2019 Yearbook.indd

14 | K ory Brown was a new addition to Ballard Golf and Country Club in Huxley in late 2018. He has made an immediate impact. In his first month of the job he got right to work in reseeding many areas of the course, including large portions of the putting greens that had struggled throughout the year. This work proved to give him a leg up when his first full season at Ballard began in 2019. The membership at Ballard had been talking about a major renovation to all their teeing grounds for quite some time. Kory took on that task in 2019. This entailed seeding all 50,000 square feet of teeing areas at once using in-house labor, which saved a ton of money. However, as with any big project, there were bumps in the road, including untimely rains and ever some vandalism. Through all this Kory stayed positive and encouraged his crew to push forward, the mark of a true leader. A aron Krueger is currently the Director of Golf at Wakonda Club in Des Moines and has been part of the Wakonda staff since 2011. Aaron has been described as “one of the hardest working, most dedicated golf professionals in the business” by the staff at Wakonda. He has provided great vision and oversight to the golf operations at Wakonda and is an excellent communicator with the members and staff. In addition to excelling in the day-to-day operations at Wakonda, Aaron has dedicated several years to serving the Iowa PGA Section as a volunteer and has worked his way through the board officer positions. He just completed his term as President in the fall of 2019. In addition to his work with the Iowa PGA, he also contributes a tremendous amount of time and energy assisting with the coordination of the Principal Charity Classic each year. The PCC has been held annually at Wakonda since 2013. The tournament raises over $5 million dollars for charity each year. PGA Professional of the Year Aaron Krueger - Wakonda Club Annual Award Winners 18-Hole Superintendent of the Year Ryan Lux - Echo Valley Country Club 9-Hole Superintendent of the Year Kory Brown - Ballard Golf and Country Club Club Manager of the Year John Dinnebier - Briarwood Golf Club J ohn Dinnebier became the General manager of Briarwood Golf Club in July of 2018 after serving a couple of decades at Lake Panorama National Golf Course in Panora. He has long been known as one of the best in the business. Dinnebier has had a substantial impact on Briarwood. Since the day he arrived the club has welcomed over 100 new members. His leadership has yielded results by providing a great outlook for the future, and improving the quality of service to the members. Dinnebier is known for his willingness to perform any task at the club. In a single day you can witness him teaching lessons, cooking, bartending, waiting tables and selling memberships. Members have described him as enthusiastic, thoughtful, motivated, dedicated and humble. L ike Kory Brown, Ryan Lux also took on a new job in the fall of 2018. Also like Brown, Lux had a big project to take on. For Lux, it was the complete restoration of all the putting greens on the Vale course at Echo Valley Country Club. He would also oversee the construction and grow-in of a new practice putting green and new chipping and pitching areas. In addition to this huge project, Lux had to spend time getting to know all 27 holes and the surrounding grounds at Echo Valley. He instituted changes in the mowing patterns, irrigation practices and chemical applications to revive the entire golf course. Members commented how the changes Lux made have made the course look and play much better. Lux takes pride in his work and credits a great deal of his success throughout 2019 to his staff. He treats his staff with respect and understands what the membership and ownership are looking for in their golf course.