Pinnacle Bank Championship Friday
Well, the tournament is shaping up and promises to produce more action now that it has reached the half way point. The cut line on Friday, to play Saturday and Sunday, was set at 2 under, and I am so pleased that Joeseph and Cameron made the cut. Both are in safely at a respectable 5 under tied for 28th place.
They are just 6 shots behind leader Robby Shelton who increased his lead from 9 under to 11 under. Robby won this tournament in 2022 and has had 137 starts on the PGA Tour where he has earned over $4 Million dollars. All are making the effort to finish in the top 20 in the season long Korn Ferry point standings which would earn them their PGA cards for 2027
So, Saturday — or “Moving Day” as it is known — is when I expect some fireworks and more low scores. The guys are mentally freed since they have made the cut and now its time to move up the leaderboard with smart, steady play. Both Joseph and Cameron told me that they want to avoid mistakes and sloppiness and stay patient. No three putts, get up and down and stay calm. It was such a pleasure talking with both of them yesterday.
Part of being a professional is talking to the public and journalists. I made a point to approach them only after they were finished with their official scoring duties. Both very gracious and even took time for a couple of photos.
I appreciated that they took the time to let me talk about the AAGD magazine as well as the efforts of the National Golf Player Development Foundation, ngpdf.org where I sit on the Board of Directors. The mission of NGPDF is, “To provide unprecedented funding opportunities to programs that provide skill development and playing opportunities to young people of color and connect them to premier experiences in competitive golf.”
NETWORKING
Well while Joseph and Cameron were taking care of business on the course I was taking care of business off the course. Golf is the ultimate business networking tool and yesterday was no different. I had the opportunity to visit with Tim Clark, Director of Community Impact for Metropolitan Community College of Omaha about economic initiatives in Omaha. Their role is to assist in providing trained skilled labor to the workforce thus adding to a healthy economic infrastructure in the region.
We were joined by health care executive, Alex Sharpe, EA CHI Health whose organization consists of one Academic Medical Center, 28 acute care hospitals, 200 Clinic locations, 18 critical access hospitals, two free-standing behavioral health facilities, one center for the developmentally disabled and one ho. and Yesenia Valenzuela of DLR a global integrated design firm delivering architecture, engineering, interiors, planning, and building optimization for new construction, renovation, and adaptive reuse.
Folks , Golf is business and I encourage everyone to attend golf events as you will be amazed at the contact you will make for extending your personal network as well as creating business opportunities. If you consider yourself a professional then you absolutely must take advantage of the opportunities that this $102 Billion industry offers plus have some fun and entertainment in the process.
