Minnesota Golfer - Summer 2023 - 29

One of the fruits of this collaboration was a joint venture to
create and promote a specialty license plate for golf aficionados.
Called Play Golf Minnesota, revenues from license plate sales help
fund feeder programs for juniors, veterans and underserved populations.
To date, more than 5,000 license plates have been sold
through the Minnesota DMV, which annually generates $150,000
in grants and foundation programs.
Long simmering on the back burner was talk of a proposed
merger among Minnesota's amateur golf associations. The advantages
of a combined golf association were obvious, given the aging
demographics of volunteer board members, the duplication of
championship administration efforts and the decline in golfer
participation. But tradition, mission and association loyalties
ran deep.
Rob Etten, a board member and strategic planning executive,
knew the merger was good for golf in Minnesota, in spite of the
turbulence the idea created in some minds.
" We were very deliberate and inclusive from the beginning " he
said, adding, " Tom took all of the questions and never flinched
nor waivered-and that's leadership. "
After a highly structured process which involved all stakeholders
and impacted parties, plus the support of important influencers,
including Rice, Nora McGuire, women's vice president, and
Barb Hanson, a past president, officers representing the MGA,
MWGA and MWPGA formally signed a merger agreement,
effective Jan. 1, 2016.
" Tom made the leaders of the women's golf associations feel like
they were bringing value to the table, and the vision that what was
good for amateur golf in Minnesota was good for women's golf.
While Rebbie was the right leader for his time, Tom was the right
leader for the merger, " Rice explains. " We can't replace Tom, but
we can search for a worthy successor. "
'Growing the game' is a popular industry motto, yet real growth
is one of golf's greatest challenges. The golf industry took almost
a decade to recover from the economic downturn of 2008-2009.
Just as golfer participation began to tic up in 2019, the pandemic
shut everything down in March 2020.
There was more than just a little bit of panic among golf course
operators that Governor Tim Walz, via executive fiat, would keep
golf courses closed indefinitely. A coalition of association and golf
industry leaders, with Ryan at the helm, worked behind the scenes
with the governor's team in drafting and communicating a package
of best practices that demonstrated that golf facilities and staff
could open and operate in a safe and responsible manner during
the pandemic. Thanks in part to Ryan's consensus building,
steadying influence and communications skills, just five weeks
into the global pandemic, Walz opened golf courses on April 18.
" The MGA really led the way in convincing the powers that
be that golf could be played safely, " recalls Simmons. As a result,
golfer participation would spike to 30 percent in 2020, after golf
became one of the few outdoor activities possible under social distancing
requirements. Ryan's fortitude served the game and the
MGA well, and he's left them both in a better place, says Etten.
Ryan joined Judd Zulgad (pictured center) and crew on the SKOR North's
sports podcast at the Minnesota Golf Show.
Leo Gellert and Lincoln Johnson pictured with Ryan at the 1st
2020 MGA Amateur Championship.
tee during the
mngolf.org
Betsy Aldrich, the 2019 MGA Women's Senior Match Play Champion, and Ryan
at the 2019 MGA Women's and Senior Women's Match Play Championships.
Summer 2023 MINNESOTAGOLFER 29
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Minnesota Golfer - Summer 2023

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