1. Longaberger, Nashport
2. Shaker Run, Lebanon
3. Boulder Creek, Streetsboro
4. Stonelick Hills, Batavia
5. Quarry GC, Canton
6. Little Mountain, Concord
7. Black Diamond, Millersburg
8. Cooks Creek, Ashville
9. Eaglesticks, Zanesville
10. Elks Run, Batavia

Looking for a road trip to play two more of the courses on this list in tournament competition? This year’s Ohio Mid-Am will be held at #4 Stonelick Hills in Batavia, while the 2010 Ohio Publinx will be played at #8 Cooks Creek in Ashville.

Think a local public or resort course is missing from this list? Or maybe one of these courses shouldn’t be listed here at all? Post a comment!

While we have several notable changes for the 2010 season, we’re most proud to be returning to Firestone Country Club for our crown jewel tournament, the InfoCision Golfer of the Year Invitational.

Other key changes for 2010 include:

- Players Membership Program – This addition will help us to bolster tournament payouts and make the ADGA tournament schedule that much more exciting.

- Full Senior Division – This year, each event will showcase a full senior division.  Senior ADGA Members will earn Ungvary Cup points to qualify for the Senior Division of the InfoCision Golfer of the Year Invitational. Senior Division payouts will also be increased to match Regular Division payouts.

- Additional Ungvary Cup Point Opportunities – As added incentive for Akron area golfers to join, ADGA Members will earn Ungvary Cup points by competing in other select non-ADGA events. ADGA Members can use points earned elsewhere to qualify for the InfoCision Golfer of the Year Invitational.

All in all, we’re very excited about the upcoming season and hope to see you all back out there competing at Akron’s finest golf courses! Remember to check the ADGA website, mark your calendars, and we’ll see you soon!

Play well, Play fair, Play fast,

- Tim Davis

From the ADGA Executive Committee: A Commitment to Excellence in 2010

The ADGA is unequaled in its quest for the betterment of amateur golf in the Akron community and continues to refine its tournament schedule, event formats, and payouts to provide its Members with the best competition in the Akron area.

New for 2010:

- Firestone Country Club Hosts Golfer of the Year

- New Membership Structure

- Revised Tournament Schedule with Full Senior Divisions

- Increased Payouts and More Points Opportunities

Back by popular demand: Firestone Country Club! After several years away, the 2010 InfoCision Golfer of the Year Invitational will be conducted at Firestone Country Club.  ADGA Members will have the opportunity to qualify in numerous ways for this premier invitational, including ADGA events and other local tournaments.

This year, the ADGA is offering a Players Membership program. The main purpose of this program is to increase tournament payouts to enhance the excitement of competition. The program costs only $50, but includes the opportunity to earn Ungvary Cup points in non-ADGA events.

Last year, the ADGA Schedule was modified to include some new events. This year is no different. While our traditional match play events have been eliminated, we’ve added Senior Divisions to all of our events. The 2010 schedule now includes four one-day regular season events, in addition to the InfoCision Golfer of the Year Invitational which will be returning to Firestone Country Club.

Also new for 2010, Dr. Jeff Mallette has been granted a spot on the ADGA Board, joining Dave Chapple, Mike Burnett, Kevin Larizza, Dan Marr, Chris Minear, Richard Slivinski and Director Tim Davis.

The ADGA has also restarted the publishing of the Player’s Book, which has been printed and is available at many area golf shops and courses.

Finally, we’ve modified our Tournament Payouts & Point Allocations for 2010. This year, full field payouts will be established and posted prior to the event, and Senior Division payouts will be equivalent to Regular Division payouts (places depends on final field size).

As always, complete information and tournament registration details can be found on the ADGA website.

The Ohio Golf Tour will start the season on April 24th at Fowlers Mill in Chesterland.  This year’s schedule features ten tournaments, including two at Quail Hollow County Club.  Other stops include The Quarry, Shale Creek, Grey Hawk, Wind Mill Lakes, Little Mountain, and Sweetbriar Legacy. The complete schedule can be found on the Northeast Ohio Golf Tournament Calendar, or on our website.

Some changes for the 2010 season:
1.  Lower entry fees (between $59 and $74)
2.  Optional prize pool including placement, skins, and day games.
3.  Payouts as Visa or Austad’s gift cards.

Here’s to a great season!

Al Canitia, Ohio Golf Tour
OhioGolfTour.com

The CGA has also restructured its membership system in order to make it easier and more cost effective for our players.

We have a season membership at $190 which covers your membership fees for the year and your event and skins game entry fees for five events.

Or players can “pay as you play” and each event will be a $5 fee with a one-time $5 registration fee for the year, due at your first event. This will make the entry fee to get into “everything” $40, which includes the Event Pot and Skins. (CGA Players are responsible for their green fees, and many courses allow walking if you want to save a few more bucks.)

The CGA also offers a competitive A flight ($25 for everything) for players 7 handicap and above, but all players play at “scratch” for their flight so no net scores to worry about.

The CGA also has a state-of-the-art computer scoring system, so results are available within minutes of completion of play.

Our tournaments range all over Northeast Ohio, so I am sure you will find an event in your area. And the CGA remains the only amateur member-based tournament series to offer cash payouts for optional wagers.

Our first event is Sunday May 2nd at Chippewa GC, in Doylestown OH, just a short ride down US 21 for our Cleveland players. For more information and to register for events, visit online at ChampionshipGolf.org or call 440-393-6043.

We have a great schedule that will be announced soon. Amateur players will be able to take advantage of the special green fee rates that many of these courses are providing to our players.

And we have something new for 2010, too.

One rule change has been added for this year that will make the Greater Cleveland Skins Game more enticing for senior players (over 50 years old): senior players will play from the forward tees each week (all par 3’s excluded). Senior players will get up to a 20 yard advantage on some holes. This will help level the playing field; the young guys will understand this sooner than you think.

Steve Blackburn of Willowick has won back-to-back Greater Cleveland Skins Game Championships and with it the Thompson Cup, and is expected to mount a strong defense of his title again in 2010.

And the Greater Cleveland Skins Game will host once again the “Greater Cleveland Shoot-Out Tournament”, held on its traditional Labor Day Monday date. Outside sponsors have made this event one of the top paying one-day tournaments for amateur golfers in the region. Pat Tyrrell of Sagamore Hills is the defending champion.

Check back at Northeast Ohio Golf later this month for the unveiling of the complete 2010 schedule!

Our first event, The Booster Club Pro-Am at Boulder Creek is April 29.  The format is a 4-man amateur team playing a scramble, paired with a professional playing his own ball, best score per hole.  The amateurs will be playing for $750 per man first prize, $500 second and $250 third.  The professionals will be playing for a $5,000 purse, $1,500 to the winner.  Entry is $800 per team, or $200 per man for amateurs who want us to pair them with a team.  Members can assemble their own team, including professionals.  Your team does not have to all be members of the tour.

This event is our major fundraiser for the golf programs we want to support this year, so your participation will be greatly appreciated.  There will be free beer and soda compliments of The House of LaRose and Pepsi, and a free lunch on the course.  After golf, we will be heading to The Hilton Garden Inn of Twinsburg for dinner.  Prizes will be handed out at the dinner, and there will also be a silent auction.  Anyone who would like to support the silent auction with a donation can write or call me.

We are now accepting VISA, MasterCard, American Express and Discover.  Go to our website and when you fill out your Entry Form, you can include your card information.  The number will be kept on file for future entries.  Because most events will be limited to the first 50 pros and 100 amateurs, members are encouraged to submit Entry Forms for the events they really want to play in early.  Your card will not be charged until the entry deadline for future events.

Our Policies and Procedures have been reviewed and approved by the USGA, a very important step for us.  We wanted to be sure our amateurs’ status is secure.  We have been told by the USGA that we can offer our amateur members VISA or MasterCard gift cards as prizes.  This way our members can accumulate their winnings and spend them where ever they’d like.  The only stipulation is they can not be converted for cash.  We are working on getting customized gift cards for each of our amateur members that can be loaded each week with their winnings!  We will keep you up to date with our progress.

I’d like to thank you again for your participation.  We have grown to 300-members strong.  The snow is melting and its almost time to compete!  So I look forward to seeing you all on the course.

Mike Hastings, Director
330-592-1564
themedalisttour@aol.com

Qualifying tournaments in the Northeast Ohio area will be played on May 24th at both Elyria Country Club and Youngstown Country Club, and there are other qualifier dates and locations throughout the state as shown on the schedule. The entry fee for a member of an OGA club is $150, for a non-member player the entry fee is $175.

The Ohio Amateur will be played July 13-16. Get your entry form submitted soon to ensure a spot!

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