USAG CASEY, Republic of Korea - The Indianhead Golf Course here was given the Best Army Golf Course 2009 Excellence in Management for Golf Course Management award Jan. 24.
The award mentioned several reasons why the course on U.S. Army Garrison Casey stood out; among them is the fact management made more than $2 million each year for two consecutive years. Another fact mentioned in the award is customer satisfaction.
"The customers who come to play golf are made to feel as though they are family," said Pak, Song yong, Casey golf course manager. "We provide a lot of services for Soldiers."
Pak learned he and his employees at the golf course were named as winners of the award while attending a Professional Golfers' Association of America golf club management seminar in Orlando, Fla.
"A lot of Army golf course managers were in attendance in Orlando," Pak said. "I was totally surprised."
"This is actually a part of the James A. Carroll Award," said Chris Bradford, Red Cloud Garrison's FMWR acting director. "For the golf clubs it is called the Best in the Army Excellence in Management Award. We won this time for making more than a million dollars in revenue."
In the past, FMWR headquarters only had the Carroll Award for the club system, but added the category for golf and bowling several years ago, Bradford explained. The award was originally given to club managers.
"There was a lot of competition," Bradford said. "Pak had been nominated for the past three years in a row, and he is always competing against all the largest golf courses in the Army. The judging is done by revenue and not by the size of the golf course. The Casey golf course brings in a lot of revenue for a small nine-hole course."
Pak and the golf course team of employees work together to provide the sports services to Soldiers, like free golf lessons and other free services as well as hosting many golf tournaments. For a small nine-hole golf course to be chosen as the best in the Army by raising more than a million dollars in revenue for one year is indeed remarkable, Bradford explained.
"This award is for the Indianhead Golf Course team," Pak said. "I could not have done it without them."
The FMWR Golf Program throughout Korea has gone through a number of challenges this past year, which resulted in a decline in revenues, Bradford said. Pak was able to meet these challenges and once again record the highest percentage for the peninsula. This nine-hole course boasted total revenue of $1,517,036 for fiscal 2009. This small course on the frontlines of freedom continues to be a leader in Army golf operations. Pak was able to accomplish this by aggressively monitoring and controlling labor costs as revenues declined, he said.
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