The Premier of Victoria, the Honourable Daniel Andrews, joined a host of state industry Professionals Wednesday night for the prestigious Victorian Golf Industry Awards Dinner.

Held at the home of the Victorian PGA Championship, Huntingdale Golf Club, Andrews gave a poignant speech in support of the game and the industry.

President of Golf Victoria, John Hobday, welcomed
guests with a review of the outstanding achievements from 2014, including the release
of a new national MyGolf program driven by the PGA, Golf Australia and state
bodies to promote golf at junior level.

"Our industry provides leisure and
competition opportunities for thousands of Victorians whilst also making a
significant contribution to the employment market and the Victorian economy," said
 Hobday.

"Collectively we are in a strong position
and I’m personally excited about the opportunities ahead for Victorian and
Australian golf."

Former AFL General Manager of Football Operations and Chairman of the MyGolf project committee, Adrian Anderson, provided insight into the evolution of the VFL to AFL and the steps now being taken to emulate this transformation in golf.

A number of Hall of Fame Members were also in attendance including, Brian Simpson, Brian Twite, Kel Llewellyn, Ian Stanley, Bob Shearer and John Davis, who witnessed three new inductees into Victorian Golf Hall of Fame, Bruce Green, Mike Clayton and Jane Lock.

PGA Professionals, Richard Caiolfa and Stuart Leong we recognised for their achievements in the categories of Club Professional and Teaching Professional respectively.

Caiolfa received his award for dedication and commitment to the Rich River Golf Club through the implementation of new events, increased engagement of lady and junior golfers, as well as servicing regional clubs who are without a resident Professional.

Leong received his award for dedication to the game, development of new analytics equipment; utilised by nine national teams and 20 universities, involvement with National and State team development squads and contribution to Australian Tour Professionals, Peter Wilson and Marcus Both.

Su-Hyun Oh and Todd Sinnott, although unable to attend due to playing commitments, received awards for Leading Victorian Amateurs, having both performed exceptionally well throughout the past 12 months.

Oh was a finalist in the US Women’s Amateur and runner up in the 2014 Australian Women’s rankings, while Sinnott won the 2014 Men’s rankings, came runner up in four national ranking events and had outstanding finishes at the BetEasy Masters and Emirates Australian.

Full list of 2014 awards included:

Victorian Club Professional of the Year, Richard Caiolfa, Rich River Golf Club

Victorian Teaching Professional of the Year, Stuart Leong

Victorian Leading Male Amateur, Todd Sinnott

Victorian Leading Female Amateur, Su-Hyun Oh

Victorian Trainee of the Year, Mitchell Sheather, Victoria Golf Club

Victorian Trainee Pro-Am of the Year, Neangar Park Trainee Pro-AM

Volunteer of the Year: Melb Metropolitan Area – Individual Man, Bob Chamberlain, Melton Valley Golf Club

Volunteer of the Year: Melb Metropolitan Area – Individual Woman, Glenyse Addicoat, Statewide

Volunteer of the Year: Country Victoria/Victorian Golf League – Individual Man, Vaughan Cowen, Benalla Golf Club

Volunteer of the Year: Country Victoria/Victorian Golf League – Individual Woman, Margaret McDonald

Choice Hotels 2014 Victorian Pro-Am of the Year, Flinders Partners Group Long Island Pro-Am

Choice Hotels 2013/2014 Victorian Pro-Am Order of Merit Winner, David Bransdon

Trainee graduates were also announced throughout the course of the evening and included: Bradley Alton, Christina Beltran , Andrew Cartledge, Jordan Churches, Dylan Higgins, Luke Hickman, Michael Holland, David Joyce, Ruben Lal, Sienna Lambert, Theo Maroulakos, Elissa Orr, Jack Redford, Sean Roach, Brendan Rowse, Ben Weatherley, Lloyd White and Sebastian Williams.

Photos of the evening will be made available shortly.