Local Knowledge

GROUP MATCH TRACKING FEATURE FREE FOR ALL GHIN® USERS

Tracking a group’s match just became easier thanks to the new games and score-keeping feature added to the USGA’s GHIN app presented by Sentry.

Available free to all Golf Handicap and Information Network (GHIN) users, the easy-to-use digital scorecard allows golfers to keep hole-by-hole scores and track a match for the group in one central location so that everyone can focus solely on their games.

At the end of the round, a user can seamlessly transfer each player’s scores to their GHIN app for individual review and posting.

“GHIN innovation continues to enhance the enjoyment of the game in a way that’s simple and accessible for every type of golfer,” said Gareth Londt, USGA managing director of Product, Data & Technology. “This latest update is one of the most significant to date in terms of elevating the experience of everyone playing together in a group, while still providing the ability to post individual scores for your Handicap Index®.”

Below are three ways to use the new feature:

Setting up a game: Calculate handicap strokes for each person playing in the group on one digital scorecard.

Tracking the match: Always know where the match stands with hole-by-hole scoring.

Transferring scores: Easily transfer scores to players in the group after the round for individual review and posting.

The USGA’s GHIN app presented by Sentry can be downloaded to any mobile device via the App Store or Google Play.

TGA FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIP HELPS ABIGAIL DOBBS FULFILL HER DREAMS

In 2019, the Doris Kallina/’Nez Muhleman Scholarship was awarded to Abigail Dobbs, a then-senior at Quitman High School in East Texas. Dobbs was 18 years old back then and a typical teenager in the best sense of the word. She got good grades, had a part-time job, volunteered in her community, and loved playing sports and hanging out with her friends.

But Dobbs was also a bit different than some teens in that she already knew exactly what she wanted to do in life. A lifelong love of animals and a desire to care for them had shaped Dobbs’ career goals from a very young age.

“I have wanted to be a vet for as long as I can remember,” Dobbs said at the time.

When Dobbs was awarded the $25,000 scholarship, which would be paid out over a four-year period, she said she would use the money to attend Texas A&M University in College Station and begin her path to becoming a veterinarian.

She has certainly lived up to her promise. This past June, Dobbs graduated a year early from Texas A&M with a degree in Animal Science and is now in her first year at St. George’s University’s School of Veterinary Medicine in Grenada.

Established in 2015, the Doris Kallina/‘Nez Muhleman Scholarship honors the legacies and contributions of Doris Kallina and ‘Nez Muhleman by providing financial resources to girls seeking higher education with a high school golf background and academic excellence.

The scholarship helps empower deserving young people like Abigail Dobbs to dream big and work hard so they can go far in life.

To read more about how the Doris Kallina/’Nez Muhleman Scholarship has helped Dobbs fulfill her lifelong ambition, click here.

REGISTER NOW FOR 2023 PGA/USGA RULES WORKSHOPS

Registration is now open for 2023 PGA/USGA Rules Workshops. There are four different workshops being offered for interested participants.

Here is a quick overview of the Rules education options available in the upcoming months:

• Traditional PGA/USGA Workshops: In-person, 3.5-day PGA/USGA Workshops will be conducted at 15 locations around the country from December 2022 through March 2023. These workshops include access to Virtual Rules School videos (approximately 20 hours of recorded content) and access to either the 80- or 100-question exam on the morning of the fourth day (or online on a date selected from the exam schedule).

• USGA Virtual Workshops: The USGA staff will be conducting five week-long virtual workshops from December 2022 through April 2023. These sessions include daily two-hour webinars Monday-Friday (10 hours total), access to Virtual Rules School and access to the 80- or 100-question exam (either online on a date selected from the exam schedule or in-person at a PGA/USGA Workshop site).

• USGA Introductory Workshops: These will be offered periodically throughout the 2023 calendar year and are conducted fully online. The workshop includes approximately four hours of on-demand video recordings and two one-hour webinars with expert instructors on the selected dates.

• Rules Exam Only: The exam can be taken online through an exam platform on selected dates, or in-person on the morning of the fourth day of a PGA/USGA Workshop site.

The fee for the traditional PGA/USGA Workshop is $500, while the USGA Virtual Workshop is $375. The Introductory Workshop is $25, and the exam only is $100 (80-question test) or $150 (100-question test).

For more information and to register for Rules of Golf Workshops and Exams, click here.

REVENUE SOLUTIONS: INDOOR, OUTDOOR GOLF ENTERTAINMENT [GOLF INC.]

Courses across the country are adding simulators, putting greens and range technology to keep golfers engaged.

With a record number of beginners joining the sport — almost 14 million, according to the National Golf Foundation — golf has enjoyed an amazing run during the pandemic. New golfers are eager to learn, and clubs are investing in new ways to keep them engaged and entertained.

Courses with traditional driving ranges are adding technology such as Toptracer, a ball tracking system.

The simulator market is also hot. No longer strictly for high-end, specialty venues, simulators are popping up at small, local courses that are looking to pull in golfers during the off season — and after nightfall.

Meanwhile, another big trend is the development of practice facilities and putting courses.

In a story for Golf Inc.’s digital magazine, author Trevor Mason takes a closer look at some examples of what golf courses around the nation are doing to bring in additional revenue.

To read more about Trends in Indoor, Outdoor Golf Entertainment, click here.