Page 14 - GBC ENG Winter 2025

Clint Eastwood Mike Weir with Jeff and the NGCOA Canada
Staff following Weir’s Masters Win, 2003.
George Bush Canadian Olympic Gold
Medalist Mark Tewksbury
Tom Cochrane
Gary Player
Catherine Zeta-Jones & Michael Douglas
all Ontario golf courses going
forward was a big highlight. Our
COVID-19 leadership was another
defining moment – we kept golf
open, guided safety protocols, and
issued 750 regional updates during
the ever-changing government
regulations.
The launch of National Golf
Day and the first Economic Impact
Study in 2009 are also memorable
highlights that I devoted a lot of
effort towards. Dozens of
subsequent media interviews
followed, including The Wall Street
Journal and Economist Magazine,
as well as national TV interviews
on CBC, CTV and Global.
I have met many celebrities
along the way, from PGA Tour
legends such as Nicklaus, Palmer
and Player to numerous musicians
and movie stars including my
favourite Catherine Zeta-Jones,
and a couple of American
Presidents. Hearing George W.
Bush tell me that he thinks I have
the coolest job ever was a
memorable conversation!
GBC: With great success also
comes challenges along the way.
What were the toughest moments,
and how did you navigate them?
JC: As noted earlier, getting
NGCOA Canada off the ground
was a huge challenge – no money,
no staff, and just pure
determination. I lived by my motto,
“Bite off more than you can chew
and chew like hell”. One of the
toughest challenges was during the
2009 Great Recession, which also
coincided with a golf industry
contraction. For the first time since
NGCOA Canada’s launch, I was
faced with missing budgets and no
easy way out. Our membership
declined slightly as golf courses
suffered. The solution required
some short-term pain as we
trimmed expenses, which included
a reduction of three staff positions
and then some more proactive and
creative solutions going forward.
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Golf Business Canada