The Golf Writers Association of America has named touring pros Billy Horschel, Chris Kirk and Lydia Ko, along with longtime golf executive Joe Louis Barrow Jr., as recipients of its annual awards as voted on by its members.
Horschel will receive the Charlie Bartlett Award, given to a playing professional for “unselfish contributions for the betterment of society.” The eight-time PGA Tour winner and his wife, Brittany, created the Horschel Family Foundation to “inspire hope, provide healing, promote health and honor our soldiers.”
Horschel’s foundation supports the K9s for Warriors program in his native north Florida and teamed with the PGA Tour to create the PAR program – privacy, access, resources – which attempts to remove barriers preventing individuals from seeking mental-health and addiction assistance.
Horschel also hosts the Billy Horschel APGA Invitational on the APGA Tour, which works to bring greater diversity to golf by supporting African-Americans and other minorities for careers in golf.
Kirk will receive the Ben Hogan Award, given to an individual who has continued to be active in golf despite a physical handicap or serious illness, in recognition of his success following a leave of absence from the PGA Tour in May 2019 to address issues of alcohol abuse and depression.
Ko, the reigning Olympic gold medalist and AIG Women’s Open champion who qualified for induction into the LPGA Hall of Fame, will receive the Jim Murray Award, given to a professional player for cooperation, quotability and positive working relationship with the media. The 27-year-old New Zealander has been in the spotlight since she won an LPGA event at age 15.
Barrow will receive the William D. Richardson Award for outstanding contributions to golf in recognition of his achievements as CEO of The First Tee for 18 years. Barrow is the son of former heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis.
The award winners will be honored at the 51st ISPS Handa GWAA Annual Awards Dinner on April 9 in Evans, Georgia, on the eve of the 89th Masters. READ MORE
Wisconsin’s Sand Valley Resort will open its sixth course, a 12-hole Jim Craig design called the Commons, in 2026. The course will join the Sandbox, a 17-hole short course, as what developer Michael Keiser calls “alternative golf” at Sand Valley.
With the same number of holes as the original routing at Prestwick, site of the first 12 Open Championships, the Commons will also serve as a “golf park” inspired by similar spaces in St. Andrews, North Berwick and Edinburgh, Scotland. READ MORE
Tap-Ins
Katelyn Sepmoree of Tyler, Texas, won the PGA Women’s Stroke Play Championship last Tuesday at PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Sepmoree also earned a spot on the Corebridge Financial Team playing in the 2025 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in June. READ MORE
Kai Trump, the 17-year-old granddaughter of President Donald Trump, has signed a name, image and likeness deal with TaylorMade. The high-school senior has committed to play college golf for the University of Miami. READ MORE
More than one-quarter of green-grass golfers in the U.S. are women and girls or people of color, according to the National Golf Foundation’s newly released “Golf Participation in the U.S.” report, which cites year-end data for 2024. Among the 28.1 million Americans who played golf on a course in 2024, 28 percent were female and 25 percent were Black, Asian or Hispanic. READ MORE
Marc E. Weston and Steven J. Hammon have been appointed to the board of trustees for the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America Foundation. READ MORE
Compiled by Mike Cullity