Ron Rawls is the PGA head professional at Crane Creek Country Club in Boise, Idaho.

In the past, I would go into each new golf season with the best of intentions to play with as many of my members as possible. This goal would often slip away as I became immersed in the many duties that go along with being a PGA head professional. But that hasn’t been the case the past two years thanks to the Pro-GM Challenge. The format pits me against Crane Creek PGA General Manager Ben Hay in four rounds of golf. Members sign up to play as part of either of our foursomes in the best-ball event, and we switch teammates at the turn. The running totals for our two teams are posted on the bulletin board in the clubhouse. (Not to brag, but I won the inaugural edition.) The bigger picture is that each of us got to play with 24 members during the month-long challenge. It’s attracting the interest of golfers regardless of handicap or gender and has become very popular. It’s really nice to play with members who we hadn’t played with before.

Building familiarity with your members is a great way to make a golf facility feel like a home away from home. The more comfort your members feel with you and the facility, the better for business. The Pro-GM Challenge is a fun tournament that energizes our membership, and it also provides Ben and me a chance to increase participation in our club’s other events.