Finding Our Footing in Alaska
Jeff Ranf, AGA President
The golf industry in Alaska has been booming.
Those of you reading this who don’t live here might be asking, “It’s Alaska. How can you even be playing golf up there in the Great North?”
The answer is simple: our days are much longer and we don’t sleep.
Our season is short, but when it arrives, it grinds into gear quickly. And if you’ve spent any time around Alaska golf, you know that a short season does not mean we lack for golfers, and good ones at that.
Everybody here is from somewhere else unless you’re a Native Alaskan – you or your family probably moved here from the Lower 48. I’m no different. I’ve been an Alaskan resident for 25 years, however I’ve been an avid golfer since I was five years old growing up in Montana.
Admittedly, moving to Alaska was somewhat of a shock.
But I also discovered just how magnificent golf can be here, despite some really bad lies, upon which my golfing friends would say, “Welcome to Alaska.”
Change
Alaska golf has definitely gone through its ups and downs. Through all the rough water we’ve navigated, valuable lessons have been learned and have truly begun to take form.
Members who participate in our events are saying how much they enjoy playing and how organized the tournaments have become. Though we’re certainly not done with the reorganization, we are absolutely on the right path.
And the results are starting to show.
Alaska State Amateur: A One-Shot Finish
Jason Aspelund opened the State Amateur with a 69 and then spent the next two days protecting that lead.
Greg Sanders closed with a 71, the low round of the final day, and came up just one shot short. After 54 holes at Moose Run’s Creek Course, Aspelund finished at 218 and Sanders at 219.
That is championship golf. Three days, 54 holes, and a margin of one shot.
A New Path to the State Am
Starting in 2027, players will qualify for the State Amateur through various AK Golf events and club championships throughout the state. The reception of this modification has been mostly positive.
At the end of the day our goal is simple: the State Amateur should be a championship for golfers who are truly part of Alaska’s golf community and who want the opportunity to represent Alaska in the U.S. Amateur. We’re working hard to make it a fair, competitive and memorable event for the Alaskan golfer.
Qualifying details for 2027 will be announced ahead of next season.
Building Bridges
This year, we made some significant changes to women’s golf.
We split a division, moved a championship, published a venue rotation for the first time in the association’s history, put two women’s events on a single tee sheet, and made changes to how players can participate in our signature women’s event.
The Anchorage Women’s Golf Association (AWGA) hosted its annual Eclectic Tournament and invited AK Golf’s ladies to combine the State Amateur event with theirs.
The result?
The largest Women’s State Amateur field in our history, with 32 entrants. And the comments we heard were that more ladies had wished they’d competed in the event.
More importantly, our working relationship with AWGA has been a huge success, and we believe this is exactly the kind of collaboration that can help Alaska golf continue to grow.
Our goal is not simply to put more names on a tee sheet. It is to remove some of the barriers that keep interested players from getting there in the first place. Thank you, AWGA!
The Senior Championship Gets a Bigger Stage
The Senior division is a standalone championship with its own dates, and beginning in 2027 it will expand to a three-day event.
We believe our senior players deserve a championship that stands on its own, and be given the time and attention which that level of competition deserves.
Junior Golf, at Both Ends
We had two very successful Junior events this year. Our junior programs are growing in interest and are discovering that kids really do want to play.
We cannot commend enough Zach Perry, Steven Taylor and Blake Smith for all the organization and time they put in with our juniors. Thank you!
Moose Run’s Hill Course hosted the 13-to-17 age groups on July 15.
Julia Grimes won the girls 13–14 division, Adrian Yuen took boys 13–14, and Briggs Winfree won boys 15–17.
A card to manage, a number to post, and a back nine that starts feeling a little different somewhere around the 14th hole. That is championship golf.
A week later, Fox Hollow hosted the 6-to-12 age groups. It is a very different kind of golf, but it matters just as much.
This is the age when kids start deciding whether golf is something they want to keep doing. Put those events close together on the calendar and you begin to see something bigger than two tournaments. You see a pathway.
The 13-year-old playing the Hill this year was not that far removed from Fox Hollow. That is how a junior program becomes a pipeline.
Two-Person Best-Ball
Two players. Thirty-six holes. Moose Run’s Creek Course. Better ball counts.
Gross and net, men’s and women’s divisions, with the field capped at 50 teams. Ties are settled hole by hole until someone finally blinks.
Sam Olson and David Hamilton took the title, posting rounds of 71–70 for a 3-under 141. Jakob Brown and Boone Theiler finished second at 1-under 143 after rounds of 70–73.
Best-ball is one of the best partner formats in golf because there is nowhere to hide. Nobody gets carried and nobody gets lost in the format. On any given hole, the good score is the only score that matters.
It is also the one championship where you can make a mess of six holes and still be worth having around. That’s a big reason teams enter. It’s an even bigger reason they come back.
Recap of our July events;
Senior Women’s Amateur Champion: Sarah Limesand
Super Senior Women Champion: Mindy Stefanski
Senior Men’s Amateur Champion: Richard Teders
Super Senior Men’s Amateur Champion: Benjie Sumulong
Two-Person Best-Ball men: Sam Olson, Dave Hamilton
Two-Person Best-Ball women: Sarah Limesand, Toyoko Hawkins
In Other News…
AK Golf has increased its membership by 400 new members in 2026, bringing our total membership to more than 2,700. That kind of growth matters.
It means more people playing. More people competing. More families getting involved. And, hopefully, more young golfers seeing a place for themselves in Alaska golf.
Five Years of Planning
For the first time in association history, we published a five-year venue rotation.
The golf courses are very appreciative of knowing when our events are scheduled and where they will be held. Players can now see where championships are headed and plan their seasons accordingly.
And perhaps most importantly, host courses have a year to prepare for a championship setup instead of eight weeks.
Every championship mentioned above was run by volunteers. Starters. Scorers. Rules officials. Marshals, and much of the administration.
It’s not realistic to ask a facility to create championship conditions on short notice and then be surprised when the course plays like a Tuesday in May. Good championship golf takes preparation, and having a schedule set in advance gives our host facilities the opportunity to do it right.
In 2027, our Match Play moves to Anchorage Golf Course, while the State Amateur heads north to Chena Bend in Fairbanks.
Give Back by Volunteering
Anyone who has stood on a first tee at seven in the morning with a clipboard and a cup of coffee knows it is one of the best seats in the house. We need more people willing to take that seat.
The Fall Jackpot and everything that comes after still need volunteers. If you want to be part of the work that makes these championships happen, sign up.
Click here to sign up as a volunteer.
AK Golf is growing
The fields are growing. The junior programs are growing. Membership is growing. And, perhaps most importantly, we’re building a better foundation for Alaska golf. We’ve had some rough water along the way. However, we’ve found our footing. Now it’s time to keep moving forward.