It’s said everything is bigger in Texas, and there’s no doubt the Northern Texas PGA Section has had a massive impact on the game of golf. Yet, one of its biggest accomplishments sits upon just two acres of synthetic turf, and is a large factor in the Section earning the 2025 Herb Graffis Award for growing the game.
The Ronny Golf Park is a lighted park that sits next to the Northern Texas PGA Section offices at PGA Frisco, adjacent to the Home of the PGA of America. It’s a first-of-its-kind urban golf experience aimed at juniors ages 3-14, though it’s open to families and golfers of all ages to explore and fall in love with the game. The Ronny, named for 2020 PGA of America Golf Professional of the Year and longtime Northern Texas PGA Section Member Ronny Glanton, opened in November 2022 and has already introduced thousands of youngsters and their families to the game of golf.
“The Ronny came out of a meeting a handful of us had in a conference room just before the COVID pandemic started,” recalls Northern Texas PGA of America President Cameron Doan (pictured above left). “We were thinking of ways to make golf more accessible to more juniors in a park-like setting, and we came upon the idea of making it all out of synthetic turf so it wouldn’t need to close for seasonal maintenance, and also we’d have more money for running programming and hiring PGA of America Golf Professionals to run it.
“Plus, we thought, ‘If we pull this off, it could be a blueprint for others to do the same.”
Now open for more than two years, The Ronny has fulfilled the promise of creating a welcoming way for young golfers and their families to receive an introduction to the game. Outside of times set aside for scheduled programs, the park is free and open to the public. It’s common to see groups of kids playing together, families having picnics and birthday parties being celebrated at The Ronny.
“Not long ago, I saw a mom pushing a double stroller across one of the greens, and I thought how cool that was,” says Northern Texas PGA Chief Executive Officer Mark Harrison (pictured right). “We embrace that in a way you can’t really do on a traditional golf course. It’s dynamite, and I think it’s everything you want the game to be for juniors. Who knows? Maybe the next Scottie Scheffler or Jordan Spieth is out there in one of those strollers.”
Other PGA Sections and municipalities around the country have visited The Ronny, and Harrison hopes to see similar golf parks pop up throughout Texas and the U.S. in years to come. As remarkable as The Ronny’s impact has been so far, it still remains part of the overall resounding impact the Northern Texas PGA Section continues to have on the game.
The Section has a long history of giving back to the game. As the late Byron Nelson told a Section meeting in the 1980s, “Be good to the game and give back.” Those words adorn the Northern Texas PGA Section office walls, and are a true mission statement that permeates the Section’s five pillars: Junior Golf, Scholarships, Military/Veterans, Inclusion and Internships.
“Winning the Herb Graffis Award is a team award, and we have a great team of folks who come in here every day and drive the programming across our five pillars,” says Section Executive Director Kelly Gilley (pictured middle).
“It’s very multifaceted and it’s been built over so many years by staff members like Mark Harrison and passionate PGA of America Members like Randy Smith. There’s a unique vision here, and seeing it all come to life every day is very exciting.”
Smith is credited with sparking creative ways for Northern Texas PGA Members to give back to the game with his fundraising 24-hour “Teachathons” at Dallas’ Royal Oaks Country Club in the 1990s. The Northern Texas PGA Section has more than 1,000 PGA of America Golf Professionals across 300-plus facilities. Now the Section is focused on bringing more future PGA of America Members into the game through its scholarship program and ongoing junior golf efforts.
“Our junior golf program is such a monolith, and we have relationships with thousands of kids and their families that know and trust us,” Doan says. “We’re making sure to talk with them about the potential opportunities of staying in the game as PGA of America Golf Professionals. We can create our own talent pool for the Section and for the game, and let nature take its course.”
—Don Jozwiak
