News

JAMESVILLE, N.Y. – The New York State Golf Association (NYSGA) is proud to announce the inaugural class of the Distinguished Service Awards.

The recipients are celebrated for their tremendous contributions to the NYSGA and its regional associations. Each inductee was nominated and approved by the Tournament Committee. 

The following people are being honored and recognized as part of the 2026 inaugural class: Richard W. Dorgan Jr., Joseph Enright, Sherry M. Heath, Joseph Strykowski, and Warren Winslow. 

RICHARD W. DORGAN, JR. · President, 2010–11 ·  Albany Country Club · d. July 2025
(Served the Capital Region) 

Dick Dorgan began volunteering for the NYSGA in 1990 and never stopped. He became an expert in the Rules of Golf and a senior official, and he was the only NYSGA volunteer of his era to serve actively on a USGA committee with fourteen years on the U.S. Mid Amateur Committee. Fifteen years on the Executive Committee across two separate stints: Second Vice President in the mid-1990s, back as a member in 2004, and up through the chairs to the presidency in 2010–11. As a director of the NYSGA Foundation he moved the bylaws amendment permitting electronic meetings and the NYSGA’s whistleblower, record retention and harassment-free workplace policies.  He died the day after returning home from the 2025 NYS Women's Amateur Championship at St. George's on Long Island, 36 seasons with the NYSGA after he started. 

JOSEPH ENRIGHT · President, 2020–21 · Lancaster Country Club · d. July 2025
(Served the Western NY Region) 

Eleven consecutive years on the Executive Committee, 2012 through 2022, rising through the chairs to the presidency in 2020–21 — the COVID presidency. He also served as President of the NYSGA Foundation. His lasting contribution is the Hall of Fame. He chaired it from 2013 until his death in 2025. He built the framework in 2016, and was still recruiting nominees and refining it in January 2024, two years after leaving the board. It was in those same notes that he first proposed placing the Distinguished Service Award within the Hall of Fame evening. Through all of it he was the NYSGA’s go-to volunteer in Western New York, logging 195 hours in 2022 and 158 in 2024: the Porter Cup, the International Junior Masters, the BDGA championships, the qualifier at his own club. He died days before the 2025 NYS Men's Amateur.

SHERRY M. HEATH · President, 1984–85 · Binghamton Country Club
(Served the Southern Tier Region) 

Sherry Heath's name appears in NYSGA records across five decades. He chaired the Men's Senior Tournament in 1981, was 2nd Vice President by that same year, and served as President in 1984–85. Fourteen years on the Executive Committee, with a documented presence at NYSGA meetings from 1982 through 2020. For thirty-five years he chaired and administered the Southern Tier sectional qualifiers for the Men's Amateur and the Mid-Amateur. Heath served as a senior Rules Official at NYSGA championships for more than thirty years. He was a director of the NYSGA Foundation, and in 2015 he co-chaired the Hall of Fame Committee alongside President Dick Galvin. Few volunteers in the NYSGA’s history have served across so many decades in so many capacities. 

JOSEPH STRYKOWSKI · President, 2016–17 · Tournament Committee Chair, 2018–2023
(Served the Southern Tier Region) 

Joe Strykowski joined the Executive Committee in 2012, served as First Vice President in 2014–15, and was President in 2016–17. At the 2017 Annual Meeting he was thanked for his work through what the minutes record as "somewhat trying times" — he had spent roughly sixteen months leading the association's partnership negotiations with the Buffalo District Golf Association, producing the collaborative agreement adopted in March 2018. What sets him apart is what came after the offices. He chaired the Tournament Committee from 2018 to 2023 and worked every NYSGA championship through those years, having already given three seasons as assistant to Tom Reidy (2015-2017). In 2022 he was the busiest volunteer in the entire NYSGA by hours worked: 168.5 across 22 championship days, against a field average of 46. In 2024 he worked 173 hours over 20 days. He worked 15 days in 2025 before retiring at the close of the season. 

WARREN WINSLOW · President, 2018–19 · Western Turnpike Golf Club
(Serves the Capital Region) 

Eleven consecutive years on the Executive Committee, 2012-2022, rising through the chairs to the presidency in 2018–19. A director of the NYSGA Foundation, and twice a member of the Nominating Committee. Alongside the governance, 25 years of course rating. His earliest rating was Catskill Golf Club in August 2001, and he has spent more than a decade as Team Leader for the Capital Region, attending USGA Calibration Conferences along the way. Winslow became a senior Rules Official in 2012 and has refereed every NYSGA competition in his region since, traveling to championships across the state. In 2025, four years after his presidency ended, he logged 169 hours across 24 days — second only to one volunteer in the entire NYSGA. He was named the 2024 Course Rating Volunteer of the Year regional honoree for Eastern New York. 

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The New York State Golf Association (NYSGA) is also proud to announce the recipients of the 2026 annual Volunteer of the Year Awards, recognizing outstanding commitment and contributions from both Tournament and Course Rating committee members.

Honorees were selected based on their number of days worked, involvement in special events or projects, support of fellow volunteers, exemplary conduct while representing the association, and willingness to exceed expectations in their respective roles.

They were each officially recognized during the NYSGA's Annual Meeting held on Friday, November 6, 2026 at Wolferts Roost Country Club.

The following people are being honored and recognized as part of the 2026 class: Al Belair and Brandon Payne.

AL BELAIR
Course Rating Volunteer of the Year · WNY Team Leader

Al Belair stepped up to be the WNY Course Rating Team Leader in 2019 and has been a consistent presence in WNY Course Rating ever since. In 2026, he led 10 course ratings and contributed over 100 total hours (including more than 40 on-course hours) between preparation, rating, and post-rating analysis. As a certified USGA Course Rater, Al is extremely knowledgeable in all facets of the USGA / NYSGA Course Rating process and is happy to share his knowledge with beginner and experienced raters alike. Al is also an ambassador for NYSGA Course Rating as he often interacts with golf course personnel in his home area regarding questions about Course Rating. Al is the definition of a consummate team player and his dedication to Course Rating represents everything the NYSGA could ask for in a volunteer.

BRANDON PAYNE
Tournament Volunteer of the Year

Brandon Payne joined the NYSGA volunteer program in 2021 after discovering the opportunity through the NYSGA Rules of Golf Seminars he attended as a high school coach. Since then, he has been a mainstay of the program and has barely missed any NYSGA Championships that have been conducted during the summer months. In 2026, Brandon logged 85 volunteer hours and traveled extensively across NYS to support events spanning diverse demographics from the Boys’ and Girls’ 14U and 18U Junior Amateur Championships to the Senior Amateur Championships. His Expert Certification in the Rules of Golf provides immense value to every event that he serves. Always showing up to an event fully prepared for whatever the day may bring, Brandon is readily recognizable by his signature NYSGA bucket hat and fun socks, bringing both expertise and enthusiasm to every championship he serves.