2023 JAGA Award Winners include Mike Miles and Boots Farley
JACKSONVILLE, FL – The Jacksonville Area Golf Association announced its 2023 JAGA Award winners at the organization’s end-of-year Annual Meeting yesterday at Marsh Landing Country Club.
The honorees are:
Club Executive of the Year – Mike Miles/The Yards
Community Service Award – City of Jacksonville Beach, Florida
Earl & Eleanor Kelly Long-Term Service Award – Boots Farley/Northern Florida PGA Chapter
JAGA Director of the Year – Joe Grippi/Deerwood Country Club
Professional of the Year – Wes Tucker/St. Johns Golf Club
Superintendent of the Year – Nate Maurer/Jacksonville Golf and Country Club
CLUB EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR
Mike Miles
The Yards, General Manager
Presenter: John Milton, JAGA President and JAGA Director/Jax Beach Golf Club
A native Californian who attended Cal State – Long Beach on a golf scholarship and played professionally, including on the PGA TOUR, Mike came to the Jacksonville area in 2016 to help Yards owner Dave Miller create and carry out The Yards’ unique vision and experience. Formerly Oak Bridge Club at Sawgrass, Miles and staff transformed the Ponte Vedra property into a fun social hub and one-of-a-kind sports and entertainment venue for members and non-members alike. An alternative to the prototypical 18-hole golf facility, The Yards is home to the only 12-hole course in Northeast Florida and features its Par 3 “Back Yard” course (aka the “Beer Loop”). In addition to golf, The Yards has fine dining, a patio pavilion, tennis and pickleball courts. Opened in 2020, The Yards has more than met its goal of introducing an alternative and fun approach to the game of golf.
EARL & ELEANOR KELLY LONG-TERM SERVICE AWARD
Boots Farley
PGA of America, Northern Chapter of the North Florida PGA Section
Presenter: Fred Seely, Past JAGA President and Director/Timuquana Country Club
As well-known and well respected as any PGA professional in the Northern Chapter, Boots Farley has worn many hats during his 45-year career in the golf business in Jacksonville. His resume includes club professional and instructor roles at Deerwood, Hidden Hills, The Ravines, and Jax Beach Golf Club (23 years), director of the North Florida Junior Golf Foundation (two stints) and executive director of the First Tee of North Florida. Currently, Farley runs Boots Farley Golf Instruction, with The Yards his home base. The Wolfson grad has won numerous PGA of America chapter and section awards, and in 2013, he was inducted into the North Florida PGA Section Hall of Fame. The apple didn’t fall far from the tree, either. Farley’s son, Hayes, is a popular instructor on the San Jose Country Club golf staff and his daughter, Kacy, is the assistant coach for the Providence girls’ golf team.