Gene Westmoreland Receives IAGA Distinguished Service Award

Westmoreland is a lifelong resident of Westchester County, born in New Rochelle, NY on December 29, 1943. Growing up in Harrison, Gene got his start in golf as a caddie at Harrison Country Club (now Willow Ridge) which may have inspired him to create, on behalf of the MGA, their unique “Caddie Academies” and their handbook “Getting Started as a Caddie”. He pursued his undergraduate studies at Pace University and coached there for 14 years after graduation, rising to become head coach of the school’s varsity baseball and basketball teams, as well as the assistant athletic director. He is a member of the Pace Athletic Hall of Fame.

In 1978, Westmoreland joined the MGA’s field team, which helps conduct the on-site activities at MGA tournaments. He quickly became admired for his knowledge of the game and superb organizational skills, and in 1980, he was hired to take over the tournament department. From the start, he showed an innate capability to manage the many tentacles of the MGA tournament program: the corps of more than 300 volunteer officials and 3,000 active competitors, the screening of host clubs and courses years in advance, and the logistical challenges of an 80-day tournament calendar.

A nationally respected authority on the Rules of Golf, Gene served on the Rules Committee for several USGA championships, including the 2002, 2004 and 2006 U.S. Opens. Gene was equally influential in the area of golf course maintenance, spearheading the creation of the Tri-State Turf Research Foundation. He was given the Metropolitan Golf Course Superintendents Association’s highest honor, the John Reid Lifetime Achievement Award, in 2005.