Mary Woulfe has resided in Aspen since 1982. She has coached Aspen HS Golf since 2002. Active as a volunteer at Aspen Jr. Golf, she also served on the City of Aspen's Golf Advisory Board. She has taught skiing for the Ski Schools of Aspen full-time for over 30 years. She plays at Aspen Golf Club and is the Business Manager at St. Mary’s Catholic Church.
KK: Where are you originally from?
MW: I grew up in a small town on the west side of Chicago, River Forest. I played tennis at the River Forest Tennis Club. My neighbor used to hit golf balls in the backyard as a toddler and went on to become an Evans Scholar.
KK: What do you do for work?
MW: S A few years ago, someone asked me because I wear all these different hats. They were like, “What are you doing?” I said, “I try to create transformational experiences through sport for youth and create the next generation of good civic citizens,” it just rolled off my tongue. After 30-40 years of working with sport, starting with my internship at the Olympic Training Center while I was getting my MBA in Sports Administration at DU. I am a generalist, not a specialist.
KK: What is your role on the CGA Board?
MW: I am on the Finance Committee and the DEI Committee. I wanted to be on the DEI Committee mainly to bring a perspective from rural parts of the state. Places like Cortez, Meeker, Gypsum, Montrose, Sterling, and Alamosa all produce golfers of diverse backgrounds, where opportunities for access to CGA offerings can be reached. Players from Indigenous backgrounds and our growing Hispanic populations in Western Colorado are a part of CGA membership. What can we do to continue to grow the game with access to CGA resources for these players?
PGA Professional Tom Buzbee was the Head Professional at Cotton Ranch Golf Club. He successfully reached out to young Hispanics and encouraged them to learn. He gave them and their parents free clinics, clubs, and lessons. When a council without avid golfers was to decide about the golf course purchase by the township, the HS Girls team showed up to the meeting with all the medals, talked of scholarships, and what the game had brought to their lives. The Town of Gypsum acquired the course and changed its name to Gypsum Creek Golf Club. Tom said there wasn’t a dry eye when the council considered this purchase. That story has empowered me to think about how we can help people in rural areas of diverse backgrounds, particularly in underserved communities, gain access to the game. When you see those kids trying to get to where they want to go with the game of golf, you want to support it.
KK: As a mentor to youth in sports, what are some of the things you have learned?
MW: Golf teaches us values and life skills.
The R&A book used to have a quote, “Play fair, but to play fair, you need to know the rules.” Play fair in life, and if you can learn the rules of human decency, you can be a good citizen. These are four underpinnings of the game that we need in society.
The other day, I listened to Ed Mate and Brad Wiesley’s ‘Spirit of The Game’ Podcast, in which they discussed how the Rules of Golf can help you. It made me think about how great this sport is and how I want to stay involved. Follow the rules; they may help, not hurt you.
As a young ski instructor, I worked for Vic Braden, an International Tennis Hall of Fame member, a well-known tennis teacher, and PhD in sports psychology. He brought his knowledge from tennis to create more student-centered ski teaching. “Focus on each athlete’s learning system.”
Vic brought Gayle Godwin, the former UCLA Women’s Tennis Coach, to Aspen for the research project. Vic’s favorite tagline, “Laugh and Win,” was complimented by the many times Gayle would quote her colleague, the great UCLA Basketball Coach John Wooden.
My favorite:
“Be more concerned with your character than your reputation because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are.” -J Wooden
My background was ski teaching and tennis, but am I lucky I fell into the golf world?
KK: How did you fall into golf?
MW: I had an uncle who was a member of the Chicago Golf Club in Wheaton, Illinois. His name was R. Edward McGreevy. My uncle Eddy, as I called him, had his little rules of life by golf. At his club, Eddy introduced me to this guy named Chick Evans. Turns out the neighbor boy went to college on an Evans Scholarship.
My uncle would get up every morning and play 18 holes of golf before work. He always said things like, “If you want your putts to drop, play early,” and “Five hours is too long to spend on a golf course with people you don’t like.” That was his ‘have good etiquette’ statement about us, not about other people. “And maybe golf should be played in under four hours, not five. Walk to the hole and back; one or two putts take much less time than three. Don’t rush but play fast.”
KK: What is your favorite golf memory?
MW: Teeing it up on the first tee at Chicago Golf Club with my uncle Eddy for the first time in my early 40s. When I played, I remember thinking, “Wow, this is real golf.” Try it sometime; as you walk the course, it feels good. Support an Evans Scholar candidate.
KK: What is one piece of advice you would give to your younger self or younger generations?
MW: The John Wooden quote about character vs. reputation.