Led by our PGA of America General Managers, PGA members at clubs across the country continue to transform the game of golf with a steadfast commitment to growth, diversity, innovation and sustainability. As we mark a quarter century into the new millennium, tradition in golf meets evolution, and it’s no longer just a game. Golf is a bridge for community connection, a stage for inspiring young athletes and a platform to champion inclusivity. From the local driving range to the professional tours worldwide, PGA of America Golf Professionals are uniting under shared goals that will shape the next generation of golfers.
In addition to those shared goals lies a bevy of individual goals that golf facilities and their management teams aspire to attain in 2025. Whether it’s a capital improvement project or an increase in rounds played, every PGA of America General Manager has his or her goals for the new year. We asked some of them to share their goals for 2025 - some discussed expanding access to the game, while others mentioned fostering innovation in coaching and player development. Through these efforts, many professionals will redefine what it means to grow the game, ensuring that golf remains a vibrant and welcoming sport for all, where we drive excellence, build communities and shape the game’s future.
At the Schaumburg Park District/Schaumburg Golf Club in Illinois, PGA of America Golf Professional Tony LaFrenere is the Executive Director. LaFrenere, the 2025 PGA of America Golf Executive of the Year, uses a balanced scorecard approach to his facility's goals.
“The balanced scorecard system breaks the organization’s goals and objectives into four foundational areas,” he shares. “In our case: Customer Satisfaction, Financial Sustainability, Operational Excellence and Employee Growth and Development. In utilizing the balanced scorecard method for planning and strategy, the Schaumburg Park District/Schaumburg Golf Club ensures the perspective for each area is taken into consideration.”
LaFrenere adds that infrastructure or capital items typically fall under the subcategory of efficient and effective use of resources, while marketing and sales fall within financial sustainability, developing business plans and strategies.
“In my opinion, the Employee Development and Engagement foundation is often overlooked but may be the most important,” he says. “Here we focus on objectives related to cultivating personal and professional growth, promoting teamwork, developing customer focus (internal and external) and encouraging innovation, creativity and diversity.”
In setting these goals, collaboration is vital. The facility’s department heads check in with all levels of staff for input on initiatives that might fit into their focus areas. Leadership will often bring trending topics to the table, like pickleball or the use of AI. The latter might relate to mowing, striping athletic fields or use in their administrative practices.
While monitoring goals, each department updates its goals and objectives on a quarterly basis using a template that allows for a summary of the status of the item. This way, LaFrenere and his board can track the progress. Amendments to goals happen when they need to pivot on an objective.
Understanding the golf industry means knowing that however you classify a goal, service is at its core. Brian Thorne, the PGA of America General Manager and Regional Operations Manager at Troon North Golf Club says his goals are financial on the surface, but cannot be attained without providing a great experience for their guests. These goals pertain to infrastructure, marketing, sales and revenue management. “These all need to work in tandem to produce financial results,” he states. “Financial goals are a 3-4 month process - departmental goals are ongoing throughout the year and change based on the business, season and financial climate. It is a collaborative process and is contemplated throughout the year.”
Thorne monitors the status of their goals weekly with his managers, monthly through monthly financial results and quarterly through forecast reviews.
Understanding service directly from the recipients of that engagement, Michael Heisterkamp issues a member survey at year’s end to gauge the success of his facility’s goals. Heisterkamp, the PGA of America General Manager at Chagrin Valley Country Club in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, says their goals are based around member service and infrastructure. They are collaborative and set a few months before going into effect.
Taking service back to its source, Tom Son, the PGA of America General Manager at Arrowood Golf Course, a public facility in Oceanside, California, says that their goals are staff-related first and foremost. After all, a happy staff will provide the stellar service that every golf facility (regardless of type) strives to provide, ensuring the attainment of its ultimate financial objectives.
Agreeing that any conversation on service is only enhanced by including the folks from Disney, customer feedback is vital in gauging customer satisfaction. At Walt Disney World Golf operated by Arnold Palmer Golf Management, Alex Forsyth, the Director of Sales & Marketing and PGA of America Assistant General Manager, says they have staff-related and financial goals to attain. They track service standards through monthly guest service surveys that are emailed shortly after the completion of the golfer’s round.
“Our department heads all play a part in goal-setting,” Forsyth explains, “and some of us break that down quarterly to identify smaller goals to achieve along the way. In addition, amending of goals is possible, based upon performance throughout the year.”
Semi-private facility owner, Brent Lingel, a PGA of America Master Professional and the 2022 Southwest PGA Section Golf Professional of the Year, says his goals for Rolling Hills Golf Club and Dorado Country Club, both in Tucson, Arizona, are financially related.
“We forecast to ensure that we are staying profitable for our company and are building up our reserve account for capital projects or major repairs that might occur,” Lingel shares. “Staff-related goals are next - we want to be encouraging to our professionals to continue their progression in the PGA of America Associate program and continue to grow their lesson revenues. We want to help them grow personally and professionally. If we do this successfully, our service-related goals take care of themselves organically.”
Lingel strives to increase the average customer spend by around five percent per year, allowing them to grow and keep up with rising costs, inflation and wage increases. These goals start at the top with Lingel and are then shared with his professional staff to get their input and buy-in.
“They need to see the macro picture and scope of the business for the year and how they are a vital part of accomplishing the goals set forth,” Lingel adds. “We start looking at goals for the new year in Q3 of the current year, giving us an idea of where things are trending locally and nationally and how to adjust for the upcoming year.”
Goals, after all, are about looking ahead with an eye on the past, and the feedback we received on the topic reflects the insight needed to run a facility.
Take Harold Rowland, PGA, for instance. As the Vice President at Contraband Bayou at L'Auberge Casino Resort in Lake Charles, Louisiana, Rowland has shared a wealth of knowledge within our PGA General Managers platform. Although his facility is different from many of the more traditional private clubs and public golf courses, he’s been a voice that many GMs have looked toward to help in their own roles.
“Our primary goals for 2025 are a combination of financial, service-related and staff-related priorities,” he explains. “Because the gaming industry is so regulated, we also build in a compliance target as well. Financially, we’re focusing on achieving stretch targets for net revenue and EBITDAR (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and restructuring or rent costs) while maintaining a strong margin. Service-wise, we’re looking to elevate the guest experience, particularly for VIPs, and to align these efforts with revenue growth. Staff engagement is also key—retaining top talent and enhancing team member engagement are foundational to our success.”
Rowland says his goals span marketing, sales and operations. Marketing efforts will focus on omnichannel strategies, leveraging big events and driving customer acquisition. Sales initiatives include maximizing opportunities through concert activations and their 20th Anniversary celebration. Operationally, they’re enhancing infrastructure by improving guest-facing areas and introducing innovations like technology-driven solutions (omnichannel) to create new revenue streams and improve efficiency.
“The goal-setting process is highly collaborative,” Rowland adds. “While high-level priorities and financial targets are set by leadership, our VPs, Directors and key managers contribute to shaping departmental strategies and identifying actionable initiatives. This collaborative approach ensures alignment across teams and buy-in from all levels of the organization.”
Rowland says his team’s goals are monitored continuously through weekly executive meetings, as well as monthly and quarterly reviews. They use key performance indicators (KPIs) and department-specific scorecards to track progress. Adjustments are made as needed based on market conditions, performance or unforeseen opportunities, but they always keep their core focus on achieving the year’s overarching objectives.
With input from a variety of facility GMs, it’s interesting to see the similarities and differences from facility to facility. Whether in business to maximize profits and revenue, to provide members with the perfect private club experience or to attract public golfers through quality engagement and continuously improving infrastructure, our PGA of America General Managers are certainly leading the way to progress and innovation, one goal at a time time.