with Joey Johnson & Randy Burgan
Andy Priest is the Executive Director of the Alabama Golf Association. He accepted the position in November of 2015 after serving the Carolinas Golf Association in various roles for almost sixteen years. We spent some time recently with Andy to learn a little more about him, what’s happening at the AGA, and his thoughts on the game.
SF: Andy, you came to Alabama after being with the Carolinas Golf Association for a number of years. How did you get started with the CGA?
AP: I grew up in Raleigh, NC. My dad worked at N.C. State for 40 years and grew up six blocks from campus, so I’m a huge Wolfpack fan.
I went to Campbell University on a baseball scholarship. Golf was always one of my favorite sports, but with golf and baseball always in the same season it was hard to do both.
After finishing my undergraduate degree, I began working on a Master’s degree while serving as a Graduate Assistant in the Campbell Athletic Department.
I went to John Crooks who is the long-time golf coach at Campbell and asked if he knew of any opportunities where I could use my love of golf and operations to begin a career. He had just received a notice from the Carolinas Golf Association about their internship program. So, I applied and was lucky enough to be offered one of the two positions that summer. My parents thought I was crazy because I had just finished my MBA and now I was working as an intern for $800 a month.
The CGA did not have a full-time position at that time, so I went to work for the International Junior Golf Tour based in Hilton Head and worked for them for 2 1/2 years. Fast forward 20 years and here I am. I feel like I made a really good decision!
SF: How did you end up back with the CGA?
AP: I received a call in late 1999 from Jack Nance (long-time CGA Executive Director) saying that he had a job for me where I quickly replied “when do I start!” My first day at the CGA was on January 2nd, 2000 and worked there for almost 16 years wearing a number of different hats. My first position was Assistant Tournament and Communications Director.
I had no real communications experience and self-taught myself a lot of what I was hired to do. The internet was really just getting rolling back then so one of my main duties was website development and management. However, tournaments were really where my focus and heart was, so as time went on I took more of a role on the tournament side.
My fiancé at the time and now my wife, Tiffany, was hired as the Director of Women’s Golf at the CGA. So we ended up working side-by-side there for about 14 years.
SF: Tell us about the transition from the Carolinas to Alabama.
When the job at the Alabama Golf Association came open it took a lot of soul searching because I knew if I left then Tiffany was leaving too. She was leaving behind a career that she had built and I was leaving, in my opinion, the best tournament director position in the country. It wasn’t an easy decision, especially with most of our family and friends nearby in the Triangle area. But we looked at the big picture that these opportunities do not present themselves very often and took a leap of faith.
I knew there were a lot of opportunities in Alabama. Rusty Harder, who had been the Tournament Director with the AGA, and I worked together for 3 years at the CGA so I had some invaluable inside information during the process. The people of Alabama have been beyond welcoming and are the kindest you will find anywhere.
Tiffany is now a Rules Official for the LPGA Symetra Tour. So, thankfully the move has worked out well for her career too.
SF: How did you first become interested in golf?
AP: My dad introduced me to the game. Golf is very much a generational game. I recently learned a statistic at a conference last fall that 82% of golfers are introduced to the game by a parent or guardian. The more people we can engage and hook into playing the game for life, the better off we’re going to be. It’s a sport that’s unlike any other with the life lessons and the relationships that are learned from it. For the vast majority of people, golf is about bringing people together, socializing, and being around friends and family simply enjoying time together. To me, that’s what golf is really about.
My family grew up watching the Masters and that was the thing that got my golf juices flowing. You got to see Augusta and how pretty it was. I always thought “one day I’m going to get to go there”. And fortunately I have been several times including an unforgettable trip once with my dad before he passed away.
I grew up playing a nine-hole par-3 course at the N.C. State Faculty Club. The holes were 80 to 120 yards and we hit off mats, but some of the best golf memories that I have are of playing there.
AGA Executive Director Andy Priest accompanies AGA Members on an golf trip to Ireland.
SF: What are some of the primary functions of the AGA?
AP: AGA has been around since 1915. The association was started with the purpose of conducting the Men’s State Amateur, which is how most golf associations were started. Over time more and more responsibilities were taken on.
We are probably most known for administering the handicap and course rating system in the state, conducting championships, and serving as the USGA’s partner responsible for delivering core services such as handicapping, course rating, education, and USGA National Championship Qualifying.
Our staff is always looking for opportunities to promote golf, what it means to be a member and trying to provide services to our Member Clubs such as the USGA Tournament Management powered by Golf Genius (USGA TM) software. Overall, USGA TM has been well received by our clubs. Software helps them manage their day-to-day operations, charity events and higher level tournaments. We have conducted over 20 rules seminars this year teaching the new Rules of Golf changes. We certainly feel those have been well received by the vast majority of golfers.
SF: Tell us a little about some of the events the AGA will be conducting this year.
Our flagship event is the Alabama State Amateur Championship. This year it will be held at Turtle Point which is an absolutely beautiful course in the north part of the State in Killen. It offers a great setting on the Tennessee River. The Women’s State Amateur this year is in July at Cherokee Ridge in Union Grove.
The Southern Junior Cup Matches is a four team event consisting of Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Missouri that will be played at Willow Point this year. Six boys and six girls represent each state. We play mixed four-ball and mixed foursomes the first day and singles on day two. This event is rotated between the four states and this is our first year to host. We are excited to showcase one of the best facilities in our state.
State Mixed Team is a new championship this year. Each two-person team is comprised of a male and female. We thought a destination venue would be well-suited for this tournament and thrilled that Kiva Dunes will host us in September.
In all, we have 19 championships as well as conducting the AHSAA and AISA state high school championships, USGA qualifiers and the SEC Men’s Golf Championship at Sea Island.
SF: What are your thoughts so far on the 2019 rules changes?
AP: Overall, the rules changes have been awesome for everyday play. When you look at some of the comments that have been voiced at the professional level, I think once they understand the “why” behind some of the changes, then they have a much better understanding. Two or three rules changes have caught a lot of attention that unfortunately has overshadowed the many great changes to the Rules of Golf. And, I think that’s a shame. The new rules – leaving the flagstick in, reducing search time to three minutes, removing some of the penalties for accidental actions, these things really are serving to speed the game up and to some degree simplify the game.
SF: Which rule do you think will be the most difficult for the average golfer to implement?
AP: From what we have seen so far, I would have to say the change to dropping from knee height. There’s a reason why that change was made. You have a relief area that the ball must land in and stay within. Knee height helps accomplish this task more quickly. Again, once people understand the “why” then there will be more acceptance of the change. There is an adjustment period for anything new.
SF: How do you think golf might be different a decade or two down the road?
AP: Equipment is always going to be a hot topic. Time is a big factor, and we’re doing what we can to speed up the game. Making the game more accessible is important and you’ll see more coming from us on that. We can see in our membership numbers that after a steady decline for several years that our membership is finally increasing again. Hopefully we can keep trending in that direction.
SF: What is your take on the state of golf not just in the State of Alabama, but globally?
AP: I’m very bullish on golf. There’s a lot of upside. I would not have left the Carolinas if I didn’t believe in what we have to offer in Alabama. We have some world-class facilities in our state and to me, pound-for-pound, is one of the top golf states in the country. Outside of college football, Alabama is largely known for the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail. I’m very positive about golf overall and what it can be. There are several great role models on both the men’s and women’s professional tours. Women’s golf especially at the junior level is growing. You can see it in high school and collegiate programs and we see it in our own state events where participation is increasing. Golf is just a different sport from anything else, where you can play it for life. There’s just nothing else like it.
About the Alabama Golf Association
The Alabama Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit educational organization founded in 1915 whose mission is to serve and promote amateur golf in Alabama. AGA is the USGA’s liaison for golf in Alabama. AGA membership consists of over 130 member clubs represented by nearly 18,500 individuals. The activities and services of the Alabama Golf Association are governed by a Board of Directors consisting of Alabama golfers who wish to serve the game and the association through service.
To learn more about the Alabama Golf Association visit alabamagolf.org.
