Joe Jemsek, was a pioneer in golf. Born in 1913, he grew up near the Chicago rail yards and was introduced to golf as a caddie at Cog Hill Golf & Country Club located in Palos Park. After becoming the caddie master and a golf professional, Joe competed and won the World Long Drive Championship at the 1933 World’s Fair in Chicago, with a drive of 595 yards – at that time he was the world record holder for distance in hitting a golf ball. In 1936, Joe took his new success and fame to become the head golf professional and manager at St. Andrews. Frank Hough (father of Grace and Alice) had built the 36-hole course starting in 1926 to rival top clubs such as Chicago Golf and others. With the depression and Frank’s death, sisters Grace and Alice ran the business. Joe later married Grace (They had two children- Frank and Marianne.) and they became sole owners of the 36-hole course. At St. Andrews, Joe set about to make many improvements and bring private club
quality to the public golfer. He improved course conditions which suffered with the Great Depression. Joe was the first in many ways at St. Andrews – including offering golfers:
As Joe’s skills brought about more success at St. Andrews, he was able to purchase 3 more golf properties in Chicagoland – Fresh Meadow, Glen Woodie, and his beloved Cog Hill where he once had been a caddie and golf professional.
Based out of St. Andrews, Joe’s vision to improve the game for “regular” everyday golfers continued into the 1940’s and 50’s where he had more firsts in the sport – such as:
Joe is credited with inventing or coining the phrase “Country Club for a Day” by establishing high quality service levels at public courses. For years working at St. Andrews, Joe heard players wish they could play Medina or other fancy clubs just once in their life. As Chicago grew, he saw his chance to build a superior quality course in Dubsdread at Cog Hill. When done, it was seen as a turning point for golf as players from around the country flocked to play the great course for a greens fee. This example launched a trend where today, public golf courses are often seen as being on “par” with private clubs in most markets.
The National Golf Course Owners Association was started by a group of golf owners (including Joe Jemsek) that saw the need for owners to have representation with trade groups and local governments. The founding of the NGCOA has helped owners and operators to find resources and information to help improve operations and inform the general public about the benefits that family-owned golf courses can bring to a community (offer recreation, pay taxes, create jobs, etc). For the many contributions made by Joe Jemsek, the NGCOA’s course award for excellence is named after Joe Jemsek and each year, a top public course is recognized for excellence with the organization’s Jemsek Award.
This award recognizes a golf course that epitomizes exceptional course quality and management excellence, while making important contributions to their communities and the game. Award recipients will be honored at NGCOA's annual Golf Business Conference 2024, being held January 22-24, 2024 in Orlando, Florida. For a list of past National Course of the Year Award winners, click here.
2024 Northampton Country Club, Leeds, MA
2023 Straits Course at Whistling Straits, Sheboygan, WI
2022 Sweetgrass Golf Club at Island Resort & Casino, Harris, MI
St. Andrews Golf & Country Club
2241 Route 59 West Chicago, IL 60185
www.standrewsgc.com
(630)231-3100 x139