The first paycheck PGA member Cody Sinkler ever earned came from a small-town golf course in Three Rivers, Michigan. Nearly two decades later, he found himself at another public course, this time not as an employee hired to fill a role, but as the person responsible for building an entire golf operation, brand, and identity from scratch. That full-circle journey, from Pine View Golf Club to The Park in West Palm Beach, Florida now frames the significance behind his newest recognition, being named the 2025 South Florida PGA Merchandiser of the Year – Public, an honor that represents far more than retail success. It reflects a vision, a mission, and a deeply personal connection to the place where his career began. At just 16, Sinkler wasn’t thinking about the PGA of America, merchandising plans, or running a nationally recognized operation. He didn’t even play golf. He simply needed a job. Pine View Golf Club, an unpretentious local public golf course was close to home, and that was enough. He cleaned carts, picked the range, handled trash runs, and stayed long after his shift ended, drawn to the unique energy of a public golf course. “What I remember most is the atmosphere,” he said. “It felt like a community. Pine View was where everyone went to be part of something.” What began as a job became a passion. Sinkler worked throughout high school and college, taking on increasing responsibility and learning the ins and outs of daily operations. That path ultimately led him to become a B-1, Associate head golf professional at just 22 years old, an unusually early leadership milestone that shaped his confidence and accelerated his growth in the industry. Even after earning a degree in supply chain management, Sinkler made a defining choice, passing up an opportunity with an aerospace company to pursue a full-time career in golf. That decision, he said, was fueled by the same love for the game that started at Pine View. After college, Sinkler’s career took him to Florida, where he joined the staff at Quail Ridge Country Club in Boynton Beach, Florida and spent nearly six years refining his operational approach, deepening his leadership experience, and developing a strong interest in merchandising. A season at Kalamazoo Country Club (Michigan) broadened that interest, giving him exposure to a top-tier retail environment and the artistry behind great visual presentation. It was through these experiences that he discovered that golf merchandising wasn’t just selling products, it was storytelling. It was about creating an emotional connection between a facility and the people who walked through its doors. But even as he advanced professionally, Sinkler was searching for a role with deeper purpose. The Park offered exactly that. A public golf facility built around accessibility and youth development, The Park represented something rare in the industry as a mission-first model that used golf as a tool to create opportunity. “It reminded me of Pine View,” he said. “A place where anyone could show up and feel like they belonged, only with a mission to help kids in ways my hometown course simply didn’t have the resources to do.” Sinkler was hired as the very first golf employee, stepping into a project still in its early construction stages. Rather than maintaining an existing framework, he had the responsibility and creative freedom to build one. “It wasn’t about following a playbook,” he said. “We were writing it.” When The Park opened its doors in April 2023, excitement was high, but something huge was missing. A visual identity. “We didn’t have a logo,” Sinkler said. “Everything in the shop simply said ‘The Park.’ We needed something that represented the energy of this place.” That identity arrived a few months after opening in the form of a neon green parrot, drawn from the flocks that spontaneously fly across the property every day. The reaction was instant. Items featuring the parrot sold out within days. Guests asked specifically for “the parrot hat.” The 350-square-foot golf shop quickly became a signature part of the experience. Today, The Park is projected to surpass $1.5 million in retail revenue, well beyond its initial $500,000 projection in year one. “We wanted a brand that felt alive,” Sinkler said. “Something fun, bold, and uniquely us. The parrot became that.” Even with the merchandising success, Sinkler remains most proud of The Park’s purpose. The facility reinvests around $1 million annually into youth programming, providing mentorship, academic support, internships, and athletic opportunities for local kids. “A public golf course gave me my start,” he said. “Now I’m helping build a place that gives those same opportunities on an even bigger scale. That’s the part that means the most.” He’s equally focused on his staff, helping PGA Associates move through the program, offering guidance, and supporting the next generation of golf professionals. “Developing people is a huge part of what we do,” he said. “It’s what keeps the culture strong.” Sinkler doesn’t naturally pause to celebrate accomplishments, but what he has been able to build at The Park while reflecting on where he started, the recent recognition allowed him to feel a level of success that is special. “It hit me that everything I’m doing now traces back to that first job,” he said. “I learned what a public golf course can be. Now I get to help build one that pushes that idea even further. That’s a full-circle moment.” The Merchandiser of the Year Award highlights a standout retail program, but the story behind it reaches deeper. A kid who fell in love with golf at a local muni, grew professionally through years of hard work and consistency, and ultimately helped bring an entirely new golf experience to life. At The Park, that story continues one operation, one idea, and one bright green parrot at a time.

“It was shocking, surreal, and one of the greatest honors of my career.” These are the words of Andrew Farrea, PGA, on being awarded the 2025 South Florida PGA Merchandiser of the Year Award in the Resort category. In less than two years in the South Florida PGA Section, Farrea has already made a significant impact as the PGA Director of Golf at The Boca Raton Golf Club, driving substantial merchandise revenue growth and introducing data-driven strategies that elevate both the golf shop and member experience. Farrea’s journey started at Methodist University, where he studied Professional Golf Management, graduating as a PGA of America Golf Professional. Farrea then took his first job at Newport National Golf Club in Newport, Rhode Island as an assistant golf professional. Unsure if a career in golf was for him, Farrea set out to obtain his MBA, applying and being accepted into graduate school at the University of Mississippi. However, during that same time Newport National unexpectedly offered him the head golf professional position. Surprised by the offer, Farrea accepted the position and chose to forgo graduate school. Farrea credits Matt Adams, the former general manager at Newport National, for the guidance he provided, and recognizes Adams for serving as his first mentor in merchandising. Adams stressed the importance of strategic branding, market research, and the many ways to utilize that research to increase sales. Along with merchandising, Adams taught Farrea how to build a great team. “Matt showed me the importance of creating a culture that attracts and nurtures an outstanding group of individuals,” Farrea explained. Farrea stayed at Newport National for eight years before moving to Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands as head golf professional at North Sound Golf Club. He was there for two years before moving to Ko Olina Golf Club in Hawaii, also as head golf professional. During Farrea’s time in the Aloha PGA Section, he was recognized with the Bill Strausbaugh Award in 2022. The Bill Strausbaugh Award recognizes PGA Professionals who distinguish themselves by mentoring their fellow PGA Professionals in improving their employment situations. At Ko Olina Golf Club, Farrea’s General Manager, Greg Nichols, became another mentor of his. Nichols taught Farrea to spend time gathering anecdotal research, diving into the data, and paying attention to the details that often go unnoticed. Farrea stayed at Ko Olina for four years before deciding he wanted to move back stateside, and fell in love with The Boca Raton Golf Club. Farrea continues to utilize what he has learned to build a great team culture and has seen how it positively affects merchandising. He fosters those working in the facility who aspire to become PGA Professionals one day, and has built an environment that accelerates growth. Farrea has structured outside operations as a fast-track program, with the goal of moving dedicated staff into assistant professional roles within a year. “We want to grow the PGA brand overall and our own property at the same time,” Farrea said. “It worked in Hawaii, and I can see it coming together here in Boca Raton.” This past year,The Boca Raton Golf Club, with the help of 2025 South Florida PGA - Southern Chapter Salesperson of the Year, Kris Saba of TaylorMade, brought a tour-fitting van to the facility, giving club members the opportunity to have a TOUR-level fitting experience. “It was an incredible day,” Farrea said. “In addition to the van, TaylorMade staffed the event with expert fitters building clubs on-site—just like they would for Rory and Tiger.” In just eight hours, the club had shattered a TaylorMade record, producing $75,000 in sales, which was approximately $25,000 more than the previous record. Farrea’s leadership, connections, and strategies led to him earning the Merchandiser of the Year Award in the Resort category. His short time at The Boca Raton Golf Club has been marked by significant growth, with sales increasing by almost 30% in the spring months and continuing to grow throughout the year. Farrea recognizes the significance of what he and his team have accomplished. “There's a lot of weight behind this award and I don't take it lightly,” Farrea said. “I'm very honored to receive it, and thankful to those who gave me the opportunity to do so.”

Vero Beach, FL – The South Florida PGA Foundation celebrated another successful year at the 13th Annual Quail Valley Holiday Pro-Am, held at Quail Valley Golf Club in Vero Beach. The event once again united PGA of America Professionals and amateurs for a day of competition and camaraderie, while raising funds and awareness for the SFPGA Foundation. A record field of 56 teams, each featuring one PGA Professional and one amateur, competed in a Stableford team format across net, gross, and professional divisions. Thanks to the generous support of participants and partners, the event raised more than $15,000, directly fueling the Foundation’s efforts to change lives through the game of golf. Each year, the SFPGA Foundation impacts over 3,400 youth, military, and families through its community-focused programming. This year’s champions included: Gross Division: Dakun Chang, PGA & Andrew Biggadike, 50 points Professional Division: Michael Kostelnik, PGA, 45 points Net Division: Ed Humenik, PGA & Richard Bayliss, 51 points For full results, click here . The South Florida PGA Foundation extends heartfelt thanks to Quail Valley Golf Club, General Manager Kevin Given, and Director of Golf Don Meadows, PGA, for their continued hospitality and commitment to this annual tradition. Appreciation also goes to this year’s supporting partners, including Airshare, Bag Caddie, COURSE RECORD, Garmany Golf, Heritage Creations, Turtleson, and Winston Collection, whose dedication helps make the event possible.

When Will Coleman, PGA got the phone call confirming he had been named the 2025 South Florida PGA Assistant Professional of the Year, his first reaction was simply gratitude. “I was surprised,” he admitted. “Our section is one of the biggest in the country and certainly one of the most competitive for jobs and for talent. I was extremely humbled and grateful to be selected..” For Coleman, now in his third season as the lead assistant professional at Palm Beach Country Club in Palm Beach, FL, the award represents far more than a resume milestone. It reflects an unconventional journey through golf, marked by late beginnings, reinvention, humility, and a steady commitment to doing things the right way. Coleman didn’t grow up dreaming of playing golf for a living. In fact, he didn’t even start playing seriously until he was “19 or 20.” What began as a way to pass time during college breaks, hitting balls on the small course at his hometown in Maryland, quickly grew into something more. “I got hooked on the challenge,” he said. “There was always sort of a problem to solve and something to progress personally. I was attracted to that.” That attraction evolved into what he calls “the right amount of delusion.” At 30 years old, an age when many aspiring pros are already pivoting out of playing careers, Coleman turned professional. He earned status on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica where he spent three years competing. “Golf is very black and white, you're shooting the scores or you're not,” Coleman shared. “I was clearly just not good enough right then.” He tried chasing it a bit longer, but knew he eventually needed to be doing something more sustainable. “Anytime your identity is tied up in something and that picture changes, there’s frustration, sadness,” he said. “But every difficulty is an opportunity.” That opportunity came from Jupiter Country Club in Jupiter, FL, where Coleman had been on staff during his playing years. When he stepped away from competitive golf, the facility offered him an assistant role, his first real entrance into the operations side of the business. Coleman enrolled in the PGA program, passed his qualifying tests, and immersed himself in the golf industry, though he admits he initially had only a “vague picture” of what his future might look like. From Jupiter Country Club he moved to Mayacoo Lakes Country Club in West Palm Beach, where he began to understand that club operations could become a career, not just a fallback. “It was always just a natural evolution,” he said. “Show up every day, do good work, be a good person, and it's gonna carry you forward.” That mindset guided his next step to The Club at Admiral’s Cove in Jupiter, FL, a move he made intentionally. After a successful stretch there, another opportunity came calling. Through connections made in the Chapter and within the Section, Coleman was introduced to Palm Beach Country Club, where he interviewed and was hired as the lead assistant professional. He has thrived in the club’s service-oriented environment. At Palm Beach Country Club, Coleman oversees hard goods, manages tournaments, teaches, and focuses on relationship-building within a small membership that plays just 12,000 rounds a year. “We’re really a service-minded operation,” he said. “It’s a lot of face time, a lot of interactions, a lot of relationship building.” His maturity from entering the industry later than many of his peers has also shaped who he is as a leader within the operation. Working alongside a younger head professional, Coleman sees his role as both supportive and complementary. “We might be at the same experience level, but my age and life experience give me a different viewpoint,” he explained. “I think he trusts me 100 percent in a support role and if I’m thinking the same way he is, then I’m on the right track.” Another element of Coleman’s recent career has been his leadership of the Southeast Chapter Assistants tournaments, a role he stepped into somewhat unexpectedly. Nick Beddow, PGA, who preceded him in the role, asked if Coleman wanted to take it over. “I’d love to say I had this grand intent to contribute, but it was more like, ‘Okay, yeah, I’ll take it.’” But the role quickly became meaningful. “It’s been a chance for me to play a different role within the chapter,” he said. “Coming from a playing background, it was always about ‘How does this benefit me?’ Now it’s about service, providing tournaments and venues for assistants to compete and meet each other.” He also acknowledges that the role allows him to mentor younger professionals, something that comes naturally at this stage in his career. “When you're a 25-year-old assistant, a volunteer position doesn't sound that attractive,” he said. “But I’ve played all the golf I need to play. Let me give a little back. If I can help steer someone in a direction that benefits them down the road, I’m extremely happy to do that.” When notified about the award, Coleman felt the recognition reflected the totality of his journey, one defined by steady growth, evolving goals, and an embrace of service. “It means a lot to be thought of for this recognition,” he said. “I’m grateful someone thought I was deserving of the award.”

If an individual's life can be traced not by the spotlight one seeks but by the work they quietly shoulder, then Jack Shoenfelt, PGA stands as one of the true craftsmen of the South Florida PGA. Along with fellow Professional, Karl Bublitz, Shoenfelt enters the South Florida PGA Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 2025, joining a lineage of 51 others who helped shape the identity, values, and excellence of the Section. For someone who rarely sees himself as anything but a “simple Midwestern kid who worked hard,” the recognition feels almost surreal. “Oh, it was very humbling,” Shoenfelt said. “I called Karl and told him, they must be running out of ideas to have us in there.” That humility is part of what makes Shoenfelt beloved. But behind the quiet manner is a life in golf marked by grit, stewardship, mentorship, and a work ethic forged long before he ever set foot in South Florida. An Akron, Ohio native, Shoenfelt grew up in an environment where family mattered, work was expected, and nothing was handed to you. His early jobs in golf as a kid weren’t in the golf shop but on the course itself, mowing greens, cutting holes, raking bunkers, doing whatever needed to be done at his friend's family-owned 9-hole golf course. “We did everything,” he said. “I actually thought I was going to end up being a superintendent.” Shoenfelt didn’t start playing golf seriously until high school, but earned a scholarship to Malone University in Canton, Ohio. Upon graduating, Shoenfelt took a job in Akron where the head professional offered blunt advice. “He told me, ‘Son, you don’t want to get in this business.’ Told me all the negatives. He said, ‘call me tomorrow if you still want the job.’ So I called him. I said, ‘Yeah, I want the job.’” Eventually tired of the northern climate and with a desire for year round balance, Shoenfelt moved south. “You’re working from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. up there,” he said. “It wasn’t good if you wanted a family.” Shoenfelt worked seasonally for three years before taking a permanent job in Florida, a move that would shape the next four decades of his life. Shoenfelt’s professional foundation in South Florida was built at Boca Grove Golf & Tennis Club in Boca Raton, where he spent nearly a decade rising from assistant professional to director of golf. “I loved Boca Grove,” he said. “The people treated me fantastic. I wouldn’t have left if this opportunity hadn’t come up.” That opportunity was ownership, the dream he had carried since those teenage years working on his friend’s family golf course. When longtime PGA Professional Burl Dale sent word he intended to sell Oriole Golf & Tennis Club in Margate, Fl, Shoenfelt saw his future. Ownership, for Shoenfelt, was never about prestige. “There’s a million reasons,” he explained. “Being your own boss, doing your own thing. A lot of that came from working at my buddy’s course.” Today, more than two decades later, Shoenfelt is still the one turning the key in the morning, still fixing roofs and toilets, still doing whatever the facility needs. “It’s like buying a job,” he said. “But I enjoy coming in every day. I come six days a week.” When Shoenfelt took over, Oriole had a reputation. “It was always the lowest-end course around,” he shared. “Known for cheap rates and never closing.” For 10 years, the goal was simply survival. But slowly, steadily, with careful investment and patience, Shoenfelt rebuilt the reputation. “About 10 years ago we put in new greens,” he said. “That was huge for us. And we just continue to make improvements. I think we get better every year.” At the Chapter and Section levels, Shoenfelt didn’t seek leadership roles but rather was put into a position of leadership in the Southern Chapter. “They just put me on the ballot,” he said laughing. Once elected, he embraced the work, serving as treasurer, vice president, and president over six years, helping create pro-ams, annual youth summer camps and emphasized participation that reshaped the chapter’s culture. “We’d have 60, 70, 80 kids in the annual summer camps,” he said. “We went to three or four different facilities in Broward and Dade.” These programs left a deep legacy that others carried forward. As far as playing accomplishments, which he certainly downplays saying, “I’m a middle-of-the-road PGA pro,” Shoenfelt qualified for and competed in the Honda Classic, the Doral Ryder Open, and Nike/Web.com Tour events. He also won the SFPGA Senior PGA Professional Championship in 2021, his highest Section playing accomplishment and the one he is most proud of. When it comes to receiving recognition, that has never been Shoenfelt's motivation. Over his time as a member of the SFPGA, Shoenfelt has been nominated for several annual awards, but has never filled out the application, not wanting to take an opportunity away from someone else. “One of those awards can help the kids,” he said. “Good for their resume. But I don’t need it. I’m not going anywhere. I’m right where I want to be.” While that mindset has always been the same, being inducted into the Hall of Fame is different. “I wasn’t expecting it,” Shoenfelt said. “Very humbling. Very honored.” The South Florida PGA is honored to recognize Jack Shoenfelt as a member of the Hall of Fame not only as a Hall of Fame professional, but as a Hall of Fame person. The kind of person who lifts up others without seeking credit, and builds a community by simply showing up, every day, with purpose.

If a man is indeed known by the company he keeps, count Karl Bublitz as one who reveres the class of elite individuals with whom he will now forever be associated. Along with Jack Shoenfelt, his fellow classmate for 2025, Bublitz recently was inducted into the South Florida PGA (SFPGA) Hall of Fame, the highest honor an individual can receive within the Section. For a guy who once spent a summer of his youth moving sprinkler heads late into the night from one hole to another at a course in his native St. Clair County, Michigan, there is something almost surreal about sharing the spotlight with a "who's who" among the other 51 SFPGA Hall of Fame members. "I mean, to know my name is now there with Jack Nicklaus, Jim McLean, Bob Murphy, Bob Toski, and [former PGA of America CEO] Joe Steranka, wow," Bublitz says as his voice trails off. Achieving immortality within the second largest of the 41 PGA of America Sections is the ultimate byproduct of a career that Bublitz describes in its simplest form and with the highest of ideals. "I'm a servant," he says, "and we, as a team, do not fail. We're not going to lose. The product and experience that we provide to our customers, will not be duplicated anywhere else. Their ROE, the Return on Experience for our customers, will not be beaten." That mantra of leadership has extended to his commitment to the SFPGA itself, with Bublitz serving as the Section's President from 2019-21 and being named the 2012 SFPGA Golf Professional of the Year. Bublitz, a PGA of America Member since 1995, is the PGA General Manager for the Collier Rod and Gun Club in Naples, Florida. He is currently assisting with the planning and development of the County's first facility to feature sporting clays, archery, a trail system, and a championship 18-hole golf course, expected to open in 2028. In many respects, Collier Rod and Gun Club represents the exclamation point for Bublitz, who has worked at five other facilities in South Florida since he made the area his permanent home in 2004. Bublitz got his start in the golf business at Rattle Run Golf Course in Michigan, where those muggy summer nights spent changing the sprinkler heads -- typically from 8:30 p.m. to as late as 1:30 a.m.-- for owner Lou Powers afforded him the opportunity to play the game when the sun came back up. Yet it wasn't until PGA Professional Dan Hansen offered Bublitz an assistant professional position at The Moors Golf Club in Portage, Michigan, that the vision of golf as a career began to come into focus for him. For it wasn't until then that Bublitz met the man for whom, as he admits, "I owe my success." When Jim Butler left The Moors to become an assistant professional at The Forest Country Club in Ft. Myers, it created an opening on the staff among assistant professionals. Bublitz then rose in the ranks. And before long, as he would spend his winters in Florida, Bublitz went to work with Butler at The Forest. Ultimately, Butler saw in Bublitz the myriad of skills he admires in a PGA Professional, and when Butler became the General Manager, he hired Bublitz to be his PGA Director of Golf at Grey Oaks Country Club, the sprawling, 54-hole facility in Naples, where Bublitz oversaw a team of 22 golf professionals. "Look, I was a kid who could have gone in any direction," Bublitz admits. "I needed mentorship, and Jim was my guiding light. He helped me look at things in a bigger way than just the day-to-day activities, both in my personal life and my professional life. People are everything in this business, and you absolutely want to be around someone like Jim." Butler, now the CEO of Club Benchmarking, a leading online management tool that provides key data for clubs, says that Bublitz stands alone. "I had many PGA golf professionals work for me and with me, and Karl, by far, is the best one on many levels. Karl is the absolute best at customer experience for any PGA Professional who I have worked with in my 35 years of being a PGA Member. He is organized, he's a leader, and he always puts the club members first. Karl trains his staff to be warm and receptive to the customer, and make each member feel that they are the most important person in the golf shop. "Karl's operations in golf tournaments, merchandising, training staff, business planning and financial performance exceeded expectations on a continuous basis at Grey Oaks. The highest compliment that I can give Karl is if I was starting a facility today, he would be the first person I would call to lead the facility because he is a proven winner." Rich Ter Haar was the PGA Head Professional for Bublitz at Grey Oaks, and he succeeded his boss as Director of Golf when Bublitz took on the opportunity at Collier Rod and Gun Club. "I can think of no one more deserving of induction into the South Florida PGA Hall of Fame than Karl Bublitz," Ter Haar says. "His passion for creating the best member experience possible, respect for the traditions of the game, and genuine care for people have defined his entire career. At Grey Oaks, he created an environment where the golf experience is not just about the game itself but about belonging, camaraderie, and shared pride in the club. His leadership raised service standards and inspired his team to embrace excellence every day. Karl has not only achieved great professional success but has also made everyone around him better—through mentorship, friendship, and example. His influence extends far beyond his own club, as he has shaped the character of the South Florida PGA community itself." So true. In fact, Bublitz worked closely with Geoff Lofstead, the longtime executive director of the South Florida PGA, to frame a comprehensive business plan for the Section, which counts more than 2,100 PGA Professionals in its ranks. And he did so with his term as President coinciding with the devastating effects of COVID-19. "My whole focus during that time was to help Geoff and his team with whatever they needed," Bublitz says. "Communications was everything, so Geoff and I were on the phone multiple times a day and we stayed in touch with as many of our golf professionals as we could." Caring for, and mentoring his fellow Professionals, is evident through the more than 20 PGA Professionals who have worked for Bublitz who now have titles of Head Professional or higher. "It's a source of great pride," he says. His caring for his community shines through with the time Bublitz has spent installing windows and helping with other needs for the Habitat for Humanity homes that the SFPGA, through its Foundation, has constructed in 13 of the 14 counties it encompasses. "We'll get all 14," Bublitz is quick to add. He talks about culture, which surely will be unmatched when Collier Rod and Gun Club welcomes its members in a few years. Led by Bublitz, ever the servant. That kid who needed direction and got it, and who, as a man, has paid it back in mentoring and caring for others. And then one day, the phone rings, and you're told that you're going to be up on the mountaintop of your profession. Alongside legends named Jack, Jim, Murph and Toski. And you're thunderstruck. Wow. "I am so humbled," Bublitz says. "You know, I love what I do, and I want to do it for as long as I can be helpful. Next to having my children, it's the greatest honor of my life to be inducted into the South Florida PGA Hall of Fame. This is it."

West Palm Beach, Florida - This November marks the 10th anniversary of PGA HOPE (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) in the South Florida Section, a decade of transforming lives through the game of golf. What began as a single pilot program in 2015 has evolved into a national movement led by passionate PGA of America Professionals committed to serving those who have served. PGA HOPE, the flagship military program of the South Florida PGA Foundation, introduces golf to Veterans and Active-Duty Military Personnel as a means to enhance their physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being. The six-week program is offered at no cost, using the game of golf as a bridge to healing and community. The first SFPGA HOPE session took place on November 5, 2015, at The First Tee of the Palm Beaches and the John Prince Golf Learning Center. PGA Professionals Judy Alvarez, Dave McNulty, and Donna White led the way, creating a safe, welcoming space where Veterans could reconnect, heal, and find purpose through golf. Their success ignited something far greater, a national ripple effect of hope. Few have influenced PGA HOPE’s success more than Judy Alvarez, PGA Teaching Professional at Monarch Country Club and 2019 National Patriot Award recipient, who created the national training curriculum that still guides PGA Professionals today. “We help by reducing isolation,” Alvarez said. “Because of this program, Veterans find the confidence to re-engage with life, to go to the grocery store, the movies, or spend time with loved ones. It’s about helping them learn to live again.” Ten years later, that mission continues to thrive. As of October 2025, PGA HOPE South Florida has impacted more than 2,000 Veterans across 93 facilities in seven counties, led by 244 PGA Professionals who have conducted 138 six-week, two-hour sessions. The heart of PGA HOPE lies in the PGA Professionals who make it possible. Each year, the SFPGA Patriot Award honors one such leader. The 2025 recipient, Scott Kash, PGA Tournament Director at Quail Creek Country Club, has graduated 58 Veterans through four sessions, hosted Basecamp sessions for alumni, and helped raise more than $175,000 for the Home Base Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to healing the invisible wounds of war. “To have the opportunity to serve those who have served us, there’s nothing more meaningful than that,” Kash shared. Fairwinds Golf Course General Manager and 2024 SFPGA Patriot Award recipient, Mark Cammarene, PGA, has hosted 11 sessions, impacting more than 180 Veterans since 2018. “Hosting one session led to the effortless decision to continue,” Cammarene said. “Seeing the transformation in participants keeps us coming back.” Bo Preston, PGA General Manager at The Links at Boynton Beach and 2021 SFPGA Patriot Award recipient, has built a community where Veterans are treated like VIP members. Hosting up to four PGA HOPE sessions each year, Preston launched a league called Hope Has a Home, which has grown from 13 to over 150 Veterans. Preston’s wife, Christina Olivarez, a retired Army Master Sergeant and SFPGA HOPE Ambassador, knows that transformation firsthand. “PGA HOPE helped bring me out of a dark place,” Olivarez said. “It truly changed my life. Golf clears your mind and lets you forget everything else.” The same spirit is shared by Pam Elders, PGA Director of Instruction at Boca West Country Club, 2023 SFPGA Patriot Award recipient, and 2025 PGA of America Player Development Award recipient. For Elders, the program is personal; her father served in the Navy. “Getting involved with PGA HOPE was the perfect way to give back,” Elders said. “Many Veterans say this program saved their lives, but the truth is, it’s saved ours too as the Professionals who teach them.” This sense of connection and renewal is particularly evident during events like the Fourth Annual PGA HOPE Cup, held on October 4th at St. Andrew’s Country Club. The event brought together 72 Veterans and 24 PGA Professionals for a day of camaraderie and celebration. 2022 SFPGA Patriot Award recipient, Jerry Impellittiere, PGA, led his team of Navy Veterans to victory. Having worked with more than 200 Veterans through PGA HOPE, Impellittiere has seen firsthand the healing power of the program. “The one thing that rips my heart out is the mental health challenges Veterans often face,” Impellittiere, the PGA Director of Instruction at Monarch Country Club, shared. “This little white golf ball we all obsess about is a miracle in many Vets’ lives.” The same hope carried to the national stage this year, as Todd Frey, a retired Navy Chief and graduate of the Fort Myers program, represented South Florida at PGA HOPE National Golf & Wellness Week. Now a National Ambassador, Frey embraces the same purpose that defined his military career. “Golf became therapy for me,” he said. “Now, I just want others to experience the same healing.” From one pilot program of 16 Veterans to nearly 30 annual sessions across South Florida, PGA HOPE has become a beacon of healing, purpose, and connection. As the South Florida PGA Foundation celebrates this 10-year milestone, it does so with deep gratitude to the Veterans who inspire, the PGA Professionals who lead, and the communities that continue to make it possible. The next decade promises even greater impact, one swing, one story, and one life at a time. Interested in supporting PGA HOPE in South Florida? May 7, 2026 - Lost Tree Club | 10th Annual PGA HOPE Classic Make a Donation | Volunteer

At 10 years old, while never stepping foot on a golf course, Lawrence Inks III, otherwise known as “Chip,” joined his grandfather for nine holes of golf at Sandpiper Bay in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Chip loved it and considered golf his “fun” sport, because he didn’t want golf to get in the way of the baseball and soccer that he played competitively. That fun that Chip experienced on the course with his grandfather over 40 years ago has shaped his mindset and philosophy as a teacher and coach, culminating in being named the 2025 South Florida PGA Youth Player Development Award recipient, which recognizes the Professional who has made extraordinary contributions to youth player development. “The biggest thing for me is that I want my juniors to have fun first,” Chip, the PGA Director of Instruction at Village Golf Club in Royal Palm Beach, Florida, emphasized. “Yes, it’s time to be serious, and get our work done, but let's still have fun.” Growing up in Akron, Ohio, Chip was a standout baseball and soccer player who earned the opportunity to play both sports at Anderson University, a small Division III school in Anderson, Indiana. Except Chip never actually played on the baseball team and only played on the soccer team for two years before suffering an injury that derailed his soccer ambitions. Instead, he walked on to the golf team after being encouraged by a few friends he had met who were on the team. Chip had never played a competitive round of golf in his life at that point, but again, it was extremely fun for him and allowed his personality to shine, and Chip became hooked. By the time he was a senior at Anderson, Chip had almost become like a coach to other players who would come to Chip for swing advice, a small glimpse into what the future could hold for him. “Everybody who had a swing issue would come to me, and I became known as the swing guru and helped the whole team with lessons,” Chip explained. Shortly after graduating, Chip returned to Anderson University as an assistant golf coach. His passion for teaching led him to pursue PGA Membership, which he earned in 2006 while working at The Country Club at Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio. His time at The Country Club was extremely valuable, as he was introduced to and able to learn from individuals such as Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, David Leadbetter, and Butch Harmon, only intensifying his desire to become an instructor. Over the next three years, Chip worked himself up to becoming a head professional at Delaware Golf Club in Delaware, Ohio. While serving as a head professional, Chip did not feel the same level of fulfillment, realizing his passion lay more on the lesson tee than in the golf shop. Seeking his next opportunity, Chip and his wife relocated to South Florida, where he began working at the Polo West Country Club in Wellington. Soon after, Chip met Dustin Massey, PGA, at a Southeast Chapter Fall Meeting, offering him an opportunity to help run junior clinics at Park Ridge Golf Course in Lake Worth. Excelling in his role, Chip eventually became the PGA director of instruction at Park Ridge in 2014, under the leadership of Donna White, PGA, who oversaw all Palm Beach County-owned facilities. Chip began running junior programs for Park Ridge, and in 2019 alone, he saw 2,500 juniors come through the program, earning his first U.S. Kids Top 50 Coaches recognition. “His simple approach creates a supportive, not intimidating learning environment, dedicated to helping others improve their game, which is exemplified in the success of his students, especially his juniors,” explained White, a 2022 South Florida PGA Hall of Fame inductee. “His commitment to youth player development is worthy of recognition.” Following a record-breaking 2019 for junior participation, Chip and his team were on pace to reach 3,500 juniors in 2020 until COVID-19 hit, forcing Chip to move on. From Park Ridge, Chip became the director of Instruction at Village Golf Club, the facility where he currently resides today. While giving lessons and running clinics for juniors primarily aged 3-12 at the Village, Chip also serves as a Certified Instructor for the First Tee and coaches the girls' Palm Beach Central High School golf team, which advanced to the Regional finals this year for the first time in the program's 17-year history. As an instructor and coach, Chip takes a different approach with his students, not necessarily obsessing over the swing and mechanics, but more so the attitude and feelings of the individual. That personable approach goes a long way for younger students, as Chip emphasizes the importance of being an athlete and not just a golfer. “Aside from golf, he has been a caring leader once he learned I was diabetic, like his wife,” shared Wylie Inman, a student of Chip’s who has committed to play golf at the University of South Florida. “It shows his true character, that he cares about the person too, not just the golf swing.” From a 10-year-old just wanting to spend time with his grandfather to becoming a nationally recognized U.S. Kids coach to being named the 2025 South Florida PGA Youth Player Development Award recipient, Chip has maintained the same positive, fun approach that, in his eyes, keeps him young and full of joy.  “Golf very easily parallels life; golf is not always going to be fairways and greens. You are going to be stuck in the rough sometimes. How you get out of the rough really depends on what type of attitude you have, and that's really what I want the juniors to learn,” Chip explained. “We are going to do things right, we are going to have a good attitude, and I want you to have fun with it.”

As Scott Kash tells the story, the Veterans he was teaching golf to that spring day in 2023 had it all wrong. There were 15 or so Veterans who had participated in a PGA HOPE (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) class at Stoneybrook Golf Club in Estero, Florida, and during the ceremony held at the conclusion of the class, each of them walked up to Kash, one of the PGA of America Professionals who had served as an instructor that day. "Every one of them is coming up and thanking me," says Kash. "I'm thinking, 'I'm here to thank you.' That's when it hit me that what I'm doing is making a difference. It is truly the least that we can do, as golf professionals, to teach them the game and give back to those who put on the uniform so that we are able to do what we do every day." The passion that Kash has for providing various means for Veterans to start the game and continue to enjoy it is evident to anyone who knows the man who is truly making the most of his second career, which has now seen him honored with the 2025 South Florida PGA (SFPGA) Patriot Award. Kash is the sixth recipient of the Patriot Award, which recognizes a PGA of America member who personifies patriotism through the game of golf and demonstrates unwavering commitment and dedication to all who have served the United States of America. The SFPGA began recognizing the Patriot Award, one of the PGA of America's national awards, on the Section level in 2019. "This is a unique award, and I'm incredibly honored to receive it," says Kash, the Tournament Director at Quail Creek Country Club, a 36-hole private facility in Naples, Florida. "The Patriot Award is unique because it goes beyond what we do as a profession. I have looked at ways that I can give back, and when it comes to the military, I'm all in." Kash serves on the Home Base Golf Tournament Committee at Quail Creek. He played a vital role as the Tournament Director for the event itself, helping to raise more than $175,000 for the Home Base Foundation last year. Home Base is a national non-profit organization dedicated to healing the invisible wounds of war through direct clinical care, wellness, education, and research, all at no cost to Veterans, service members, and their families. As a PGA HOPE Certified Professional, Kash has successfully graduated 58 Veterans across four classes since 2023. Furthermore, as a leader for the PGA HOPE Basecamps in the SFPGA's Southwest Chapter, Kash has organized three additional sessions, offering enhanced instruction and playing opportunities to 30 Veterans. One of those whose lives Kash has touched is Ronald Dixon, a disabled Veteran and one of Kash's Player Development students. "I have experienced firsthand the patience, encouragement, and genuine care that Mr. Kash provides to those he mentors," Dixon wrote in a letter recommending Kash for the SFPGA Patriot Award. "Mr. Kash has gone above and beyond in supporting me not only as a student of the game but also as a Veteran navigating the challenges of recovery, growth, and transition ... His support has helped me grow both on the course and personally, reinforcing the sense of pride and confidence that military service instilled in me." As so many Veterans have discovered how golf can help change their lives, so too has the game enriched the second part of Kash's professional arc. After a career in manufacturing planning and logistics, Kash started playing more golf. A lot more ... upwards of 175 rounds per year, in fact. He went to work at a local municipal course in the New York City area, decided to dedicate his efforts to achieving PGA of America membership, and after helping his parents move to Southwest Florida, Kash became a PGA of America member in 2010. Kash said he "felt something that day" in Maine in 2016 when he assisted in one of the early PGA HOPE events, in Maine. Part of the pull, to wanting to help Veterans, emanated from thinking about his Dad, Gerald, who had served as a special enlisted reserve in Korea. "My Dad was my rock," he says now of his late father. The son went to it, and the fire for helping veterans continues to burn strongly. He is currently working with Home Base to establish a golf league for veterans. Through PGA HOPE Basecamps, which are designed to keep veterans engaged in golf, Kash has helped secure facilities and collaborated with other PGA HOPE Certified Golf Professionals to deliver five weeks of instruction, culminating in a final 9-hole scramble. This summer, the third Basecamp session that Kash oversaw featured eight returning participants who had previously attended at least one session. Heather Angell, also a PGA of America Professional, went through PGA HOPE training with Kash. "I ran four PGA HOPE Programs in Fort Myers, and Scott was with me every step of the way making sure the Veterans had a great experience," says Angell, the PGA Director of Instruction at The Golf Club at Fiddler's Creek in Naples, Florida. "When he asked me if I could assist him with a Basecamp he created and organized this year, I did not hesitate to help out, as I knew he was offering a meaningful experience for those Veterans who had already completed the original PGA HOPE Program. Scott saw the importance of the program and the need that the graduates wanted more. PGA HOPE has become his passion and the program in Southwest Florida has been elevated because of him." Paul Fitzpatrick, PGA Director of Golf at Babcock National Golf & Country Club in Punta Gorda, Florida, has worked with Kash on several Basecamp events and echoes the praise from Angell. "Scott's genuine care for veterans and passion for providing them with opportunities to improve their golf game and feel comfortable are always evident," says Fitzpatrick. "We organize Drive, Chip, and Putt challenges, as well as a 9-hole scramble. In addition, Scott has conducted multiple surveys to better understand the participants’ needs and enhance their overall experience. Scott has found his passion and is dedicated to giving our veterans every opportunity to enhance their lives and golf experiences. His vision for the PGA HOPE program will have a lasting impact on our Section." So many of us try to find that calling in life. What is it that we can do to genuinely make a difference? Will it really matter at all? For Scott Kash, the answer is simple, really. In part, it's in what he calls "that look of amazement" on the faces of the Veterans he teaches, when they react to a golf ball they have struck well, soaring up in the air. In part, it's in honoring his Dad by "waking up each day with a passion for Veterans and these programs." Put together, the whole of it adds up to the intense commitment that Kash has made to those he gets to thank through the game that brings joy, renewal and, in many ways, peace, to those who deserve it the most. "You have to pour your heart and soul into this if you commit to giving back to our Veterans," he says. "I have had conversations with fellow PGA Professionals about the PGA HOPE program, and I often share the profound impact of seeing Veterans' appreciation for what we do for them. This has truly been a truly life-changing experience for me."