PAM PHIPPS, MASTER PROFESSIONAL, DIRECTOR OF GOLF
Pam Phipps has come home to Michigan as Director of Golf for Black Lake Golf Club at the United Automobile Workers' Walter and May Reuther Family Education Center.
Phipps comes to Black Lake from five years as Director of Golf at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla., the 36-hole headquarters of the Ladies Professional Golf Association.
"I left a great job to come to Black Lake, so obviously I thought there was something special here," Phipps said.
"Rees Jones is one of my favorite architects. This is the third Rees Jones course I have been associated with, so I knew that Black Lake would be a great course. In fact, it's spectacular, and it's a true test for all golfers," Phipps said.
"I looked forward to coming home to Michigan," said Phipps, who grew up in the northern Detroit suburb of Oxford. "I wanted to end my career where I started."
Phipps became the first woman to attain Master Professional status in the Professional Golfers Association of America in 1994, and her thesis is a hallmark of her career: "Customer Service: Winning with People."
Phipps also is a Class A member of the LPGA and was named LPGA Golf Professional of the Year in 1995. She oversaw one of the leading golf operations in the country at LPGA International, which hosts up to 70,000 rounds annually on its two courses.
LPGA International was selected No. 1 Most Women Friendly Course in America by Golf for Women magazine from 1995-98, and three times Golf Shop Operations selected LPGA International as one of the 100 Best Golf Shops in America.
Phipps started on the ground floor in golf, working in the pro shop at Oxford Hills Country Club where she won the club's stroke and match play championships, and she spent one summer working at Carl's Golfland in Bloomfield Hills, which has made the Golf Shop Operations top 100 list every year since it was established.
"I learned a lot about teaching and merchandising while I was at Carl's," Phipps said.
She played on the varsity golf team at Central Michigan University and then decided to make her career in golf. She transferred to Ferris State University where she enrolled in the Professional Golf Management Program and graduated from Ferris in 1983.
Following her graduation from Ferris, where she was captain and most valuable player on the golf team, Phipps headed to Hilton Head, S.C. She was head professional at Oyster Reef Golf Club from 1985-89, then was head professional and manager at Cotton Creek Golf Club in Spartanburg, S.C., from 1989-90. Phipps was appointed Director of Golf for Palmetto Golf, which operated the Country Club of Beaufort.
Phipps also organized golf packages, tours and tournaments on Hilton Head and Beaufort before her appointment at LPGA International.
Golf Instruction & Clinics ][ Tournaments & Outings ][ Clubhouse/Black Lake Grill ][ Home Page
©Black Lake Golf Club 2008
Onaway, Michigan
Pam Phipps, Director of Golf 989.733.GOLF (4653)
