He was the right guy at the right time for the Iowa Golf Association. Those words have been mentioned numerous times when describing Bill Dickens.

The IGA as we know it today is due in large part to the efforts of Bill (pictured right) and his passion for golf administration. After establishing an IGA office in Urbandale when he was hired in 2001, his achievements include:

• Building a strong revenue stream and balance sheet with cash reserves able to carry the association through tough times.

• Building and supporting a schedule of great IGA Championships and other events that provide competitive opportunities for players all across the state, which many consider to be unmatched anywhere else in the country.

• Championed the effort to include all members into events with the use and understanding of the USGA Handicap System and the GHIN Service.

• Working with then-IGA President Joe Kehoe on a multi-year effort to merge the Iowa Women’s Golf Association with the IGA, strengthening the game for women golfers in the state, and promoting the Ann Griffel Scholarship.

• Established the IGA Foundation in 2011 to administer and support the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame, the Herman Sani Scholarship, junior golf initiatives and turfgrass and environmental education.

• Reinvigorated the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame in 2006 after a nine-year hiatus of inductions, and created member plaques and other historic displays in the IGA office.

• Formulated the idea for Golf House Iowa and put energy and drive behind the idea that has now been brought to fruition.

Those first few years of Bill’s leadership could be titled ‘Back to the Basics’.

“He (Bill) faced a hurdle when he first started at the IGA,” IGA Executive Director & CEO Chad Pitts said. “He found he needed to get back to the basics of golf administration, and he had to teach those basics to staff and board members alike. Things as simple as referring to every person on the GHIN roster as a member of the IGA, having full teams to perform course ratings, how to conduct board meetings, how to properly mark a golf course and prepare a rules sheet, or even getting a new thing called a website up and running. Sounds simple now but that was what the IGA wasn’t doing before Bill got there. I think it is fair to say he revamped the way the staff and board thought about the IGA and what it was capable of and there is no doubt that has carried on to today.”

Due to Bill’s tireless efforts, it is accurate to say that many associations around the country look to Iowa as a blueprint for how golf should be administered at the highest level.

“Bill was the driving force behind so many efforts around the IGA and IGAF, it’s difficult to just pick a few to highlight,” Steve Jermier said. “The IGA is known nationally among its peers as a standard bearer for producing an incredible product with limited resources compared to larger state and regional associations. That reputation simply wouldn’t exist without the contributions, leadership, and vision from Bill Dickens.”

In addition to his service to game of golf in Iowa, Bill was awarded the prestigious Ike Grainger Award from the USGA in 2016 recognizing 25 years of service as a USGA Committee Member.