During the off-season, get to know some of our Central New York PGA Section members.
This week’s CNY PGA Member Spotlight:
Dallas Pylinski, PGA
Director of Golf
Seven Oaks Golf Club
For the past four months, Dallas Pylinski (pictured, holding the flag) has been immersed in the renovations taking place at Seven Oaks Golf Club on the campus of Colgate University.
Several improvements are being made to the facility including the clubhouse and the 18-hole Robert Trent Jones-designed course which was recently named among the best campus and college public golf courses in the country according to GolfPass.com.
The renovation project has kept Pylinski busy this off-season and it’s also helped him expand his professional skill set. Here’s what Pylinski (pictured holding the flag) had to say about the challenges of his job and the upcoming season.
How involved have you been with the renovations at Seven Oaks?
I’ve been very involved with certain aspects of the renovation and it’s provided me the opportunity to grow my professional experience. Specifically, I’ve been working on marketing, which includes high involvement with our social media outlets and website. All the materials about the renovation on our social media were created by myself. I’ve also spent a lot of time with the design team at Troon and Indigo Sports creating a fixture plan for the golf shop in the new building. All while communicating effectively those ideas/plans to the university for approval. I’m happy to say that we’ve come to an agreement and am very excited about building it this spring.
What types of challenges have you faced during this process?
One of the biggest challenges during the entire process was keeping the business open when they started extensive work to the course and demolished the clubhouse in late August/early September. Creating a temporary golf shop in the maintenance building, along with a temporary parking lot on a grass space next to our maintenance building (which I spray painted daily to keep prominent), were some of the immediate concerns. Other challenges that come with that are cart storage without a cart barn (where the carts would be staged for play last fall, how we would keep them locked and safe, finding storage for them over the winter). It was also vital that we communicate to our membership, regular guests and the university how we were going to operate and stay open. Some avenues of communication that were crucial were social media outlets, our website, emails to the membership and any confirmation emails that were sent after booking a tee time that detailed any changes due to renovation. There are obviously other challenges but these were some immediate ones.
What are you most excited about for this upcoming season?
There is so much to be excited about for the 2022 season! The clubhouse renovation is one that I’m certainly looking forward to the most. The new golf shop, with all new fixtures and displays, will certainly match what our championship course has always offered. Seven Oaks, with the new clubhouse, will be a place that players will want to stay to enjoy, not only for golf but to have a beautiful place to spend their free time. Outdoor patio seating with a view of the back 6 holes will be especially wonderful. We also have a full tournament slate at Seven Oaks this year, with a special addition of the New York State Mid-Am in September which I’m excited to help with. After the course renovations are complete, I think it will stand the test as one of the most difficult courses in our area from the championship tees, while providing additional teeing opportunities for your average golfer to keep the course enjoyable and fair to play for everyone.
What do you enjoy most about being a PGA Professional?
I enjoy playing the Fall Pro-Pro with Al Seamans the most about being a PGA professional! All kidding aside, there’s a lot to enjoy as it’s provided me everything, from a career aspect, that I have in my life. Probably the relationships that you form with former colleagues and employees is what is most enjoyable. I have some dear friends that I worked with over 10 years ago that I still talk to daily seeking advice, guidance and just to catch up.
To nominate a Section Member for a “Member Spotlight”, email Fran Piraino at franpiraino@gmail.com