Local organizers of the E-Z-GO Vaughn Taylor Championship presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf, which took place at Jones Creek Golf Club in Augusta, Ga., July 23-26, 2012, have earned the Hospitality Award from the American Junior Golf Association. The Hospitality Award honors the tournament committee that creates a special tournament experience for the juniors and families in attendance at the event.
Each year, the AJGA presents awards to the tournaments with the best individual media coverage, Junior-Am fundraising tournament, charitable giving and volunteer base. The AJGA also recognizes the years most outstanding golf professional, superintendent and general manager, as well as the most improved event, best new tournament, best Invitational and overall tournament of the year."Ive been to a lot of LPGA and PGA events and were not doing anything that doesnt happen at that level," said Tournament Chairman Dan Troutman. We are slowly trying to add things each year that they will see as they progress to the highest level of competition.
Throughout the week, the tournament chairman and committee provided unique benefits to the juniors and their families through a wide array of amenities, including private locker rooms with engraved name plates, private dining area, shoe cleaning and repairing, exact yardages from their assigned place on the driving range and an information booth staffed by the Augusta Convention and Visitors Bureaus sports council. At the booth, players and parents could find free movie passes and coupons to local restaurants, among other things. Meals were provided each day for juniors in a private dining room and parents were setup in the main dining area with multiple live scoring screens. Additionally, the clubs pool facility was open all week to families of players that needed a break from the heat that surpassed 100 degrees daily. One special memento each player received that week was a personalized money clip which served as their entry key to the locker and dining facilities, similar to what the players receive at professional golf events.
We do it because we think theres more to life than golf, Troutman said. These folks go play golf every weekend here, there and yonder, and we want them to care about more than how fast the greens are. We want them to think Man, you play at Jones Creek in Augusta at the AJGA event, its a whole package, not just a golf tournament. We want the word out there that if they are going to play in any event of the summer, they need to play in Augusta.
The tournament returns to the AJGA schedule in 2013 and will be played July 29 Aug. 1 at Jones Creek Golf Club.
Complete list of 2012 Tournament Awards .