other youth have also benefitted from Crouch’s love for sharing the game. He has volunteered his teaching services to the Ben Davis and Cardinal Ritter High School boys and girls golf teams, worked with the Boy Scouts of America, and most recently has earned accreditation of assistant golf coach with The First Tee.

Patience is Crouch’s greatest asset along with being able to make learning fun for children and exude a calm and friendly demeanor, all of which make Bryan an excellent junior leader.

Assistant of the Year

Chris Montagano

Sycamore Hills Golf Club

For the past four years, Chris Montagano has served Sycamore Hills Golf Club and the membership in an exceptional way as the Assistant Golf Professional under the direction of Tim Frazier. Responsibilities he has excelled at include running a year-round junior program, assisting in the selection and hiring process of a Second Assistant Golf Professional, managing outside operations and budgeting. Specifically, he has been a leader in improving the outside operations. He put together an Outside Operations Employee Manual and Employee Agreement Form to hold all employees more accountable and increase their level of service to the membership. Inside the golf shop, he put a lot of effort into making the sales associates tronger in the areas of customer service, product knowledge and merchandising tips.

Montagano has also been an integral part of the national championships that his club has hosted recently, such as the US Women’s Team Championship and two PGA Junior Championships. Before the Women’s Team, he put together a Junior Golf Day that included golf instruction and an introduction to course management.

Other ways he has served his community and Section are by joining the Apprentice Committee and working with fellow-professional Kyle Cramer on forming an Assistant/Apprentice Tournament Series. Additionally, he has given complimentary lessons at a local YMCA in the winters.

Montagano attended Ferris State University and graduated in 2007 with a degree in Business and Marketing and a concentration in Professional Golf Management.

Merchandisers of the Year

Resort Category

Jon Chapple

The Fort Golf Resort

Jon Chapple’s merchandising plan has three key elements: offering a wide variety of quality products and vendors, offering competitive prices, and employing a friendly sales staff. He and his staff encourage demo use and welcome merchandise returns. He claims the most important and successful tactic is simply talking to his customers to help decide how to best fit their needs and budget.

Public Category

Tom Nelson

Christmas Lake Golf Course

Tom Nelson’s merchandising philosophy centers around utilizing the unique aspect of his facility name and logo and applying it to high quality items. He also tries to keep the prices reasonable at the same time by mixing fresh merchandise in with carefully picked closeout products. He also firmly believes in keeping all of his facility staff members well-trained and happy to be wearing the facility logo.

Private Category

Chad Ayres

Hillcrest Golf & Country Club

A three-part plan to merchandising has allowed Chad Ayres to achieve success in his golf shop. First, he provides apparel and equipment that match his members’ preferences while also introducing them to new trends. Next, he displays his merchandise in a unique and appealing way in line with the upcoming season or event. And lastly, he believes in providing exceptional customer service by making sure all employees have appropriate product knowledge.