The forecast going in to the week was grim. Superintendent Manny Sousa, his assistant Kregg Bush and crew had been preparing the course for several weeks. The fairways were dry, the greens smooth and fast and the bunkers a perfect consistency. The course was ready to handle the forecasted 1”- 4” of rain. Somehow we made it through Thursday and Friday with no problems and no delays despite angry skies. When Saturday morning rolled around and there was standing water in the fairways at 6:00 am, the stress level raised a few notches. The skies parted at 7:00 am the mowers went out and after play was concluded it rained harder than it had all week. Thank you Manny, Kregg and crew for an exceptional job on the golf course day in and day out.

Moving inside, if you’ve ever had breakfast or lunch at Poppy Hills, you’ve experienced friendly service, fair prices and healthy portions. Food and beverage manager Jonathan Saguil and his assistant Anthony Del Rosario provided quality service and food for several thousand people during the event. Marc Valone, food and beverage manager at Poppy Ridge and his assistant Amy Curtis took two days out of their busy schedules to help ensure a consistent flow of seating in the restaurant. Every guest was more than satisfied and complimentary of the food service at Poppy Hills. Thank you Jonathan, Anthony and staff.

Coordinating golf operations staff for the Pro-Am is no simple task either. Head Professional Justin Williams and supervisor Art Kerrick were responsible for setting up the driving range for contestants, distributing golf carts to tournament volunteers, staffing the golf shop and two merchandise tents, providing security for the parking lot, setting up signage around the facility, managing more than 50 employees and volunteers daily and being at the beck and call of thousands of spectators. Despite the inclement weather, merchandise displays were excellent and service was even better. Thank you Justin, Art and staff.

The location of our facility is unique. The staff at Poppy Hills, Poppy Ridge and the NCGA have very different functions but operate as one team. Never before had I witnessed such a successful team effort during the Pro-Am. Literally every NCGA employee and numerous Poppy Ridge employees made an effort to drop their normal responsibilities to ensure a smooth operation. Whether working security in the parking lot, greeting corporate hospitality guests, folding shirts in the pro shop or bussing tables in the restaurant, each person played an integral role.

Overall, it’s a very special week for many people. The tournament will distribute more than $6 million to charity in 2007, the PGA Tour players and celebrities get to play in the most desirable golf location in the world and the employees and volunteers put in 16-hour days but are rewarded with getting a front row seat to see their favorite stars.

On the Wednesday evening prior to the first round of play, the celebrities put on a show named the “Tee-Off Party to payback the volunteers for their hard work during the week. This event puts the volunteers in the right frame of mind before four long days of golf. When Kenny G and Joe Grandsen played “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” I couldn’t help but think about our two lost legends, Paul Porter and John Zoller. Reflecting back on the week, I’m certain the two of them had smiles on their faces as they watched years of mentoring come to fruition. I’m pretty sure that they were also responsible for the break in the weather.

To make this operational philosophy successful, we need membership participation. We want to hear from you, the members and member clubs. We need your feedback on what you anticipate out of your NCGA membership. We want to know if our services are what you expect, or if they’re below standards. To voice your opinion, please take advantage of the member feedback link on www.ncga.org; no question or concern is too small. We are seeking to broaden our membership offerings to fit the varied needs of our more than 175,000 members and we want to know where you stand.

In an effort to increase participation in the game of golf, our goals are to increase the awareness of the NCGA, help member clubs grow membership, help all Northern California courses increase rounds and at the same time grow rounds at the two NCGA-owned golf courses, Poppy Hills and Poppy Ridge. We will do all that we can to promote the game. Based on feedback from members, we will offer services and programs that go beyond the game. We intend to be a progressive leader in the industry.

Past research has indicated that people join the NCGA for three main reasons: 1. To get a handicap index. 2. To be a part of a social group. 3. For discounts at our two golf courses. It appears as though membership numbers have hit a stabilization point over the last three years based on the top three reasons for membership. Our goal is to increase membership by offering additional programs and services that will bring in new members.

Our two golf courses, Poppy Hills and Poppy Ridge, through the direction of the Poppy Holding board of directors, will focus on similar long-term goals. Objectives determined from our annual retreat in September left us with the following goals: provide the best possible course conditions at all times, increase service, improve the appearance and functionality of our clubhouses, consolidate our database for better communication with members and embrace a member-intimate philosophy while operating at a profit.

By 2011, we hope to see 240,000 members of the NCGA playing a combined 120,000 rounds of golf at our two golf courses, with participation regionally increasing exponentially. Again, the key to making this happen will be initial feedback from the membership. We are excited to hear from you.

Wishing you more fairways and greens in 2007.

We recently signed a one-year contract with Panagraph, a marketing firm based in Fresno. It is a priority to dramatically increase our membership. According to the National Golf Foundation there are nearly 600,000 golfers of varying interest in the region, leaving a huge potential to double our existing membership. A larger membership will allow us to enhance services all while maintaining a low membership cost.

Equally important is our focus on adding value to your NCGA membership. We are exploring establishing relationships with various corporate entities as a means of increasing revenue and providing additional benefits to members. The $25 you spend on an NCGA membership already goes a long way, but we are seeking to broaden our reach and offer benefits that serve the entirety of our membership.

With the help of our board of directors, we have developed a clear roadmap and vision.

With the re-emergence of the NCGA Foundation we will help shape the future of golf by influencing the lives of deserving youth. We are building our brand and advertising it with the goal of making our name synonymous with golf to all in Northern California.

Through area meetings, handicap certification seminars, rules seminars and associate club forums, we have vastly increased our educational offerings. This has allowed us even greater contact with our membership. In the past, the area meetings were, in many cases, the only opportunity for the NCGA staff to visit certain regions of the association. With the advent and development of some of the other seminars, staff is meeting with our membership with greater frequency to ensure our vision fits with the needs of members and future members.

Feedback at these sessions is vital to our continued growth. Interaction with the membership guides the development of not only the educational programs, but also every program the association offers. We pride ourselves on being a proactive player within the golf industry. Through work with our marketing firm and clear planning, our member services will continue to evolve in the years to come and have great synergy with the landscape of this region.

Northern California is steeped in golf history. The NCGA takes pride in being part of enhancing the longstanding excellence in this region. Through our continued efforts to build and improve our brand and services, we hope the NCGA becomes “the most important club in your bag.”

As I watched some of golf’s finest players come up Poppy Hills’ 18th fairway during the recent AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, I recalled this is the 20th anniversary of Poppy Hills and the 10th of Poppy Ridge. Then I thought about the year that just passed and reflected on some of our recent success.

We have just wrapped up our 16th year of hosting the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. We played host to a long list of great golfers and celebrities. The weather could not have been any better – a high of 78 degrees – and the Poppy Hills staff could not have been more enthused to host such a prestigious tournament. Teeing off alongside celebrity players such as Tom Brady, George Lopez and Samuel L. Jackson were our NCGA officers, President Dick Skavdahl, Vice President Dean Bartee, Secretary-Treasurer Mark House, Immediate Past President Bill Giffen and Poppy Holding, Inc. board member Chuck Van Linge. After the tournament they remarked at how memorable the entire experience was for them. We’re glad that we are able to provide such an opportunity that will forever be a part of their golf experience.

Poppy Hills’ General Manager Tyler Jones and I took off in the middle of hosting the AT&T to travel to Atlanta to attend the annual conference of the National Golf Course Owners Association (NGCOA). At the conference, Tyler accepted the Course of the Year Award for Poppy Hills. We are very proud to receive this recognition from the NGCOA, an organization comprised of our industry peers, golf course owners and operators.

The success does not stop with the Course of the Year honor. Poppy Hills was also recognized by Golf Digest as one of its “Best Places to Play” earning four-and-a-half stars out of a possible five. The golf shop was named one of the “Top 100 Golf Shops” by Golf World Business magazine, and Golf Today magazine ranked Poppy Hills #15 out of the “Top 25 Toughest Courses.”

Notwithstanding such great compliments, we have also been recognized for something off the fairways – a plate of chips with melted cheese. Fairways & Greens magazine named Poppy Hills as one of its “101 Best Golf Experiences in the West,” based on the strength of what the author called “the best nachos you’ll ever taste.”

Our sister course Poppy Ridge in Livermore has also been receiving its share of recognition.

Poppy Ridge was named the “Best Course in the Tri-Valley” by the readers of the Tri-Valley Herald and Head Professional Brad Braden received the Merchandiser of the Year Award from the Northern California PGA at its annual meeting in Monterey.

More than just a place to play golf, Poppy Ridge is the perfect setting to get married, host a corporate luncheon or wind down after a long day at work. The outdoor patio overlooking the course is home to local jazz bands on Thursday nights. Poppy Ridge’s Jazz Nights was voted the number-one entertainment activity for the area.

Recently, the news headlines read “Northern California municipal golf courses are expected to show another financial loss.” I think of Poppy Hills and Poppy Ridge and I grow more and more appreciative of the phrases “NCGA member courses” and “owned and operated by the NCGA.” Our association is financially sound and we have strong assets and a very strong balance sheet, enabling us to provide numerous membership benefits.

We are developing great plans for the future, but sometimes you just need to stop and appreciate success.

We are working with our counterpart, the Southern California Golf Association, to tackle what will be a crisis for our industry. Kevin Heaney, assistant executive director of the SCGA, and I have been traveling the state meeting with water lobbyists, water-focused public relations firms, public affairs consultants and environmentalists regarding future water access for California’s golf courses.

California experienced a significant drought in 1977 the state’s driest year in history that affected everyone. Many golf courses were close to losing all yes, all of their water. A scramble took place in the golf industry and a white paper was drafted detailing the economic impacts and consequences of such drastic measures, thus ensuring enough water was delivered to golf courses to keep greens alive. Courses using groundwater faired much better.

Since that drought there are ten million more people living in California. Per capita water consumption per person is up from 200 gallons per day to almost 230. There are tremendous new demands for environmental uses including the all-important San Francisco Bay Delta. The computer and biotechnology industries are also new and significant water users. The number of golf courses has grown from just under 300 in 1977 to a present day 912 (second to Florida with 1073).

Another drought in California is inevitable. The golf industry must develop a plan which highlights the economic and environmental benefits golf provides to our local communities. We need to educate decision makers and as many non-golfers as possible.

Secondly, we must embrace the environmental community and develop models of water-use efficiency models and promote the use of recycled water. We must work together with water agencies and be part of the solution.

In our efforts to date, there has been a real apathy in the industry. We cannot wait until the drought hits and then try to figure out what to do. We must act now and we must act fast.

When asked what action may be taken if there were a serious drought, a gentleman Kevin Heaney and I met with responded, “Don’t allow water to be added to swimming pools and cut the water to golf courses.”

Many courses have wells that use groundwater and have felt safe in the past. In time this safe feeling will diminish. After being passed by both Houses, the governor vetoed legislative bill SB820, a requirement to monitor the larger well water users, including golf courses.

California bill AB 2717 was introduced to create a water desalination task force to study opportunities for the use of seawater. This bill is still pending in the legislature. This is an issue that will not go away. People will not stand by and see their assets dry up while someone else has no restrictions.

The California Alliance for Golf (CAG) has been meeting for more than two years to orchestrate a plan to stave off the eventual reduction in water to golf courses. CAG is a statewide association of golf-industry personnel representing players, golf course owners and management, and manufacturers. Among its objectives, CAG is taking a proactive approach to protect the golf industry. It’s going to be difficult to get a handle on the issue of water, and the more of us that come together, the greater the opportunity for golf to position itself as an active participant in the solution of the state’s impending water crisis while maintaining the economic visibility and viability of the industry.

As a group, we need to develop a financial pool to hire professionals to help design a plan and a communication strategy to prevent golf courses from being severely water restricted.

Now is the time. Please get involved. If you are a water expert, politically connected, or have knowledge that may be beneficial to our cause, please let me know. I can be reached at (831) 625-4653 or pporter@ncga.org. I will continue to touch upon this issue in future editions of NCGA Golf.