The International Association of Golf Administrators (IAGA) announced today they are honoring Barb Trammell and Happ Lathrop as recipients of the IAGA Distinguished Service Award. The presentation of this award will take place on Tuesday, November 8, during the IAGA Annual Conference Sponsored by Golf Genius at The Grand Hotel Golf Resort and Spa in Point Clear, AL.
“The IAGA is thrilled to recognize Happ and Barb for their tremendous contributions and impact to their organizations, the IAGA community and the golf industry. This is the first time the IAGA has identified two award recipients during a given year. Our committee reviewed several excellent nominees and felt the time was right to expand and recognize two individuals in 2022,” said Jesse Menachem, the Immediate Past President of the IAGA and Executive Director/CEO of Mass Golf, who led the Nominating Committee.
Barb Trammell 
Barb Trammell served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Oregon Golf Association (OGA) from 2007 until her recent retirement this July. Under her leadership, the OGA has grown from an organization with declining annual membership to one that has gained membership for four consecutive years with more than 45,000 unique members and more than 300 clubs in 2021.
In addition to OGA championships flourishing under Trammell’s guidance, the organization made great strides in developing additional playing opportunities designed to target under-served audiences. That includes the OGA Tour, a series of casual, one-day individual and partner competitions played throughout the state by men and women of all skill levels and abilities, and Women’s Interclub Play, a team match-play format for women representing their clubs.
Trammell was also instrumental in forming the Golf Alliance of Oregon, a consortium of key regional golf industry partners to serve as the voice of advocacy for golf. Through its collaborative efforts, the Golf Alliance co-funded three separate Economic Impact Studies, helping educate state legislators on the positive benefits of the business of golf. The consortium proved vital in the golf industry’s regional efforts to weather the pandemic.
“There is no question that the OGA is in a better place today than where it was in 2007, and we are incredibly thankful for what Barb has done in her tenure,” Jeff Allen, president of the OGA Executive Committee. “She leaves big shoes to fill after taking the helm of an organization with significant challenges and setting it on a much steadier course. Her expertise, energy, and passion for the game are unparalleled. She will be missed, but the OGA will continue to thrive thanks largely to her leadership.”
Before joining the OGA, Trammell was the founder and president of VisionFore Solutions, an independent global golf consulting company specializing in event management, competition expertise, and rules education. Before launching her own company, Trammell served as Senior Vice President of Operations for the LPGA Tour. Trammell started her 19-year tenure at the LPGA Tour as a rules official.
Widely regarded as an expert on the Rules of Golf, she was among the first women to be invited to officiate The Masters, The Open Championship, U.S. Open, and the PGA Championship. She also served on the USGA’s Rules of Golf Committee for 15 years and was a member of the more recent Rules Modernization Committee, the group that formalized the 2019 changes to the Rules of Golf. Trammell served as President of the IAGA in 2017 and was instrumental in the creation of the organization’s strategic plan which ultimately led to the IAGA hiring its first ever Executive Director. A graduate of the University of Alabama, Trammell is a Class A member of the PGA of America and has also held roles as a PGA club professional and Division I college golf coach.
Happ Lathrop
Regarded by many as “Mr. Golf” in South Carolina, Happ Lathrop has presided over the game as executive director of the South Carolina Golf Association (SCGA) across four decades. In 1976, he became the first full-time South Carolina Golf Association employee when membership involved 99 clubs (about 11,500 golfers), and assets stood at $50,000. When he retired 42 years later, the association commanded more than $ 1 million in assets and represented the interests of more than 70,000 golfers across nearly 300 clubs.
A fine player in his own right, Lathrop won the state amateur championship in 1968 as an 18-year-old, becoming the youngest to do so at that time. He was South Carolina Inter-Collegiate Champion in the same year. Yet it is his service as an administrator that he is best known for in the South Carolina golf community.
Lathrop also helped create one of the country’s most successful and respected junior development programs through the South Carolina Junior Golf Association (1990) and the South Carolina Junior Golf Foundation (1995). In addition to producing numerous PGA Tour players, those organizations have fostered strong and healthy competition for juniors, awarded more than $1,000,000 in education scholarships and well over $200,000 to organizations for minority and disadvantaged youth.
For all of the events and organizations Lathrop has had a hand in creating or running, his efforts in brokering relationships, sponsorships, and general goodwill for golf in the state are just as far-reaching. He was inducted into the South Carolina Golf Hall of Fame in 1997 and has also been recognized as Father-of-the-Year by the National Father and Son Team Classic tournament in Myrtle Beach.
About the IAGA Distinguished Service Award
The ideal candidate will have made a positive impact on their golf community locally, regionally and/or nationally and will exemplify true professionalism through possessing many of the following characteristics including, but not limited to:
- Leadership, illustrated by their organization or communities they have served having benefited directly from their contributions
- Innovation and creativity, as demonstrated by bringing formative change to their association or community
- Mentorship, by having provided influential guidance to others through their work
- Sharing and promoting an exchange of information through selfless actions leading to proven results that have been impactful and have led to the advancement of an initiative or program
- Collaborative excellence working with allied organizations for the betterment of the game through relationship building
- Exemplary communication skills helping bring communities together for a common goal
- Dedicated service to the industry which exceeded expectations
Click HERE To view past recipients of the IAGA Distinguished Service Award
About the IAGA
The International Association of Golf Administrators (IAGA), formed in 1968, serves as the industry trade organization whose mission is to advance the game of golf and serve those who play it by representing and developing those who lead it. The organization is comprised of over 80 golf associations who represent nearly 800 industry professionals as well as nearly 3M plus golfers across North America. The IAGA provides educational and networking opportunities and business resources to further its member organizations.
