November 2024 Edition
GTA Chapter News
President’s Message
Annual General Meeting
Members Special Meeting October 7, 2024
Our Membership
Golf Events Recap
League Play Recap
Golf Ontario 1000 Ball Challenge
Frequently Asked Questions
Volunteer Opportunities
Our Sponsors
LPGA Ontario
Important Notices From LPGA Amateurs Headquarters
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President’s Message
Where has the time gone? It seems only a round ago that we were heading towards our Season Opener event (a chilly, damp day) to reacquaint ourselves and meet new members. Thanks to all our volunteers, our Chapter had the chance to enjoy a variety of GTA golf options this Season, including weekend events, weekday and Sunday Leagues, and competitions. Because we are one of seven sub-Chapters in Ontario, we also had the chance to join in the All-Ontario events. It was great to see some of our members participate in the international competitions organized by the US headquarters. Congratulations to our golfers who attended those events.
We have grown to 265 members, with about 7% of our membership holding secondary membership in other LPGA Amateurs Chapters. I have been a member since 2000 and have had a rich and multi-experiential journey. Having had many mentors along the way, I was privileged to give back through the role of Course Captain and as a mentor to new members. Then, there are those wonderful friendships that have flourished through the years.
This is not farewell. As my own personal journey continues, I may be joining a different Chapter. To my GTA Chapter, continue your excellent golf adventures, learn the rules of our game, and appreciate the beauty of chasing a little white ball (ok, coloured if you need to) into a hole. Please join us at the Annual General Meeting to be held virtually on November 20th, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. and see what a year it has been and what is in store for 2025.
Thank you all for a great Season!
Paula Manuel
President
Annual General Meeting
Our Annual General Meeting will be held virtually via MS Teams on Wednesday November 20th at 7:30 pm. Please register through the event portal at GTA Chapter 2024 Annual General Meeting Event Page. Visit the event portal to view the meeting Agenda and other information pertaining to the business of the meeting. A link to the meeting will be provided later for all registered attendees. If you are unable to attend the meeting and wish to assign a proxy, please follow the instructions on the registration portal.
An important reminder - we are seeking a volunteer to join our Board of Directors as a Director-at-Large for a one-year term. If this is something you are interested in, please review the information package on our website for details regarding candidate qualifications and the nomination/application procedure.
Members Special Meeting Recap
A big thank you to all who participated in the Special Meeting of the Membership held on October 7th, 2024. For those of you who were unable to join us, a new set of By-Laws for our GTA Chapter was approved by the membership. These new By-Laws ensure that we are following Ontario government regulations applicable to governing organizations such as ours. They also describe a new Board model for our organization, which proposes establishing a number of operational committees to help with activities such as golf events, membership, communication etc. Stay tuned as we will be announcing opportunities for members to get involved at the committee level. If you have expertise in marketing, event planning, fundraising, finance or other areas, and are willing to help on a committee, we want to hear from you! More information on specific committees and their roles will be available shortly.
Our Membership
What an amazing year! We entered 2024 with a membership of 201 and ended with 265 members, 101 being new to our Chapter. Each year, we have a small number of members who do not renew based on a variety of reasons – health issues, relocation, work demands etc. We do our best to ensure that our offerings across the Season give varied opportunities for all our golfers, whether they be new to the game, or seasoned players, and we trust we are not losing members because of lack of choice to get out on the course.
Golf Events Recap
It takes a village to run our Golf events, and we thank Bev, our Director of Golf Events, and the members of the Golf Events committee for their time booking courses and running our weekend and/or special events.
Without members like these, our events cannot take place. Shout-out to Lise C., Susan W. and Pam B. who each contributed their time to run their respective individual events such as The Nest, Glencairn and Springfield. Cathy C. and Astrid B. were busy running multiple events including their collective efforts for Watson’s Glen and their respective individual events at Copper Creek and Dragon’s Fire.
Competitive events such as the GTA Scramble and Chapter Championship could not have happened without the expertise of course selection, preparation and administrative talents of Cathy C., Alison M. and Bev – thank you! And, we add special thanks to Lise C., Jae R. and Bev for all their work on hosting the Border Cup in the London Area.
How could you have planned your golf calendar or registered for an event without the volunteer efforts of our Communications team (Lorraine, Brenda H., Donna B., Chessa J.) and our Golf Genius administrator, Alison M.? Thank you!
When you get a chance, please thank all these hard-working women and consider how you could contribute to an event next year. Maybe you have a connection to a particular course and would like to run an event. If so, please contact the Golf Events Director as we are beginning to plan for the 2025 Season.
Season Closer
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We couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day for our Season closer! We had 64 golfers join us at Pickering Glen on October 5th for our final event of the Season which included a delicious after-round meal. Everyone enjoyed the on-course games (including draws for hitting trees or bunkers, 2 honey pots, and the beloved “red ball” team game). All participants received a lovely gift bag assembled by Board members Mary Ann and Virginia, and the evening closed with draws for door prizes donated by members of the Golf Events and League Coordinators Committee and the Board. Thank you to Virginia, Mary Ann, Mary C., Mary P., Paula, Cathy C., Christine D., Astrid B. and James Needler Event Consulting for the generous gifts. We also received golf passes from Granite Ridge and Pickering Glen.
Each member of the Board of Directors spoke about the Season as we celebrated our champions, successes, and thanked our volunteers. A special thank you to Astrid B. for booking and planning this year’s venue. Thank you to Donna B., Mary C. and Mary P. for help with the registration table, Lorraine for keeping us organized with an Agenda and Paula for being the mistress of ceremonies. Thanks to Bonnie T. for some great pictures!
League Play
Our Leagues are finished for the Season with the exception of Don Valley and Pickering Glen who may continue into November, weather permitting.
We offer special thanks to our League coordinators Donna B., Nella S., Lise C., Maria S., Astrid B., Mary C. and Mary P. for being there for our members week-in and week- out, sending out notices and creating tee sheets, so we could play with various members throughout the Season. Big thanks as well to all the women who volunteered their time to book tee times for Don Valley and Lakeview…your efforts have not gone unnoticed!
We are pleased to say that five of the six Leagues will be returning in 2025 with their respective coordinators. Due to a lack of regular numbers each week, we are bidding a fond adieu to the Hidden Lake League. Thank you, Lise C., for keeping this League going for the past five years – we hope there may be opportunities for an invited event there in the future.
Golf Ontario 1000 Ball Challenge - GTA Chapter Surpasses Our Goal!
Well, we did it…our GTA Chapter rose to the challenge! THANK YOU to all members and their sponsors who helped us surpass our initial goal of $5000 to reach an impressive $6220! The Team of Bev, Paula, Virginia, Mary Ann, Lorraine, Narjis, Maria and Alison managed to hit 1000 golf balls on October 18th on a beautiful Fall afternoon at the Bathgate Golf Centre in Mississauga.
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The “1000 Ball Challenge” is a program offered by Golf Ontario with the goal of supporting the expansion of golf experiences and opportunities throughout Ontario. All funds raised will directly fuel the GOLF FOR ALL FUND, supporting critical areas like Women and Girls Golf, Youth Development, Adaptive Golf and Indigenous Golf. We have chosen to direct our funding to support Women and Girls Golf. Fifty percent of the funds we raise come back to the GTA Chapter where they will be used to support our programs and events.
Frequently Asked Questions
YOU ASK…WE DO OUR BEST TO ANSWER!
Send them to our Director Communications and Marketing.
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There are many ways you can support the activities of our GTA Chapter. Please consider stepping up to volunteer – reach out to our President to learn more.
Cheers to Our Sponsors
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Learn more about these benefits here.
We thank our friends at LPGA Amateurs Ontario for hosting three fun events this year – Team Scramble, Trillium and Team Match Play. It’s great to get to play with members from the other Ontario Chapters…see you in 2025!
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Member Get A Member
It’s no secret, members are the best supporters and promoters of the LPGA Amateurs! Now is the time to invite your friends, family, colleagues, and neighbors to join in the fun of being an LPGA Amateurs member. The LPGA Amateurs is hosting a Member Get a Member Drive (presented by Callaway Golf) and we know that YOU can make our target of adding 1,000 new members by June 30, 2025 a reality. AND…members who recruit just two new members earn a dozen LPGA Amateurs logo Callaway golf balls! Click here for details.
Let's Go Golf 101 Online Learning Series is Live!
LPGA Amateurs Let’s Go Golf 101 is a great way to become comfortable getting out and playing the game! Whether you are a beginner golfer, someone who stepped away from the game, or someone who would like a refresher and tips – Let’s Go Golf 101 is the program for you! This micro-learning series covers everything from equipment to finding a group to play with. Your online golf education is in great hands, the experts in teaching women, and we invite you to ride along with our top-notch LPGA Professionals through 9-holes. What are you waiting for? Click here to check out this amazing member benefit today
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